Looks like all the societal pressures of academic excellence in a paper-chasing environment like Singapore bore fruit in the form of having the highest-achieving primary and secondary students in international maths and science examinations in the world. But at what cost?
The Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) is published by the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement every four years, to assess and compare knowledge in the subjects of students around the world. The rankings are based on tests taken by over 600,000 students aged nine to 10 and 13 to 14 in 57 countries.