For IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 19, 2008
Contact: Larry McQuillan
(202)-403-5119
Austin Public School Officials Offer Their Perspective on
AIR’s International Mathematics Benchmarking Study
Washington, D.C. – Austin school officials have responded to an American Institutes for Research (AIR) study that compares the mathematics performance of students in 11 U.S. cities with that of their international peers, calling it “an interesting and important paper that allows us to think about where American school districts stand in comparison to students around the world.”
In the report Counting on the Future: International Benchmarks in Mathematics for American School Districts, AIR researcher Dr. Gary Phillips found that fourth- and eighth-grade students in six cities, including Austin, are performing on par or better than their peers in many countries, while students in five other cities are performing below the international average.
Dr. Pascal Forgione, Jr., Superintendent of the Austin Independent School District, and Dr. Lisa Schmitt, Administrative Supervisor of the Department of Program Evaluation of the Austin Independent School District, have written their assessment of the significance of the study. They said the findings “help us benchmark how well we are preparing our students for participation in the global economy.”
The AIR report and the assessment of Austin school officials are available by visiting www.air.org.
About AIR
Established in 1946, with headquarters in Washington, D.C., the American Institutes
for Research (AIR) is an independent, nonpartisan not-for-profit organization that
conducts behavioral and social science research and delivers technical assistance
both domestically and internationally in the areas of health, education, and workforce
productivity. For more information, visit www.air.org.
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Counting on the Future:
International Benchmarks in Mathematics for American School Districts
Austin’s Perspective on
International Benchmarking By Pascal D. Forgione, Jr., Ph.D. and Lisa Schmitt, Ph.D.
American Institutes for Research | 1000 Thomas Jefferson, NW | Washington, D.C. 20007