Mathematics Teaching in the 21st Century (MT21)

is a small-scale international study funded by the National Science Foundation to examine the preparation of middle school mathematics teachers. The study was conceived as a follow up to the 1995 Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) that documented that countries with higher achievement have teachers who teach substantially different content than that of their less accomplished counterparts. Countries participating in the MT21 project represent a range of middle grades student achievement in large scale international studies such as TIMSS or PISA. The primary goal was to exam how middle school (lower secondary school internationally) mathematics teachers were prepared in the six countries.

"The MT21 study extends the international perspective from students to teachers and provides us with new approaches for how to conduct such a study and valuable comparisons about the outcomes of teacher education programs across the participating nations."



-Wanda Ward, NSF Deputy Assistant Director

Participating Countries

  • Bulgaria

  • Germany

  • Mexico

  • South Korea

  • Taiwan

  • United States