Canada’s declining math scores have implications for STEM readiness
Yet for about two decades, Canadian 15-year-olds’ mathematics skills have declined in every province. As our aspirations for a knowledge economy went higher, our educational outcomes sank steadily lower.
For years, Canadian politicians and economists have promised a “knowledge economy” future.
In the 2000s, Canadian economist Tom Courchene and many others argued that Canada’s prosperity would come from transitioning to a knowledge economy requiring a higher human capital workforce.
Recent federal budget speeches highlight the need to invest in skills and training that workers will need for the “good-paying jobs of tomorrow.” And now, Ottawa’s “AI for All” strategy has set a goal of 250,000 AI-related jobs.
Despite all of that, the OECD’s Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) shows Canadian youth have not advanced in these skills, and most have even seen declines.
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2009 (!) University of Wisconsin-Madison Placement Office study of “reform vs traditional math” outcomes came to mind when reading Corrinne Hess’s 7 July 2026 article: “Fewer than half of Wisconsin students are proficient at math“.
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