Use and Impact of TIMSS

Abu Dhabi first participated in TIMSS in 2011, as a benchmarking participant, in the first international assessment of mathematics and science achievement in Abu Dhabi. The TIMSS report and specific item analyses provided the ADEC with valuable information regarding areas of strength and weakness within its national curriculum. TIMSS also proved useful in the review of the ADEC’s national assessment program, the External Measurement of Student Achievement (EMSA). A comparison of TIMSS results and EMSA results in 2011 highlighted the strengths and weaknesses of the EMSA. A more detailed analysis of the test result differences, since TIMSS 2011, has led the ADEC to implement modifications to the EMSA, over the last two years, using TIMSS as a benchmark.

The ADEC anticipates that TIMSS 2015 could have significantly greater impact on educational policies in Abu Dhabi, as the student cohort assessed under TIMSS 2015 in Abu Dhabi will be the first to have been taught under the Abu Dhabi School Model, from KG1. Comparing results from TIMSS 2011 and TIMSS 2015 will yield indicators regarding the quality of the recent system reforms and the impact of the Abu Dhabi School Model on mathematics and science achievement in Abu Dhabi.