Don’t believe everything you read about South Africa’s poor performance in maths and science in the latest international assessments.
Much has been written about the poor performance in South Africa in maths and science since the results of the latest Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) were announced. Unfortunately, much of this is based on ignorance and misconceptions.
Not last
From the outset, South Africans must understand that we were NOT last out of 195 countries in the world, as implied by others. More than 650,000 pupils of 64 (mostly developed) countries took part in the 2023 TIMSS. South Africa was last among the 64 participating countries.
This does not, however, detract from the fact that the quality of our maths and science is cause for great concern for all who are concerned about education. Pupils who have not mastered the basic skills of reading, writing, maths and science will struggle at high school or any tertiary institution and will not be able to contribute to the economy.
The TIMSS, conducted every four years, assesses maths and science for grades 4 and 8. The International Association for the Assessment of Educational Achievement (IEA) launched the study so that participating countries could monitor their progress in education. As a result, a country knows if there is progress or lack thereof in key subjects such as maths and science.
The TIMSS also collects data about the home, school and classroom environments, which allows education authorities and governments to assess pupils’ achievement and allows them to plan more effectively when important decisions must be made about education, such as budgets.
Wise men from the East
As with the previous tests, the Asian countries hold the sceptre in grades 4 and 8. In Grade 4 maths, Singapore (615 points) outshone China (607), Hong Kong and Korea (both 594) and Japan (591). In Grade 4 science, Singapore (607) led again, followed by Korea (583), China (573), Turkey (570) and England (556).
In Grade 8 maths, Singapore (605) outshone the others with China (602), Korea (596), Japan (595) and Hong Kong (575) hot on their heels. In Grade 8 science, Singapore topped the list again with 606 points followed by China (572), Japan (557), Korea (545), England and Finland (531).
The biggest winner was China. As a country with 1.4 billion residents whose pupils have beaten the rest of the world in maths and science, you can imagine what it can achieve in four or six years once these pupils have made their mark in society. Think of the race to Mars. Think of computer systems, satellites and missile wars, and you realise that America’s days as a superpower are numbered. China will take over the world. Thus, it makes sense for South Africa to make itself comfortable among the BRICS countries.
Another winner is Turkey, which has made itself known as the new leader on the European continent. The Turks were not only first in Europe but second among the OPEC countries.
The biggest loser was France, which finished last among the European countries. The results produced by Turkey and France are important for us to realise that other countries are also struggling and to know that we too can rise above our circumstances.
SA’s Grade 5 and 9 pupils competing a year lower
In both maths (362) and science (308), South Africa’s achievements were below the international average. A further reason for concern is that we entered Grade 5 and 9 pupils for a test for grades 4 and 8. The reason? After our poor performance in the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS), the IEA recommended that South Africa should rather take part in a study for developing countries.
Even our two top provinces, the Western Cape and Gauteng, performed weaker than four years ago. Maths dropped from 370 in 2019 to 362, and science from 324 to 308.
As a child I was scared of the so-called “word sums”. The one that I remember especially from Grade 4 is: “A farmer takes 100 sheep to the market. Along the way one is eaten by a wolf (!). How many sheep can the farmer now take to the market?” (Answer: 100 – 1 = 99)
When I later taught maths to the lower classes it was remarkable how pupils struggled with: “Double the number 5. (5 x 2 = 10)”. Or: “Halve the number 20. (20 ÷ 2 = 10)”
I realised then that pupils did not understand the words “halve” or “double”; not to mention the long word sums. Before they could thus do the word sums, they first had to decipher the words, and if they could not read they also could not do the maths.
How difficult are the TIMSS questions?
So, what do the questions in the TIMSS look like and are they easy or difficult? It caught me off guard: the sums are much more difficult than in the past.
Here are a few examples from Grade 5:
John is packing eggs into boxes.
Each box holds 6 eggs.
John has 94 eggs.
What is the smallest number of boxes that he will need?
The pupils require three skills to solve the problem: (i) read with comprehension (in this case the child must also be able to read English which increases the difficulty), (ii) numeracy and (iii) common sense.
If the child does not understand what he reads, he will not be able to do the sum. He must also know his maths to know that this is a division sum (94 ÷ 6 = 15.6). And finally, the child must have common sense to realise that 0.6 means four eggs and an extra box. Thus, the answer is 16 boxes.
For sum number two, five skills are required to solve this maths problem: reading, mapping (she must be able to measure), division, multiplication and reasoning.
The Grade 4 pupil receives a map on which two towns have been marked: Wellington and Stellenbosch. The scale on the maps shows 1cm: 5km.
a: How many centimetres is it between Wellington and Stellenbosch? (Answer: 10cm).
b: How many kilometres is it between Wellington and Stellenbosch? (10cm x 5km = 50km).
c: If Michael drives at 100km per hour, how long will it take for him to drive from his home in Wellington to his work in Stellenbosch?
100km = 1 hour = 60 minutes.
10km = 6 min (divide by 10).
50km = 30 minutes (multiply by 5). Answer: It will take him 30 minutes.
Findings
The most important findings of the 2023 TIMSS study are:
- A significant percentage of Grade 4 and 8 pupils worldwide reached the lowest international benchmark for maths and science knowledge in 2023;
- There is a significant difference between the achievements of boys and girls, with the females bypassing the males in Grade 4 maths;
- There is a clear link between available resources and the maths and science achievement of Grade 4 and 8 pupils; and
- Pupils from a higher socioeconomic environment with an abundance of resources fared significantly better than those from a poor environment.
Does the problem lie with our children or our teachers?
If a country like South Africa does so poorly, it is difficult to find a scapegoat because it comes down to a whole education system being on the wrong track.
Let me start with the one thing that drives me up the wall: TIMSS has found that the schools with the poorest results also had the greatest number of absentee teachers.
A study by Dr Nick Taylor in 268 schools in eight provinces (excluding Gauteng) a few years ago found that many teachers could not answer the maths questions for grades one or two years above the grade they were teaching. Only 53% of Grade 4 maths teachers could answer a simple test about fractions based on the Grade 6 curriculum.
We can say that the rural provinces like Limpopo and the Northern Cape have a shortage of resources and infrastructure. We can blame overcrowded classrooms which make the capturing of knowledge in the foundation phase impossible. As part of my research, I found a class with 136 pupils. In such circumstances the teachers adapt their tuition strategy and pupils are “coached for a test” instead of learning with understanding.
One thing I know: a teacher cannot teach a child if he or she does not have the knowledge; and an absent teacher cannot help a child with maths or reading.
Need for institutional introspection
A child who was in Grade 1 in 2011 when we participated in TIMSS for the first time was in matric in 2023 (if he was one of the lucky ones and among the 30% of pupils who reached matric).
During this period we participated in four TIMSS studies (2011, 2015, 2019 and 2023) without any significant improvement.
It is time that the South African education system and everyone involved in education – from the minister to the youngest teacher – should do some introspection and ask ourselves hard questions and answer them honestly. Because whatever we are doing and trying to do, is clearly not effective.
South Africans (and I include the government and the media) must stop seeing problems in education as “learners who cannot read, write or do maths”. Rather, it is a matter of teachers who cannot or will not teach.
To me it is clear that the poor achievements in maths and science are in the first place a learning problem and in the second place a tuition problem.
The focus should therefore move from the child to the teachers. If teachers improve their skills, apply lifelong learning, are in the class every day, are prepared and teach, our education will fare better. Like many other things, it is not rocket science. People must just do the work (they are paid for); and the government must fulfil its supervisory role.
Read more: After the Bell: understanding South Africa’s stagnant performance in global education tests
Read more: We cannot fix SA’s broken education system without reflecting on the insights from the past
It is time that the government talks less and starts doing more so that the education environment can improve. This includes fewer overcrowded classes, more resources and more (not fewer) teachers.
Our children did not perform poorly because they are less intelligent or “stupid”, but because the South African government has failed to provide an environment which is conducive to learning.
There is, however, a glimmer of hope. Our Grade 9s improved their maths mark by eight points (from 389 in 2019 to 397) and in the process surpassed a few countries.
While the TIMSS results confirm the challenge facing our teachers, the improvement among our Grade 9s offers an opportunity to focus on the future with renewed energy and determination. DM
Professor Le Cordeur is retiring as vice-dean: teaching and learning from the University of Stellenbosch at the end of this year. He will stay on as emeritus professor in education at the university and will continue to write for Daily Maverick.