| dc.description.abstract | The primary aim of lEA (Intemational Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement) studies is to measure student achievement in school subjects with a view to learning more about the nature and extent of student achievement and the context in which it occurs. The ultimate goal is to isolate those factors directly related to student learning which can be manipulated through policy changes in, for example, curricular emphasis, allocation of resources, or instructional practices. Clearly, an adequate understanding of the influences on student learning can come only from careful study of the nature of student achievement, the characteristics of the learners themselves, the curriculum they follow, the teaching methods of their teachers, and the resources in their classrooms and their schools (Martin, 1996; Martin, Mullis, Beaton, Gonzalez, Smith, & Kelly, 1997). The main purpose of TIMSS (Third International Mathematics and Science Study) was to focus on educational policies, practices and outcomes in order to enhance mathematics and science learning within and across systems of education (Beaton, Mullis, Martin, Gonzalez, Kelly, & Smith, 1996; Beaton, Martin, Mullis, Gonzalez, Smith, & Kelly, 1996b) | en |
