Index of Excellence in STEM Education Compares U.S. Students to Global Competition

MCLEAN, Va. - Feb. 5, 2024 - PRLog -- Economic competitiveness is driven by scientific innovation of the nation's top achievers. To track how well U.S. students stack up against those in other countries, the nonprofit Center for Excellence in Education (CEE) developed an annual index of STEM education preparedness.

The CEE Index of Excellence in STEM Education measures educational performance at the highest levels of international academic competition. The CEE Index analyzes individual student rankings in each of five STEM-related Olympiad competitions; generates averages and rankings by participating country; and compares overall Olympiad performance by country.

"The CEE index gives our policymakers and educators an important tool to see how well our next generation of innovators compares to those in the rest of the world," says Center president, Joann P. DiGennaro. "Chinese success at STEM Olympiads has correlated with the growth of the Chinese economy. This tool is critical to any analysis of how the U.S. prepares the next generation of leaders."

Based on the combined outcomes of International Olympiads in Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Math, and Informatics, the index shows:

The People's Republic of China has dominated each of these events for the last 30 years.

Students from the USA have continued to perform well, as evidenced by a second place ranking in 2023 and third place rankings in both 2022 and 2021.

Japan appears in third place, with students from the Taiwan in fourth place.

Places 5 through 10 were captured by the Republic of Korea, India, Singapore, Vietnam, Iran, and the United Kingdom.

The index also shows that the performance of European students has declined as Asian countries have risen to dominate the Olympiads over the last few decades. The size of the country seems to matter less than the preparation their students receive. For example, Romania was able to place 15th with ¼ the population of Germany, who placed 16th.

An analysis of Team USA's performance from 1993 to the present shows a steady improvement in average ranking, from approximately 6th to 2nd or 3rd place behind China in recent years. An increasing focus on STEM education in the United States is partly responsible. In addition, increased competition in the global marketplace has driven students to distinguish themselves through excellence in academic competition.

View the index and more facts at:
https://www.cee.org/newsevents/press-releases/index-excellence-stem-education-compares-us-students-global-competition-0