Macau | Local students among world top in collaborative problem-solving – Pisa survey

‘On average across OECD countries, 28 per cent of students are able to solve only straightforward collaborative problems, if any at all. By contrast, fewer than one in six students in Estonia, Hong Kong (China), Japan, Korea, Macao (China) and Singapore is a low achiever in collaborative problem solving,’ the OECD states in a note posted on its website.

The report highlights that girls perform better than boys in the collaborative problem-solving ranking. However, boys were better ranked in the individual problem-solving list issued in 2012.

Another interesting conclusion is that ‘students who attend physical education lessons or play sports generally have a more positive attitude towards collaboration.’ Accessing the Internet or social networks outside of school also makes slightly better performers, while those who play video games outside school rank lower than those who don’t.

“In a world that places a growing premium on social skills, education systems need to do much better at fostering those skills systematically across the school curriculum,” said OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurría.

Singapore is the top performer and Hong Kong occupies third position. Mainland China and Portugal are ranked at the average of the OECD.

The ranking classifies 125,000 15-year-olds students from 52 countries and economies. The research analyses how well they work together as a group, their attitudes towards collaboration and the influence of factors such as gender, after-school activities and social background, the OECD says.