Fw: another look at the PISA study of math and science education

To: H-1B/L-1/offshoring e-newsletter

This is an excellent article, taking a more nuanced view of the
math/science education issue.

As we all know, the most central argument made by the industry lobbyists
in favor of an expansive H-1B program is that "Johnny Can't Do Math,"
i.e. American kids do poorly in math and science at the K-12 levels,
leading to a claimed shortage of engineers, to be remedied by more
H-1Bs.

Recently the Urban Institute released a report whose careful, in-depth
analysis showed that "Johnny" is actually OK at math, and moreover, that
our universities are producing far more graduates in math and science
than our economy can possibly use. See my posting on it at
http://heather.cs.ucdavis.edu/Archive/UrbanInst2.txt

Soon afterward, the PISA study came out, with pundits/lobbyists spinning
it as a rebuttal to the UI report. The article enclosed below takes a
closer look at the PISA study (which, by the way, had been discussed
fairly extensively in the UI report).

To me, one of the most interesting parts of the article consists of
quotes from Prof. Ed Lazowska of the University of Washington Computer
Science Dept. He has over the years been the most visible and ardent
support of the H-1B program in all of academia. And he has provided
that support from positions of power, such as chairing the Board of the
Computing Research Association (a consortium of university computer
science departments), the CRA Governmental Affairs Committee (read:
lobbying), various National Research Council committees, government
panels and so on. Probably not coincidentally, both he and his
department have received much largesse from industry (see my recent
posting, http://heather.cs.ucdavis.edu/Archive/LazowskaReplies.txt).

Just recently Lazowska expounded on math/science education theme again,
insisting (as I had predicted) that UI was painting with too broad a
brush, and that we do have a shortage of engineers even if not one of
biologists (see the above URL).

So, I was surprised, intrigued and pleased that the journalist here was
able to extact from Lazowska a concession that our better-performing
students are just as good as those of other nations at math and science.
This a crucial point, as it is THESE kids who go on to become engineers.
The fact that we are, unfortunately, failing to improve the performance of
the weaker students, notably those from the socioeconomic underclass,
doesn't mean that we don't have enough good students to fill those
engineering jobs.

Would that Ms. Sternstein's next piece feature a back-and-forth
between Lazowska, who believes we have a shortage of engineers, and
Wadhwa, who says we don't. It would make great theater.

Norm

http://techdailydose.nationaljournal.com/2007/12/what_do_low_us_math_and_scienc.php

National Journal

Tech Daily Dose

What Do Low U.S. Math And Science Scores Mean?

Reprinted from the Dec. 7, 2007 edition of National Journal's Technology Daily

Draft Bill Spurs Talk About Trade-Related Job Aid
By Aliya Sternstein

The higher education community is divided on how much weight should be given to a
report issued Tuesday that found U.S. high-school students overall are performing
below average in science. But many concur that low U.S. test scores are largely
due to the country's failure in reaching out to its underclass and immigrant
population.

The United States ranked 21st on an international survey of 15-year-olds'
knowledge and skills in science, known as the Program for International Student
Assessment, or PISA.

University of Washington Computer Science Professor Ed Lazowska, a former
co-chair of the now-defunct President's Information Technology Advisory
Committee, said the report "once again clearly indicates the performance of U.S.
secondary students in science and mathematics lags that of our competitor
nations."

He said the results should effectively counter a widely publicized October Urban
Institute report that claimed the United States, contrary to other recent
reports, is not falling behind in science and math education.

Lazowska acknowledged performance gaps among segments of the U.S. student
population. While "the best-prepared students in America are equal to the best in
the world," he said, "a greater and greater proportion of America's students are
not being prepared at this level and are not being equipped for success."

But former tech executive Vivek Wadhwa, now a Harvard University fellow and Duke
University executive-in-residence, said he has become skeptical of conclusions
like PISA's. "Countries like Japan, Hong Kong and New Zealand that we keep
comparing ourselves to have homogenous populations and few low-skilled
immigrants," he said. "So comparing our diverse population to theirs is
meaningless."

Wadhwa sides with the Urban Institute study, which stated: "The test results
indicate that, rather than a policy focus on average science and math scores,
there is an urgent need for targeted educational improvement to serve
low-performing populations."

Of the PISA findings, Wadhwa said the "most relevant take-away is that we don't
provide equal education to minorities and unskilled immigrants."

According to PISA, U.S. students with an immigrant background, which represent 15
percent of those surveyed, trail considerably. In the other countries, an average
of 9.3 percent of students had immigrant backgrounds. Also, the performance
differences among U.S. schools largely can be attributed to socioeconomic
factors, the results noted.

Norman Matloff said that the U.S. underclass, sadly, hurts the country's scores
on "invalid" international comparisons like PISA.

"Let's get real here," he said. "India has a 40 percent illiteracy rate. It would
score horribly [on PISA] if it were willing to participate. ... And yet they do
produce good engineers anyway, in spite of their low averages."

Mona Wineburg, the teacher-education director at the American Association of
State Colleges and Universities, said PISA "is a well-respected measure of
achievement, so I don't think we can ignore it." She added, "I don't think we're
going to have a wide of range of people entering these fields if we don't do
something about" math and science education.