Child science statistics show how science learning develops across school stages, subjects, and student groups. In the United States, nearly all 2019 high school graduates took at least one STEM course, while national and international assessments show meaningful differences in achievement, opportunity, and school experience. The figures below identify the measurement year and retain the terminology used by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) and the OECD.
Contents
- STEM coursework in high school
- Science, engineering, and technology courses
- U.S. science achievement over time
- Achievement differences among student groups
- International science performance
- School experience and learning conditions
STEM coursework in high school
NCES Fast Facts 1089 reports course-taking among public and private high school graduates in 2019. Overall, 96.6% took any STEM course and 89.4% took any advanced mathematics course. Algebra II was taken by 85.0%, while 38.7% took precalculus or analysis, 15.8% took calculus, and 26.0% took other advanced mathematics.
The overall percentages describe participation, not grades, mastery, or later study. They also describe graduates’ completed high school coursework in 2019 rather than current enrollment. Within the same NCES series, 88.3% of graduates took any advanced science and engineering course.
Course-taking varied by sex. Among male graduates, 95.9% took any STEM course, 87.6% took advanced mathematics, and 83.2% took Algebra II. The corresponding figures for female graduates were 97.2%, 91.2%, and 86.9%. Precalculus or analysis was reported for 36.9% of male graduates and 40.5% of female graduates. Calculus participation was similar: 15.9% for male graduates and 15.7% for female graduates.
| 2019 high school graduates | Any STEM | Advanced mathematics | Algebra II | Calculus |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| All graduates | 96.6% | 89.4% | 85.0% | 15.8% |
| Male graduates | 95.9% | 87.6% | 83.2% | 15.9% |
| Female graduates | 97.2% | 91.2% | 86.9% | 15.7% |
NCES Fast Facts 1089 also reports differences by race and ethnicity. Asian graduates had the highest reported participation in any STEM course at 99.1%, followed by White graduates at 96.9%, graduates identifying with two or more races at 96.5%, Black graduates at 95.9%, Hispanic graduates at 95.8%, Pacific Islander graduates at 92.8%, and American Indian or Alaska Native graduates at 92.8%.
Advanced mathematics participation was 96.8% for Asian graduates, 90.9% for White graduates, 90.8% for graduates identifying with two or more races, 87.6% for male graduates, 87.2% for Black graduates, 86.7% for Pacific Islander graduates, 86.2% for Hispanic graduates, and 79.6% for American Indian or Alaska Native graduates.
Calculus participation also differed across groups. The reported percentages were 45.6% for Asian graduates, 18.7% for graduates identifying with two or more races, 18.3% for White graduates, 9.5% for Hispanic graduates, 8.9% for Pacific Islander graduates, 7.3% for American Indian or Alaska Native graduates, and 6.2% for Black graduates. These are course-taking percentages for 2019 graduates, not estimates of ability or interest.
Science, engineering, and technology courses
Among all 2019 graduates, 75.0% took chemistry, 38.2% took physics, and 35.0% took advanced biology, according to NCES Fast Facts 1089. Advanced environmental or earth science was reported for 15.9%, and engineering for 11.8%.
The science-course profile differed for male and female graduates. Male graduates had participation rates of 71.9% in chemistry, 40.9% in physics, 27.1% in advanced biology, 16.1% in advanced environmental or earth science, and 17.7% in engineering. Female graduates had rates of 78.1% in chemistry, 35.4% in physics, 43.2% in advanced biology, 15.6% in advanced environmental or earth science, and 5.7% in engineering.
Technology coursework was less common overall than any STEM participation. In 2019, 38.8% of graduates took any technology course. The individual categories included computer science at 19.8%, health science and technology at 16.7%, and engineering or science technologies at 6.9%.
For male graduates, 40.7% took any technology course, 25.5% took computer science, 10.9% took health science and technology, and 9.9% took engineering or science technologies. For female graduates, the corresponding rates were 36.8%, 13.9%, 22.7%, and 3.9%.
Taken together, these NCES figures distinguish broad STEM exposure from particular advanced courses. A student can be counted in any STEM participation without having taken calculus, physics, engineering, or computer science. The categories therefore answer different questions about the science and mathematics opportunities represented in a high school transcript.
U.S. science achievement over time
The NCES Science Performance results provide NAEP science scores for grades 4, 8, and 12. In 2019, the average grade 4 score was 151, compared with 150 in 2009 and 154 in 2015. The average grade 8 score was 154 in 2019 and 150 in 2009. The average grade 12 score was 150 in 2019, the same as in 2009 and 2015.
Percentile results add information about the distribution of performance. In 2019, the grade 4 score at the 75th percentile was 2 points higher than in 2009, while the 90th-percentile score was 3 points higher than in 2009. Compared with 2015, the 10th-percentile grade 4 score was 5 points lower in 2019 and the 25th-percentile score was 4 points lower. For grade 8, the 2019 10th-percentile score was 2 points lower than in 2015.
NAEP performance levels describe the share reaching at least a designated level. In 2019, 73% of grade 4 students performed at or above NAEP Basic in science and 36% performed at or above NAEP Proficient. At grade 8, the shares were 67% at or above Basic and 35% at or above Proficient. At grade 12, 59% were at or above Basic and 22% were at or above Proficient.
These values are separate from the course-taking statistics. The coursework figures concern graduates’ transcripts in 2019; the NAEP figures concern assessed students at three grades and report scores or performance-level shares.
Achievement differences among student groups
NCES Science Performance reports 2019 average science scores by student group. At grade 4, Asian students averaged 168 and Asian/Pacific Islander students averaged 166. White students averaged 163, students of two or more races averaged 159, Pacific Islander students averaged 142, American Indian or Alaska Native students averaged 141, Hispanic students averaged 138, and Black students averaged 130.
At grade 8, Asian students averaged 168 and Asian/Pacific Islander students averaged 167. White students averaged 165, students of two or more races averaged 159, American Indian or Alaska Native students averaged 144, Hispanic students averaged 141, Pacific Islander students averaged 139, and Black students averaged 133.
The same NCES source reports White-Black and White-Hispanic achievement gaps. In 2019, the White-Black gap was 33 points at grade 4, 32 points at grade 8, and 35 points at grade 12. The White-Hispanic gap was 24 points at grade 4, 24 points at grade 8, and 25 points at grade 12.
The grade 4 average for male students was 151 in 2019. That single figure should not be treated as a full comparison of boys’ and girls’ science performance; the supplied NCES result identifies the male grade 4 average but does not provide the corresponding female figure here.
International science performance
The OECD science literacy page reports that the OECD mean science score in PISA 2022 was 485 points. Singapore was the highest-performing education system in science. Japan, Macao (China), Chinese Taipei, Korea, Estonia, Hong Kong (China), Canada, and Finland were also among the top science performers. Australia scored 507 points and Belgium scored 491 points.
The spread across systems was substantial. The gap between the highest- and lowest-performing OECD countries was 137 score points, while the gap between the highest- and lowest-performing education systems was 214 points. Across OECD countries, 76% of students scored at Level 2 or above in science and 7% attained Level 5 or 6.
The OECD reports an equity difference alongside these performance levels: disadvantaged students were more than five times as likely as advantaged students to score below Level 2 in science across OECD countries. The performance difference between boys and girls in science was not significant across OECD countries.
The OECD U.S. country note reports that 78% of U.S. students attained Level 2 or higher in science in PISA 2022, and 11% were top performers at Level 5 or 6. U.S. students scored higher than the OECD average in science. U.S. science performance in 2022 was about the same as in 2018, and the proportion below Level 2 did not change significantly from 2012 to 2022. The country note characterizes these results as confirming long-term stability, while also reporting that the performance spread between the highest- and lowest-scoring students widened from 2018 to 2022.
School experience and learning conditions
The OECD U.S. country note includes measures of belonging, classroom conditions, and school staffing for PISA 2022. In the United States, 75% of students said they made friends easily at school, 70% felt that they belonged, 22% felt lonely, and 24% felt like an outsider or left out.
In most mathematics lessons, 72% said teachers show interest in every student’s learning and 80% said teachers give extra help when students need it. At the same time, 14% said they could not work well in most or all mathematics lessons, 23% said they did not listen to what the teacher said in most mathematics lessons, 30% said they got distracted using digital devices, and 20% said they got distracted by other students using digital devices.
Bullying was reported at least a few times a month by 19% of girls and 18% of boys. School staffing was also part of the reported learning context: 42% of U.S. students were in schools whose principal said instruction was hindered by a lack of teaching staff, and 18% were in schools hindered by inadequate or poorly qualified teaching staff.
The country note further reports that 79% had attended pre-primary education for one year or more and 8% had repeated a grade at least once. In school governance, 77% attended schools where principals had the main responsibility for hiring teachers, while 48% attended schools where teachers had the main responsibility for choosing learning materials. These indicators describe the educational setting surrounding science learning; they are not science achievement scores themselves.