Primary four students in Macao have earned sixth place in mathematics globally, and twelfth place in science, according to a new study conducted by the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA).
Entitled 2023 Trends in International Mathematics and Science (TIMSS), the study saw Macao competing against 71 other countries and territories, including Hong Kong, Singapore and the United States.
Over 5,500 primary four pupils from 59 local schools participated in the study, which found Macao students’ scores in both maths (582 points) and science (536 points) exceeded the international averages of 503 points in maths and 494 in science.
In a statement issued yesterday, Macao’s Education and Youth Development Bureau said that local students from high and low socioeconomic backgrounds also exhibited a lower score differential of 59 points for both maths and science when compared to the international figures of 85 points for maths and 91 points for science.
[See more: Macao students are (almost) the world’s best at maths]
“The gaps were also the narrowest among the high-performing countries or regions,” the bureau pointed out. “This indicated that Macao’s education system has kept being high-quality and equitable.”
In terms of the overall ranking for maths, Singapore was in first place, with a score of 615 points. This was followed by Taiwan (607 points), South Korea (594 points), Hong Kong (594 points) and Japan (591 points). For science, Singapore’s 607 points earned it the top position. South Korea (583), Taiwan (570 points), Türkiye (570 points), England (556 points) followed close behind.
This is not the first time that Macao excelled academically in a global ranking, as the OECD’s PISA results last year showed that 15-year-olds in the SAR were ranked within the top ten in maths, science and reading.
Although Macao performs well academically in world rankings, the territory’s education system suffers from a number of issues including relatively high repeat rates and excessive workloads for teachers.
