Key Findings

Achievement

• The mean science achievement of New Zealand Year 5 students was about the same in 2006 as in 1994. Although results from 1994, 1998, and 2002, showed a steady increase, this trend did not continue in 2006 when the results returned to the 1994 levels.
• New Zealand Year 5 mean science achievement was significantly¹ higher than 13 of the 36 countries that participated at the middle primary level.
• A comparison with the other countries that have taken part in TIMSS across all three of the cycles shows that the mean science achievement of New Zealand Year 5 students has moved little in relation to these countries.
• The range of New Zealand Year 5 science achievement was narrower in 2006 than in 1994, with fewer students demonstrating very high or very low achievement.
• Year 5 students demonstrated a relative strength in earth science questions compared to life and physical science. Students also performed relatively better on questions that involved demonstrating knowledge compared to applying knowledge or reasoning.

Background context

• In 2006, teachers reported significantly fewer hours teaching science to New Zealand Year 5 students, on average, compared with 2002. The number of hours reduced from 66 per year in 2002 to 45 in 2006.
• There was no significant difference in mean science achievement between New Zealand Year 5 boys and girls.
• Both high and low performers were found in all ethnic groupings. Pākehā/European and Asian students had, on average, significantly higher mean science achievement than their Māori and Pasifika counterparts. There was no difference in the average performance of Pākehā/European and Asian students. Māori students had significantly higher mean science achievement than Pasifika students.
• Science achievement was higher, on average, among students who regularly spoke English at home. Students who were born in New Zealand had higher science achievement, on average, than those who were not.
• Students from higher socio-economic backgrounds tended to have higher mean science achievement than those from lower socio-economic backgrounds as evidenced by the proxy measures books in the home, items in the home, household size and mobility. In addition, the decile of the school they attended, indicative of the level of economic disadvantage in the community in which they live, was positively related to science achievement.
• Year 5 students who reported a small or moderate amount of time in out-of-school leisure activities generally had higher achievement than those who either reported no time or reported many hours on the activity.

Student attitudes

• New Zealand Year 5 students generally expressed positive attitudes towards science. Eight out of every ten students indicated that they would like to do more science in school. Those students who reported positive attitudes towards science or were confident in their own science abilities had higher achievement than those who were less positive or confident.
• Boys and girls expressed similar attitudes to science, both in terms of enjoyment and motivation, and of self-confidence.
• More Pākehā/European and students in the Other ethnic grouping reported high self-confidence in science compared with Asian, Māori, and Pasifika students. Proportionally more students in the Other ethnic grouping reported positive attitudes towards science compared with Pākehā/European, Asian, Māori, and Pasifika students.