Education: A new study of eighth-graders finds them above average in both fields, but far behind their peers in several Asian and European countries. There has been little change since a 1995 survey.

American eighth-graders' performance in math and science is above the average of their peers in other countries, but they still are far behind students in the top-performing nations, according to a study released Tuesday.

The report compared the academic performance of eighth-graders in 38 nations and found that Singapore, Taiwan, South Korea and Japan led the pack in math and science. Several European nations--including Hungary, Belgium and the Netherlands--also outperformed the United States.

"This report should be a wake-up call. It confirms that we have a lot of work to do," said Christopher Cross, president of the Council for Basic Education, a Washington organization that advocates high academic standards.

It showed that U.S. eighth-graders use calculators and computers far more than their peers internationally, and spend less time doing homework. It also found that Americans are less likely than students elsewhere to have math teachers with a bachelor's or master's degree in the field.

"We cannot expect to lead the world in math and science if our geometry students are being taught by history teachers and our chemistry students are being taught by physical education teachers," said U.S. Secretary of Education Richard W. Riley.

The Third International Mathematics and Science Study--Repeat is a follow-up to a 1995 report. Last year more than 180,000 eighth-graders, including 9,072 U.S. students, took the test, which was available in 34 languages. The study was run by the International Assn. for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement.

Twenty-three of the participating nations gave the math and science tests in both 1995 and 1999. Most of those countries, including the United States, showed no significant gains during that period.

Researchers were not surprised by the flat performance, saying that four years is too short a time for dramatic change. But the experts also blamed U.S. schools for abiding by low standards and for failing to alter their practices after the 1995 test results showed American students trailing those in many other countries.

"No change, no gain. I think that's the key message," said William Schmidt, a professor of applied statistics at Michigan State University and the U.S. coordinator of the study. "Our expectations are not very rigorous by international standards. We haven't had a national effort to change the nature of our middle schools."

Two countries did cut against the grain. Canada and Latvia saw their scores rise significantly in math and science. In both nations, the percentage of students performing at the highest levels in science also increased.

In Canada, education officials said the strong performance was driven by the two most populous provinces, Ontario and Quebec, which account for more than half of the country's 31 million people.

Quebec has long had exacting standards for what students need to know in each grade, and tested that knowledge through exams linked to classroom curriculum. Ontario embarked on a similar course in the mid-1990s, generating what officials now call a "culture of assessment."

"These results confirm that good things are going on in schools, contrary to the conventional wisdom here that public education is in a crisis," said David Robitaille, a professor of math education at the University of British Columbia and director of the study in Canada.

An analysis of the U.S. test results shows a wide achievement gap between whites and Latinos and African Americans. And it shows that test scores rise as parent education levels increase.

Both patterns have been well documented by the National Assessment of Educational Progress, which gives state-by-state results and is known as the nation's report card.

* They fell behind their international peers as they moved through the school system. Eighth-graders last year had lower average scores than fourth-graders who were tested in 1995. The 1999 study did not include fourth-graders.

* Just 9% of U.S. eighth-graders reached the highest levels on the math test--the 90th percentile and above. Nearly half of the eighth-graders in Singapore reached that level.

They scored above the international average in five of six science categories, including chemistry and earth science. They scored lower, at the international average, in physics.

Similarly, students were stronger in fractions, algebra and data representation, scoring above the international average in each. They were weaker in geometry and measurement, only meeting the average.

"People view algebra as a 'gatekeeper' course that kids need to be successful," said Lee V. Stiff, a professor of mathematics education at North Carolina State University and president of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics.

Researchers plan to release follow-up reports next year--including a videotape study of math and science lessons in seven nations--to shed further light on teaching practices around the world.

Thirty-eight nations participated in an international mathematics and science study. Below are the average scores of eighth-grade students by nation, on a scale of 1 to 1,000.

Nation Average 1. Singapore 604 2. South Korea 587 3. Taiwan 585 4. Hong Kong 582 5. Japan 579 6. Belgium-Flemish 558 7. Netherlands 540 8. Slovak Republic 534 9. Hungary 532 10. Canada 531 11. Slovenia 530 12. Russian Fed. 526 13. Australia 525 14. Finland 520 15. Czech Republic 520 16. Malaysia 519 17. Bulgaria 511 18. Latvia* 505 19. United States 502 20. England 496 21. New Zealand 491 22. Lithuania** 482 23. Italy 479 24. Cyprus 476 25. Romania 472 26. Moldova 469 27. Thailand 467 28. (Israel) 466 29. Tunisia 448 30. Macedonia 447 31. Turkey 429 32. Jordan 428 33. Iran 422 34. Indonesia 403 35. Chile 392 36. Philippines 345 37. Morocco 337 38. South Africa 275

Average Nation 1. Taiwan 569 2. Singapore 568 3. Hungary 552 4. Japan 550 5. South Korea 549 6. Netherlands 545 7. Australia 540 8. Czech Republic 539 9. England 538 10. Finland 535 11. Slovak Republic 535 12. Belgium-Flemish 535 13. Slovenia 533 14. Canada 533 15. Hong Kong 530 16. Russian Fed. 529 17. Bulgaria 518 18. United States 515 19. New Zealand 510 20. Latvia* 503 21. Italy 493 22. Malaysia 492 23. Lithuania** 488 24. Thailand 482 25. Romania 472 26. (Israel) 468 27. Cyprus 460 28. Moldova 459 29. Macedonia 458 30. Jordan 450 31. Iran 448 32. Indonesia 435 33. Turkey 433 34. Tunisia 430 35. Chile 420 36. Philippines 345 37. Morocco 323 38. South Africa 243

WASHINGTON -- U.S. eighth-graders scored slightly better than average on a key international math and science exam. But the results disappointed education policy makers because they showed U.S. children performed worse the longer they stayed in school.

Moreover, when U.S. eighth-graders were compared with children in countries that took the Third International Math and Science Study in both 1995 and 1999 -- and a group of developing countries taking the test for the first time was factored out -- their scores fell well below average.

The results, which set off a national debate about math teaching after the 1995 Timms test, are hugely important because they drive education policy by providing a snapshot of what and how well U.S. students are learning. It is a picture that Rita Colwell, director of the National Science Foundation, which funded the study in the U.S., called "a little bit depressing."

Last year's test, called Timss-R, for "repeat," showed eighth-graders scored 502 points in math and 515 points in science -- better than the international average of 487 in math and 488 in science on the 1,000-point exams. Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan and Hong Kong led the 38 nations taking Timms-R, with the Netherlands, Canada, Russia and Australia above average. Science rankings were similar, with Hungary joining the Asian nations in the top ranks.

In math, U.S. eighth-graders scored better than the international average on fractions, algebra and analysis and probability, but below average on measurement and geometry. In science, the U.S. scored above average in all six content areas, including earth science, life science, physics, chemistry, environment and scientific inquiry. The 1995 Timms tested students in fourth, eighth and 12th grades, and found U.S. performance relatively high among younger children, but declining compared with other nations as students progressed through school.

The Timms repeat test was given only to eighth-graders and was designed to see if children who did well on the earlier fourth-grade test could sustain their achievement. Education Secretary Richard Riley took heart by proclaiming U.S. students "are above the international average. I think that's a pretty good statement."

The average is skewed because a group of developing countries -- including the Philippines, Morocco, Chile and Indonesia -- joined the test in 1999 and pulled the average down with their low scores. Meanwhile, some European countries opted out of the Timss retest. Germany had scored about on a par with the U.S. on the 1995 test, and reportedly was so disappointed in its performance that it refused to take the retest. France did so well that, by some accounts, feared being criticized at home for emphasizing math more than other subjects, and also opted out.

When only those countries that took both the 1995 and 1999 tests are compared, the international average shoots up to 524 in both math and science, leaving the U.S. below average in both. Although the Timss test scores are closely studied to see where children do well or poorly, the project also includes a complicated study of how science and math are taught around the world.

Particularly troubling for U.S. students is that because of a chronic shortage of trained math teachers, only about 41% of eighth-graders have a math teacher whose college major was mathematics, compared with an average 71% of students internationally. It is likely that U.S. policy makers will use the Timss results to push for greater federal government investment in math and science education, and major changes in how teachers are trained. Some particularly good news in the study is that the math scores of black eighth-graders inched up from four years ago. The scores of white and Hispanic students remained basically the same.