Many Visions, Many Aims(TIMSS Volume 2): A Cross-National Investigation of Curricular Intentions in School Science

PREFACE The Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS), sponsored by the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) and the g- ernments of the participating countries, is acomparative study of education in mathematics and the sciences conducted in approximately 50 educational systems on six continents. The goal of TIMSS is to measure student achievement in mathematics and science in participating countries and to assess some of the curricular and classroom factors that are related to student learning in these subjects. The study is intended to provide educators and policy makers with an unpar- leled and multidimensional perspective on mathematics and science curricula; their implem- tation; the nature of student performance in mathematics and science; and the social, econ- ic, and educational context in which these occur. TIMSS focuses on student learning and achievement in mathematics and science at three different age levels, or populations. • Population 1 is defined as all students enrolled in the two adjacent grades that contain the largest proportion of 9-year-old students; • Population 2 is defined as all students enrolled in the two adjacent grades that contain the largest proportion of 13-year-old students; and • Population 3 is defined as all students in their final year of secondary education, incl- ing students in vocational education programs. In addition, Population 3 has two “specialist” subpopulations: students taking advanced courses in mathematics (mathematics specialists), and students taking advanced courses in physics (physics specialists). Annotation Which goals and standards guide science education across the world? This first report of the Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) explores this question by examining the rich data collected in the TIMSS Curriculum Analysis. This is a study without precedent in scale or detail. It includes an exhaustive, page-by-page inventory of science content and other pedagogical characteristics collected from hundreds of textbooks and curriculum guides from almost 50 countries. These data document many important features of these countries' mathematics education curricula. The book examines important features of curriculum policy across the TIMSS countries, especially the role of textbooks and curriculum guides. It also portrays similarities and differences in science curricula in the succession of objectives across grades. Additionally, it details characteristics of the science curriculum as embodied in textbooks and curriculum guides intended for select grades. This book will be of interest to anyone concerned with science education standards, curriculum policy, cross-national educational comparisons, and science pedagogy Front Matter....Pages i-xi Front Matter....Pages 1-1 Science Curriculum: Investigating Curricular Intentions....Pages 3-12 Overview of Results....Pages 13-23 Front Matter....Pages 25-25 Seeking Shared Visions Among the Many....Pages 27-46 Curriculum Guides: Directing Curriculum by Intention....Pages 47-59 Front Matter....Pages 61-61 Intended Flow of Science Curricula....Pages 63-91 Milestones in Science Curricula....Pages 93-113 Emphasized Curriculum Topics....Pages 115-129 Other Aspects of the Curriculum: Performance Expectations and Disciplinary Perspectives....Pages 131-155 Re-examining Shared Visions: Country Groupings....Pages 157-167 Front Matter....Pages 169-169 Concluding Remarks....Pages 171-175 Back Matter....Pages 177-296 v. 1. A cross-national investigation of curricular intentions in school mathematics v. 2. A cross-national investigation of curricular intentions in school science.