In the TIMSS 2023, conducted every four years by the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA), Türkiye's performance in both scores and rankings across all cycles in mathematics and science at the 4th and 8th-grade levels drew attention.

 

Türkiye also achieved an increase in the proportion of students at high and advanced proficiency levels in both mathematics and science at both grade levels.

 

In TIMSS 2023, Türkiye ranked 2nd among OECD countries and 1st among all European countries in 4th-grade science. The proportion of students achieving each proficiency level in this field was higher than the TIMSS international median.

 

In the field of science, the proportion of students at the high proficiency level was 32% in TIMSS 2019, and it increased to 36% in TIMSS 2023. The proportion of students at the advanced proficiency level in 4th-grade science, which was 12% in TIMSS 2019, rose to 26% in TIMSS 2023. As a result, 62% of 4th-grade students achieved high and advanced proficiency levels in science.

 

In TIMSS 2023, Türkiye ranked 7th in the world in 8th-grade science with an average score of 530, placing 7th out of 44 countries. Türkiye improved its ranking by 8 spots compared to 2019. In the field of science, the proportion of students at the high proficiency level was 25% in TIMSS 2019, rising to 27% in TIMSS 2023. The proportion of students at the advanced proficiency level, which was 13% in TIMSS 2019, increased to 17% in TIMSS 2023. As a result, 44% of 8th-grade students reached high and advanced proficiency levels in science in TIMSS 2023.

 

In practice, Türkiye, which has consistently improved its average performance in 4th-grade mathematics since TIMSS 2011, ranked 8th globally and 4th among OECD countries in the most recent TIMSS study. In the field of 4th-grade mathematics, Türkiye increased the proportion of students at the high proficiency level from 28% to 30% compared to the previous study.

 

The proportion of students at the advanced level increased from 15 percent in TIMSS 2019 to 24 percent in TIMSS 2023. Thus, in TIMSS 2023, 54 percent of 4th-grade mathematics students were at the high and advanced proficiency level.

 

In TIMSS 2023, Türkiye not only surpassed the TIMSS international average score in 8th-grade mathematics but also exceeded the TIMSS scale midpoint of 500 points for the first time, ranking 13th out of 44 countries. Among OECD member countries, Türkiye moved up 5 spots compared to the previous study, reaching 10th place and becoming the second country with the highest score increase.

 

In practice, the increase in the mathematics proficiency levels of Türkiye's 8th-grade students drew attention.

 

Accordingly, the proportion of students at the high proficiency level, which was 20% in TIMSS 2019, remained at 20% in TIMSS 2023. The proportion of students at the advanced proficiency level, which was 12% in TIMSS 2019, increased to 17% in the most recent study. Thus, the proportion of students at high and advanced proficiency levels, which was 32% in TIMSS 2023, reached 37%.