TIMSS SA – Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study

A nationally representative sample of 11 903 Grade 5 learners and 20 829 Grade 9 learners participated in TIMSS 2019 in South Africa
In TIMSS 2019, South Africa included two provincial TIMSS studies. Gauteng and Western Cape participated in TIMSS as benchmarking participants at the Grade 9 level, which meant their school samples were increased from 30 to 150 schools each to provide better estimates
TIMSS 2015 was the first time South African Grade 5 learners took part in TIMSS, completing the TIMSS-Numeracy assessment. In 2019, Grade 5 learners were assessed in both mathematics and science
TIMSS allows for trend analysis showing that South African Grade 9 learners' achievement improved by 104 points for mathematics and 102 points for science between 2003 and 2019