Providing Data for Educational Policy in an International Context: The Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS)

Abstract

Policy-makers in many nations of the world are involved in educational reforms. In order to make effective educational decisions for the 21st century, policy-makers need information of a wide variety of kinds, for example, comparative performance data and curriculum information from other nations. National assessments can be valuable, but international surveys provide a broader base of information and allow countries to view their current status and planning within an international perspective. The purpose of this paper is to describe the goals of the Third International Mathematics and Science Study and the steps being followed to insure that the results from the study will meet the diverse informational needs of policy-makers.