Norwegian version of this page

TIMSS - Department of Teacher Education and School Research

TIMSS is a worldwide research study monitoring students' competence in mathematics and science, at the 5th and 9th grades. The study also collects extensive background information on school and home contexts that may affect learning and teaching.

Teacher helping student in class.

The collected data from TIMSS can raise important issues and thereby help policy makers improve educational systems (Photo: colourbox illustration).

Results from TIMSS 2019

The Norwegian results from the 2019 TIMSS survey were published on December 8, 2020 (on the same day that the international report was published).

About the project

TIMSS provides internationally comparable data on how effective an educational system is in teaching mathematics and natural science in primary and secondary schools.
The survey assess two aspects of student learning:

  • Students’ performance in mathematics and science
    •  Ability to apply knowledge and skills in different situations.
    • Competence in biology, chemistry, physics, geosciences, and mathematics.
  • Learning contexts
    • Background information from students, parents (primary school), teachers, and principals.

By participating, an educational system receives valuable insights into issues about the implementation of educational policies and practices. The collected data can raise important issues and thereby help policy makers improve educational systems.

Aims

Measuring trends in achievement since 1995, TIMSS data enable countries around the world to make evidence-based decisions to improve educational policies related to mathematics and science teaching and learning. The goal is to provide the best possible learning environments for pupils.

Background

TIMSS assessments use national curricula as the major organizing concept and is conducted every four years. The first cycle of the study took place in 1995.

More than 60 different educational systems (countries and benchmarking entities) participate in TIMSS, answering questionnaires and the assessment. As of the 2019 cycle, a digital version is available in addition to the traditional paper-based version.

In Norway, the National Research Coordinator of TIMSS is the Department of Teacher Education and School Research (ILS) at the University of Oslo. The International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) oversee the survey.

Financing

The Norwegian Directorate for Education and Training (Udir).

Selected publications

Main reports


For more information please visit the project's Norwegian websites.

Published Sep. 21, 2016 1:22 PM - Last modified Nov. 30, 2023 9:45 AM