Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Achievement Gaps in Mathematics and Opportunities to Learn: Insights from PISA 2012

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
What Matters? Research Trends in International Comparative Studies in Mathematics Education

Part of the book series: Research in Mathematics Education ((RME))

Abstract

According to large-scale comparisons, East Asian students have consistently outperformed students from other nations in mathematics. However, despite the extensive research on these students’ cognitive skills, their noncognitive attributes have been the focus of research far less frequently. This study compares East Asian and US students’ attainments in both cognitive and noncognitive aspects via a secondary analysis of the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2012. It explores the between-system gaps from the perspective of opportunity to learn, and discusses the implications of between-system similarities and differences.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 109.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 139.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 139.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Notes

  1. 1.

    http://edition.cnn.com/2013/12/03/opinion/education-rankings-commentary-schleicher/.

  2. 2.

    All the scales in PISA 2012 questionnaires are scaled to have an OECD average of 0 and a standard deviation of 1. Correspondingly, the between-scale comparisons involve the relative differences with the OECD average level as a reference in terms of standard deviation.

  3. 3.

    Correlation coefficients of 0.1, 0.3, and 0.5 are defined as small, medium, and large, respectively.

References

  • Askew, M., Hodgen, J., Hossain, S., & Bretscher, N. (2010). Values and variables: Mathematics education in high-performing countries. London: Nuffield Foundation.

    Google Scholar 

  • Collie-Patterson, J. M. (2000, November). The effects of four selected components of opportunity to learn mathematics achievement of Grade 12 students in New Providence, Bahamas. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the Mid-South Educational Research Association, Bowling Green, KY.

    Google Scholar 

  • Czehut, K. (2012). The achievement gap, revisited: An empirical assessment of what we can learn from East Asian education. Doctoral dissertation, Harvard University.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gau, S.-J. (1997, March). The distribution and the effects of opportunity to learn on mathematics achievement. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association, Chicago, IL.

    Google Scholar 

  • Grouws, D. A., & Cebulla, K. J. (2000). Improving student achievement in mathematics. Part 1: Research findings. Geneva: International Academy of Education.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hanushek, E. A., Jamison, D. T., Jamison, E. A., & Wӧßmann, L. (2008). Education and economic growth: It’s not just going to school but learning something while there that matters. Education Next, 8(2), 62–70.

    Google Scholar 

  • Herman, J. L., Klein, D. C. D., & Abedi, J. (2000). Assessing students’ opportunity to learn: Teacher and student perspectives. Educational Measurement: Issues and Practice, 19(4), 16–24.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Husen, T. (Ed.). (1967). International study of achievement in mathematics: A comparison of twelve systems. New York: Wiley.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jensen, A. R. (1998). The suppressed relationship between IQ and the reaction time slope parameter of the hick function. Intelligence, 26(1), 43–52.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jerrim, J. (2014). Why do East Asian children perform so well in PISA? An investigation of Western-born children of East Asian descent (Working Paper No. 14–16). Department of Quantitative Social Science, Institute of Education, University of London.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kautz, T., Heckman, J. J., Diris, R., ter Weel, B., & Borghans, L. (2014). Fostering and measuring skills: Improving cognitive and non-cognitive skills to promote lifetime success. Paris: OECD.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Kennedy, J. J. (2011, April). Opportunity to learn: Understanding why the achievement gap exists. EDUC 872. Retrieved from http://docslide.net/documents/opportunity-to-learn-understanding-why-the-achievement-gap-exists.html.

  • Lee, J. (2009). Universals and specifics of math self-concept, math self-efficacy, and math anxiety across 41 PISA 2003 participating countries. Learning and Individual Differences, 19, 355–365.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Leung, F. K. S. (2001). In search of an East Asian identity in mathematics education. Educational Studies in Mathematics, 47, 35–51.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Leung, F. K. S. (2006). Mathematics education in East Asia and the West: Does culture matter? In F. K. S. Leung, D. Graft, & F. Lopez-Real (Eds.), Mathematics education is different cultural traditions—A comparative study of East Asia and the West: The 13th ICMI study (pp. 21–46). New York, NY: Springer.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Mo, Y., Singh, K., & Chang, M. (2012). Opportunity to learn and student engagement: A HLM study on eighth grade science achievement. Educational Research for Policy and Practice, 12(1), 3–19.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Muthen, B., Huang, L.-C., Jo, B., Khoo, S.-T., Goff, G. N., Novak, J. R., & Shih, J. C. (1995). Opportunity-to-learn effects on achievement: Analytical aspects. Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, 17(3), 371–403.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Neisser, U., Boodoo, G., Bouchard, T. J., Boykin, A. W., Brody, N., Ceci, S. J., et al. (1996). Intelligence: Knowns and unknowns. American Psychologist, 51, 77–101.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • OECD. (2012). PISA 2012 technical report. Paris: Author Retrieved from http://www.oecd.org/pisa/pisaproducts/PISA-2012-technical-report-final.pdf.

  • Pianta, R. C., Jay, B., Renate, H., & Fred, M. (2007). Teaching: Opportunities to learn in America’s elementary classrooms. Science, 315(5820), 1795–1796.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Porter, A. (1993). Opportunity to learn. Brief No. 7. Access to Education, 7, 2–6.

    Google Scholar 

  • Porter, A. (2014). Rethinking the achievement gap. Retrieved August 3, 2015, from http://www.gse.upenn.edu/node/269.

  • Reeves, C., Carnoy, M., & Addy, N. (2013). Comparing opportunity to learn and student achievement gains in southern African primary schools: A new approach. International Journal of Educational Development, 33, 426–435.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schmidt, W. H., Houang, R., & Cogan, L. (2002). A coherent curriculum: The case of mathematics. American Educator, 26(2), 10–26, 47–48.

    Google Scholar 

  • Stevenson, H. W., & Stigler, J. W. (1992). The learning gap: Why our schools are failing and what we can learn from Japanese and Chinese education. New York: Summit Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wang, J., & Goldschmidt, P. (1999). Opportunity to learn, language proficiency, and immigrant status effects on mathematics achievement. Journal of Educational Research, 93(2), 101–111.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Watkins, D. A., & Biggs, J. B. (1996). The Chinese learner: Cultural, psychological and contextual influences. Hong Kong: Comparative Education Research Center, The University of Hong Kong/Australian Council for Educational Research.

    Google Scholar 

  • Webster, B. J., Young, D. J., & Fisher, D. L. (1999, April). Gender and socioeconomic equity in mathematics and science education: A comparative study. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wiley, D. E., & Yoon, B. (1995). Teacher reports on opportunity to learn: Analyses of the 1993 California Learning Assessment System (CLAS). Educational Evaluation and Policy Analyis, 17(3), 355–370.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wong, N. Y. (1998). Mathematics curriculum reform: The Hong Kong experience. In H. S. Park, Y. H. Choe, H. Shin, & S. H. Kim (Eds.), Proceedings of the ICMI-East Asia regional conference on mathematic education (Vol. 2, pp. 89–102). Seoul: Korea Society of Mathematical Education.

    Google Scholar 

  • Zhao, Y., Lei, J., Li, G., He, M., Okano, K., Megahed, N., et al. (Eds.). (2010). Handbook of Asian education: A cultural perspective. New York: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. East China Normal University, Shanghai, China

    Yan Zhu

Authors
  1. Yan Zhu
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Yan Zhu .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Learning and Instruction, University at Buffalo–The State University of New York, Buffalo, New York, USA

    Ji-Won Son

  2. Department of Mathematics, Kennesaw State University, Kennesaw, Georgia, USA

    Tad Watanabe

  3. Department of Mathematics, Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, Michigan, USA

    Jane-Jane Lo

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2017 Springer International Publishing AG

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Zhu, Y. (2017). Achievement Gaps in Mathematics and Opportunities to Learn: Insights from PISA 2012. In: Son, JW., Watanabe, T., Lo, JJ. (eds) What Matters? Research Trends in International Comparative Studies in Mathematics Education. Research in Mathematics Education. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-51187-0_5

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-51187-0_5

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-51185-6

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-51187-0

  • eBook Packages: EducationEducation (R0)

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation