The performance of Israeli students in mathematics and science has sharply declined, according to the 2023 TIMSS (Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study) report. The average scores are the lowest since 2007, with a dramatic 32-point drop over the past four years – the steepest decline among OECD countries. Only four other countries – Bahrain, Jordan, Kazakhstan, and Malaysia – have experienced comparable drops.
This trend is concerning, given that Israel’s economic engine, the hi-tech industry, heavily relies on graduates’ mathematical skills.
Mathematics fosters analytical thinking, problem-solving, and logical reasoning, essential for fields like computer science, engineering, and data analysis. Advanced mathematical knowledge underpins algorithms, artificial intelligence, and mathematical modeling. Students excelling in mathematics often thrive in scientific and technological academia, paving the way for careers in hi-tech.
What went wrong?
Is this decline solely due to the effects of COVID-19? The United States faced longer lockdowns than Israel, yet their decline in TIMSS scores was significantly more moderate. Israel lags behind leading countries like Finland and Singapore in teaching essential learning and thinking skills.
The reasons include the absence of a national strategy, limited resources, and an overemphasis on standardized testing. While local initiatives indicate growing awareness of the need for improvement, they lack national coordination and systemic support.
Compared to the US, which promotes learning and thinking skills through federal programs and advanced teacher training, Israel’s efforts remain fragmented and limited in scope.
American systems offer greater flexibility, such as project-based learning (PBL), especially in private and charter schools. In Israel, the education system is less adaptable, prioritizing test preparation over broader learning competencies. The disparity is evident in outcomes: The US invests significantly in soft skills and innovation, while Israel continues to witness sharp declines in science and mathematics performance.
Teaching learning and thinking skills
Let’s pose a simple question: When were we ever taught how to summarize material, retain information, apply tools, or interpret complex instructions as part of the curriculum? When did we learn how to ensure precision, manage extensive data, leverage prior knowledge to solve new problems, or navigate complex symbolic systems?
Time management during and before exams, reviewing test answers, and crafting clear responses are often left to intuition rather than formal instruction.
These skills require metacognition – awareness and regulation of our cognitive processes. As Nobel laureate Daniel Kahneman taught us, intuition often relies on past experiences. When faced with familiar tasks, intuition may suffice, but any deviation from past experiences can lead to errors. Recognizing the difference between current challenges and prior experiences demands awareness and deliberate planning, which we call “critical thinking.”
The Feuerstein Institute has championed this approach for years, advocating for systemic reform within Israel’s Education Ministry. However, progress has been limited because Israeli schools remain outcome-focused rather than process-oriented.
Predictably, the ministry may request additional funding to increase mathematics instruction hours, a measure unlikely to yield significant improvements. Instead, Israel should follow the examples of Singapore, Finland, Australia, and the US, which prioritize structured instruction in learning and thinking skills as part of their core curricula.
A pressing need post-October 7
The urgency for reform is even greater following the events of October 7. The emotional toll on hundreds of thousands of students displaced from their homes in the North and South, alongside the prolonged absence of their fathers during military service, will likely hinder focused and consistent learning.
Socioeconomic disparities further compound these challenges. In peripheral areas, many parents lack higher education or even complete secondary education, leaving them ill-equipped to provide foundational skills at home, unlike families in Israel’s central, more affluent regions.
The Feuerstein Institute’s Academic Project, which has enabled over 800 students, predominantly Ethiopian-Israelis, to pursue fields like medicine, computer science, and engineering at Israel’s top universities despite low psychometric scores, demonstrates the transformative power of teaching learning and thinking strategies.
This success highlights that reforming the education system to emphasize critical thinking is not just possible but essential for its future.
To secure the future of Israeli education and maintain the nation’s position as a global leader in innovation, learning and thinking skills must become a core component of the Education Ministry’s curriculum. Without this shift, the current decline will only deepen, jeopardizing both the personal success of students and the prosperity of Israel as a whole.
The writer is president and CEO of the Feuerstein Institute.