Mathematics achievement

• Countries (average achievement)
  • LaNA results are reported as 95% confidence intervals rather than point estimates, reflecting LaNA’s difference in measurement precision.
  • Palestinian National Authority (Westbank) had the highest average mathematics achievement, followed by Egypt and Burkina Faso; Pakistan, Senegal, and Nigeria performed at a lower level.
  • All six country averages fell below the TIMSS Intermediate International Benchmark (475 points), which is recognized by the UIS as the indicator for SDG 4.1.1b.
• International benchmarks
  • The new LaNA 2023 Basic International Benchmark for mathematics (325 points) describes students who show emerging mathematics skills such as emerging understanding of calculations, working with simple whole numbers, identifying basic shapes, and interpreting straightforward data representations.
  • Across countries, the median share of students reaching the new LaNA Basic International Benchmark was above 50%, while somewhat less than half reached the TIMSS Low International Benchmark. Only around one third of students in Egypt and Palestine (West Bank), and a much smaller proportion in the other LaNA countries, reached the Intermediate Benchmark or higher. 
• Achievement and gender: Across LaNA 2023 countries, gender differences in mathematics were small and not significant.

Reading achievement

• Countries (average achievement)
  • Palestinian National Authority (Westbank) had the highest average reading achievement, followed by Egypt and Burkina Faso; Pakistan, Senegal, and Nigeria performed at a lower level.
  • All six country averages fell below the PIRLS Low International Benchmark (400 points), which is recognized by the UIS as the indicator for SDG 4.1.1b.
• International benchmarks
  • The new LaNA 2023 Basic International Benchmark for reading (325 points) describes students who show emerging reading skills such as retrieving explicitly stated details and making straightforward inferences when reading simple literary and informational texts.
  • Across countries, the median share of students reaching the new LaNA Basic International Benchmark exceeded 50%, while about a quarter reached the PIRLS Low International Benchmark; only a small proportion reached the Intermediate Benchmark or higher.
• Achievement and gender: Girls outperformed boys in reading, on average, in Palestine (Westbank), Egypt, and Pakistan.