TIMSS 2015: 20 Years of Monitoring Trends
IEA’s TIMSS (Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study) aims to help countries improve teaching and learning in mathematics and science. TIMSS 2015 continues this series of international assessments, monitoring educational systems around the world. Starting in the 1960s, IEA (International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement) pioneered international comparative assessments of educational achievement with a study of mathematics achievement, to gain a deeper understanding of the effects of educational policies and practices across countries. IEA is an independent international cooperative of national research institutions and government agencies, with nearly 70 member countries, a secretariat in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, and a thriving data processing and research center in Hamburg, Germany.
The TIMSS & PIRLS International Study Center at Boston College has responsibility for the overall direction and management of the TIMSS and PIRLS projects, including design, development, and implementation. Headed by Drs. Ina V.S. Mullis and Michael O. Martin, Executive Directors, the study center is located in the Lynch School of Education at Boston College.
TIMSS is an integrated assessment of mathematics and science at the fourth and eighth grades. It has been conducted every four years since 1995, culminating in 20 years of data collection. For countries with data stretching back to 1995, TIMSS 2015 provides the sixth in a series of trend measures.