When it comes to problem solving, B.C. students are the best in the country and seventh in the world, the latest international assessment scores show. But Canada has fallen out of the top-10 math scores on the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development’s Programme for International Student Assessment — or PISA — from 2012.

B.C. ranked sixth in reading and science, and 12th in mathematics in the overall exam, the results of which were reported in December and which included tests from 500,000 15-year-old students in 65 countries and regions. For problem solving, Singapore, South Korea, Japan, Macau, Hong Kong and Shanghai placed higher than British Columbia, while Taiwan also outscored Canada as a whole.

After Canada fell out of the world’s top-10 in math, people became concerned with the movement toward discovery math and away from teaching more traditional math, including things like memorizing times tables or learning to perform long division. Debate on this topic is growing across the country, and B.C. is in the midst of creating a new curriculum for all subjects, including math.

B.C. Minister of Education Peter Fassbender said the goal is to foster young people who can thrive in a changing world.

“This international study shows we’re on the right track, but there is still a lot of work ahead,” Fassbender said in a news release.

“Through our curriculum review, skills training, and transition to personalized learning, we must keep our system relevant to changing needs of students in the 21st century. Our ongoing work with B.C. educators will ensure our students remain well-positioned for success in all walks of life, including continued success in how they compare to their peers around the world.”

Vancouver’s superintendent of schools Steve Cardwell said the results show B.C. students are doing very well using basic math skills in problem solving.

“It indicates to me that we’re on the right track in B.C. and that we need to keep on emphasizing problem-based learning and hands-on learning that give students real-world experience,” Cardwell said.

“It really doesn’t matter what sort of occupation a student takes on in the future, they need problem-solving skills.”

West Vancouver’s superintendent of schools Chris Kennedy said the PISA problem-solving results are reaffirming.

“In B.C. and across Canada there has been a commitment to inquiry and problem-based learning,” Kennedy said. “It will be interesting to see what we can learn from other high-performing jurisdictions in this area. As well, the next round of PISA will be telling with an increased focus on problem solving.”

This is only the second time PISA has assessed problem solving; the first was in 2003. Organizers of the test say the assessment reflects a change in education from equipping students with routine skills to teaching them to solve complex challenges, at least partly due to technology, which enables computers to handle more routine tasks.

“For students to be prepared for tomorrow’s world, they need more than mastery of a repertoire of facts and procedures; students need to become lifelong learners who can handle unfamiliar situations where the effect of their interventions is not predictable,” the PISA report says.

“When asked to solve problems for which they have no ready-made strategy, they need to be able to think flexibly and creatively about how to overcome the barriers that stand in the way of a solution.”

The assessment used problems that do not require expert knowledge to solve, and the report says skill in problem solving is associated with academic success and is distinct from reasoning or intelligence, as traditionally measured.

The report recognized B.C. and Alberta as standouts in Canada for their “strong performance.”

Sun Education Reporter

tsherlock@vancouversun.com