Students in Shanghai have been ranked best in the world in the leading global study of secondary school performance - ousting their Hong Kong counterparts as the top performing Chinese-speaking region.
Shanghai's 15-year-olds swept the board in the latest Programme for International Student Assessment (Pisa), which was published yesterday, taking the top scores in reading, maths and science among 65 countries and regions.
But Hong Kong students held their position as third in the world in maths; they were ranked third in science and fourth in reading - down from second and third place, respectively.
Shanghai and Singapore were among eight new countries and 'partner countries and economies' to take part in the 2009 study conducted by rich countries' club the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, with Singapore coming fifth in reading, second in maths, and fourth in science.
The OECD hailed the outstanding results of the Chinese-speaking economies as a 'wake-up call' for its 34 members - particularly western European nations and the United States.
South Korea and Finland were the two highest-scoring OECD countries in the 2009 Pisa study, ranked respectively second and third in reading, fourth and sixth in maths, and sixth and second in science.
'The Chinese-speaking regions are doing well because they have consistently scrutinised their education systems and are constantly seeking to improve,' Richard Hopper, senior education analyst with the OECD, said. 'They focus on teacher quality and ensuring that lower-performing schools improve.'
