Sal Khan is not surprised by the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) math results for American students, which were recently released and contained more pros than cons.
“If I had made an assumption, I probably would have gotten pretty close to what the PISA results show,” says Khan, founder of the free online learning platform Khan Academy.
The PISA 2022 results, compiled by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), paint a bleak picture of mathematics education among 15-year-old American students. seeing a 13 point drop
The United States remained stable in reading and science, while among the 81 international school systems that participated in PISA, it went from 29th in mathematics performance in 2018 to 26th in 2022, mainly because other countries saw a even bigger slide . However, that was little consolation given the cold reality of overall math scores in the United States.
Khan's conclusions about the test results are more nuanced (both positive and negative) than some alarmist reactions to the results.
PISA scores are not entirely fair to the United States
Many headlines about the PISA scores portray the results as a disaster, and while they're certainly not good, Khan says the reality of the results is more complicated.
“When people say, 'Oh, the United States is 26th (in math), how can that be? We spend so much money,' I don't think that's entirely fair to the United States,” Khan says. “If you really compare us to large, diverse countries, diverse in every way, shape and form, we are doing well. And there are areas in the United States that would be at the top of that classification. And when I say pockets, not even just individual schools or districts, I mean the state of Massachusetts, which would be near the top of that ranking if it were an independent country.”
Still, there is a problem with math education in the US and it is actually bigger than the PISA results show
On the other hand, Khan believes that small increases or drops in PISA scores and questions about which countries' school systems did what during the pandemic distract from the larger long-term problems with mathematics education in the US. USA
“At some level, these tests show things like, 'We're up or down five points.' It's almost like the house is on fire and you realize the sliding door is creaking,” Khan says.
For example, if you look closely at NAEP math test results, the story of recent years is less dramatic, although the long-term trend remains disturbing.
“Before the pandemic, in Detroit 6% of children were at grade level or above. 3% post-pandemic,” says Khan. “So one narrative is like 'Oh, the pandemic was horrible, it reduced the number of kids in grade level by 50%.' But guess what, 94% were at the undergraduate level to begin with. “That’s the part about burning the house.”
The state of mathematics education in the United States becomes even bleaker when considered another way: the vast majority of college students have to take remedial courses in mathematics.
“Remedial math is a euphemism for seventh-grade math,” Khan says. And, of course, many of the students who go to college are those who do better in school overall. “These students follow these procedures and receive between 12 and 13 years of regular schooling. They have taken Algebra 1 and Algebra 2. Some have taken trigonometry and calculus,” Khan says. But these lessons do not hold.
However, the good news is that there are effective, evidence-based methods for teaching mathematics. “I am 100% confident that anyone who can learn to read will be able to learn college algebra when they graduate from college,” Khan says.
Ways to improve math scores
One way Khan says math scores can be improved is by having students use a learning platform like khan academy a little every week. She knows that may seem selfish, but she points out that she won't get paid more if more people take advantage of a nonprofit educational platform. “If anything, I have to raise more money if more people use Khan Academy,” she says. He truly believes in his power to help students and has the data to support it
“If students are able to put in even 30 to 60 minutes a week, 18 hours for a year, those students accelerate between 20% and 80%, depending on the grade level, depending on the study,” he says. “Generally speaking, it's probably around 30%. “In places like Khan Lab School and Khan World School, where kids work 30 minutes a day, you see two grade levels per year (acceleration).”
Khan encourages educators and parents to take advantage of these resources, as he formally believes that doing so will contribute to success in mathematics. He says, “If we had a world where students learned college algebra in the 12th grade, that alone would be transformative.”
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