Primary: May 2009 Archives

This interesting Associated Press "Fact Check" article looks at some of the claims that people make frequently about international comparisons, saying that U.S. kids test worse than other countries, spend less time in school and have a lower graduation rate. According to the AP, statistics tell a more complicated story, with U.S. performance - although not absolutely stellar - comparing more favorably than some education critics assume. An excerpt:

"The U.S. does trail the most high-achieving countries, mostly developed nations in Asia such as Singapore, Taiwan and Japan. But the U.S. holds its own in the group that comes next, a group of developed countries that, depending on the test, includes England, Germany and Russia. In fact, the U.S. has gained on some of its toughest competitors since 1995, making bigger strides in math than Singapore and Japan, and in science than Japan."