A recent international survey shows that Irish students in both first and second year in second-level schools are performing better than the international mean in both science and maths. The study, one of the largest and most ambitious international studies of educational achievement ever undertaken, involved more than half a million students in over 40 countries.

Achievements in maths and science were measured by written tests with both multi-choice and free-response questions. Two groups were surveyed - first and second-level students and a total of 132 Irish schools participated with completed test materials returned for 6,203 students.

Maths was broken down under six sub-headings (see bar charts) and Irish students performed most strongly in "fractions and number sense", "data representation, analysis and probability" and "proportionality". They were weakest in geometry. No statistically significant difference was evident between the performance of boys and girls.

In science, Irish students also performed above the international average, showing an improvement on the previous survey of 1991. Performance was best in "earth science and "environmental issues and the nature of science" and poorest in "life science" and physics. Although the mean score of boys was significantly higher than of girls in science in first year, this was not the case in second year.

ASTI president John Mulcahy says that the study vindicates what the union has always said about the high quality of Irish education. In spite of the wide range of subjects at junior cycle, and particularly in first year, Irish schools perform consistently well in international comparisons.

Rose Malone, education officer with the TUI, says that the union is pleased at how well Irish schools are performing. First year Irish students are doing better than many countries where is much more primary-level science, she adds.

"We're not doing as well as England in science," says Malone. "This reflects the big emphasis on science education in English schools and, in particular, the amount of resources for practical work in schools. If it points out anything, it points out the need for extra resources here.

"In maths the only area in which we don't appear to be up to speed is geometry and maths teachers would welcome an examination of the geometry area."