Sébastien Le Belzic // Photo credits: Jean-Marc Barrere / Hans Lucas / Hans Lucas via AFP
modified to
9:56 a.m., December 6, 2023
Several Asian countries are among the best performers in mathematics, the most developed subject in the OECD’s Pisa 2022 education survey, but also in science and reading. But what is the recipe for their success?
Asia, with Singapore in the lead, stands out once again in the OECD’s Pisa 2022 education survey published on Tuesday, but OECD countries are generally experiencing an “unprecedented decline” in their performance in particularly due to Covid-19. Several Asian countries are among the best students in mathematics, the most developed subject in this edition of Pisa, but also in science and reading. France, for its part, is within the average of OECD countries, but records results “among the lowest ever measured”, including a “sharp decline in mathematics”.
The Singapore method
In Asia, from primary school onwards, students already know the multiplication tables like the back of their hand. Calculators are stored well at the bottom of school bags. Only mental calculation counts and the abacus is even used as a tool to visually understand mathematical concepts. A practical approach which is the foundation of the success of students in Singapore, which even gave its name to a method created by mathematicians in the 80s, based on learning through concrete examples before moving on to the abstract.
Today, around sixty countries use this method. But the real secret lies in a Confucian tradition that places school at the heart of society, a society where the spirit of excellence and competition reigns. 80% of primary school students in Singapore, as in Hong Kong or South Korea, take academic support courses. A system that puts pressure on students with very high rates of anxiety among young Asians. In China, the authorities had to completely ban private lessons.