52520 (2024). Hon Jan Tinetti to the Minister of Education

52520 (2024). Hon Jan Tinetti to the Minister of Education: If 71% of students attain at least level 2 proficiency in mathematics according to the 2022 OECD Pisa report, is there really a crisis in mathematics?

Hon Erica Stanford: The Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) proficiency Level 2 is considered by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development as a baseline level of proficiency students need to participate fully in society. At Level 2, students only begin to demonstrate the ability and initiative to use mathematics in simple, real-life situations. Since 2003, the percentage of New Zealand students that meet this baseline has dropped from 85 percent to 71 percent. In other words, nearly twice as many students failed to meet this baseline level in 2022 than 19 years ago. Students who do not attain baseline Level 2 are referred to in international and national reporting as “low performers.” The percentage of students that are above proficiency Level 2 has decreased from 66 percent in 2003 to 48 percent in 2022. New Zealand was one of 12 countries that did not meet PISA sampling standards. Results from a non-response bias analysis confirm an upward bias up to 10 points meaning that the observed drop in mean score from 2018 to 2022 reflects a real decline in mathematics performance over this period.