Income vs Education: Vietnamese students score high at PISA tests

Vietnam ranks 8th in PISA’s science test

Vietnamese students have performed well in the latest Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) survey, conducted by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).
The Ministry of Education and Training announced on December 6 that Vietnam was ranked eighth in science with 525 points, 22th in mathematics with 495 points and 32th in reading with 487 points among 72 countries and territories participating in the survey in 2015.
About 10 percent of students were top performers in science, proving their confidence in dealing with complex modern technological and scientific problems.
The survey, administered every three years by the OECD, provides education rankings based on international tests taken by 15-year-olds in maths, science and reading. It is designed to measure whether students can apply what they’ve learned in school in real-life problems.
Last year, 188 educational facilities and 5,826 students in Vietnam were chosen for PISA assessment in late April 2015. Vietnam first participated in PISA survey in 2012 and will continue the tests in 2018.
Professor Paul Glewwe from the University of Minnesota said at a conference in Hanoi on Thursday that he was surprised by Vietnam’s high scores.
Vietnamese students joined the exam, which was held every three years, for the first time in 2012 and they made a good first impression – eight in science, 17th in math and 19th in reading.
Glewwe said PISA rankings usually correspond with the country’s GDP and prosperity, but Vietnam has been an exceptional case.
His research found that parents of the Vietnamese students taking part in the exam also have much lower educational background and less wealth than their peers in other countries.
Vietnam shows that one does not need a well-developed economy to have quality education, he said.
“We really don’t know what is going on,” he said.
OECD education director Andreas Schleicher said at a press briefing earlier this month to announce the PISA results that Vietnam’s progress was “quite remarkable” as the country came ahead of Germany and Switzerland in science, and ahead of the U.S. in science and math.
American students ranked 25 in science, 39 in math and 23 in reading.
“The 10 percent of the most disadvantaged children in Vietnam — and they grow up in very poor households — those children do better than the average American child,” German-born Schleicher said, as cited by CNN.
The average income of a household in Vietnam is around $5,000 last year, compared with $53,470 for the U.S.
Speaking at the Thursday’s conference, Phung Xuan Nha, Vietnam’s education minister, said Vietnamese people take education very seriously and they will not let low income get in the way.
“Vietnamese parents can sacrifice everything, sell their houses and land just to give their children an education,” Nha said.
The PISA results have proved tremendous development and significant achievements of Vietnam education in recent years. They have helped Vietnam reform local examination methods towards student performance assessment. Meanwhile, through the tests, students can develop their creativity, independent thinking and ability to apply knowledge in daily life.
Participating in PISA is a positive way to prepare for the education reform with new textbooks which focus on student potential development./.