Description:
The following report is the first of a
two-stage video study to examine teaching practices and
activities in Indonesian classrooms. The first stage is
linked to results of the 2007 Trends in International
Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) where 100 of the 150
classes that participated in the TIMSS examination also
participated in this additional video study component. The
second stage will also involve 100 classes that will
participate in the 2011 exam. The second phase will follow
the same methodology, allowing for comparison across years,
but will also involve more in-depth analysis of the links
between teaching practices and student outcomes and how
teaching practices are influenced by teachers' belief
systems and subject content knowledge. Indonesia has been a
committed participant in the TIMSS, Program for
International Student Assessment (PISA) and the Progress in
International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) international
standardized student examinations for many years and is one
of the few non-OECD (Organization for Economic Cooperation
and Development) countries to participate so fully.
Indonesian student performance in these examinations has
been relatively low, even when taking socio-economic levels
into account. For example, for mathematics Indonesia ranked
36th out of 48 participating countries in TIMSS 2007, and
its score of 397 was more than one standard deviation below
the international average (Mullis et al, 2008). The results
have been useful in providing an indication of
Indonesia's relative standing in student achievement
and its progress over time, but the real challenge is to
take the next step and translate the results into an
understanding of the factors leading to the test scores and
what might be done to enhance student achievement in Indonesia.