Academic Conference for 200 Participants on International Standards in Mathematics of PISA and TIMSS

Over the past two decades, the world’s leading education systems have revised their curricula and national assessments to align with international standards. These standards – reflected in the OECD’s PISA assessments and the IEA’s TIMSS studies – are based on the understanding that in an age where computers outperform humans in speed and accuracy, students must go beyond knowledge and technique. They must develop creativity and the ability to solve complex problems under conditions of uncertainty.

In 2018, the Trump Foundation reached out to the academic community in Israel, inviting them to study this challenge in depth and develop new learning materials aligned with international standards. This initiative led to the creation of approximately 20 academic programs, which produced over 500 learning tasks. These tasks were then implemented in approximately 250 newly established excellence classes across the country.

In 2022, the Ministry of Education adopted a national policy aimed at reforming the mathematics curriculum based on the newly developed tasks. However, the curriculum itself has not yet been revised, and implementation has not been scaled broadly. As a result, student outcomes have not improved significantly, and achievement gaps remain wide.

Now, the government has approved a new national program – “Realistic Israel” – with a substantial investment aimed at raising student achievement on international assessments and aligning both the curriculum and national exams with global standards. The Ministry of Education is currently engaged in operational planning for the program.

In parallel, we have recognized that even within the academic community not everyone is fully aligned with all the concepts represented on the international assessments. Some researchers emphasize mathematical modeling; others focus on literacy skills. Some stress high-order thinking, while others highlight applied mathematics. There are those who view problem solving as central, and others who concentrate on real-world contexts.

When we shared the Israeli learning materials with OECD experts for review and feedback, we learned that many of the tasks do align with PISA criteria, but it became evident that each academic developer had emphasized different elements of the overall framework. Therefore, we understand that there is still a lack of a shared professional language among the academic experts working in this field across Israel.

To support the implementation of the “Realistic Israel” program, we have approached the Technion to host an international conference with participation from the full spectrum of Israeli academic experts. The goal of the conference is to present and together learn the conceptual frameworks of PISA and TIMSS in mathematics, compare them with current academic approaches in Israel, facilitate collective discussion, help raise awareness, and establish a shared lexicon across the academic community.

The conference will host international scholars including Professor Rita Borromeo Ferri, a leading expert in mathematical modeling and mathematical thinking from Kassel University in Germany, and Professor Toshikazu Ikeda of Yokohama National University, a mathematics education scholar and one of the architects of Japan’s international standards reform. The event will hopefully take place at the Technion in late 2025, with approximately 200 participants, including researchers from all Israeli universities, teachers, education professionals, policymakers, and representatives from the Ministry

* The text above shows the grant as approved by the Foundation’s Board of Directors / Grant 618