Shanghai Outplays US, UK in Global Tests

The U.S. and the U.K., two of the world's leading countries in higher education, have been thwarted by global rivals in Programme in International Student Assessment (PISA) tests conducted by Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).

While the U.S. and the U.K. were ranked 36 and 26 respectively, Asian countries such as Shanghai, Singapore and Hong Kong dominated the rankings by securing the top three positions in the list.

The OECD determined the rankings after testing math, science and reading skills of about 510,000 15-year-olds in 65 countries in 2012. Tunisia was the only African country that participated in the test.

While American students lagged behind in math and achieved average figures in reading and science, their Chinese counterparts scored top marks in all the three departments.

Revealing the secret behind the East Asia's success in the PISA test, OECD's head of education Andreas Schleicher told Reuters, "They basically succeed in attracting the most talented teachers to the most challenging classrooms, they get really great principals in the tough schools. They mobilise resources where they can make the most differences," Economic Times reports.

Other Asian countries that made it to the list are Taipei, Korea, Macao and Japan.

Another reason for Asian students' success in tests is their ability to apply classroom knowledge to difficult situations and problems.

"Many Asian systems have been able to overcome the stereotypes of rote-learning," Schleicher said.

Within the U.K., Scotland fared better at math and reading than England. Wales averaged on all subjects.

England's Education Secretary Michael Gove said that the rankings necessititate the "urgent need for our reforms". Reacting to the poor results in Wales, Education Minister Huw Lewis said: "Everybody working in and around the Welsh education sector needs to take a long hard look in the mirror," BBC reports.

For OECD's PISA 2012, Math was the main focus because it is a strong predictor of success for young adults.

"With high levels of youth unemployment, rising inequality and a pressing need to boost growth in many countries, it's more urgent than ever that young people learn the skills they need to succeed," OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurría said in a statement. "In a global economy, competitiveness and future job prospects will depend on what people can do with what they know. Young people are the future, so every country must do everything it can to improve its education system and the prospects of future generations."

Here is the list of top 10 countries that scored well on PISA Test: