Preliminary results from the 2026 International Basic Academic Skills Survey conducted by the Sprix Education Foundation showed the calculation skills, problem-solving methods and ICT environments of primary and secondary school students in 10 countries, including Japan. The results were based mainly on responses collected from volunteer schools, so their representativeness of the wider population requires caution.
The International Basic Academic Skills Test TOFAS calculation test and questionnaires for children, parents and teachers were conducted. As of 1 September 2026, the numbers of responses were 6,313 children, 3,163 parents and 136 teachers. The survey covered 10 countries, including Japan, and responses were collected mainly from volunteer schools rather than through random sampling. In a comparison of 8 countries, Japan tended to have a higher average correct-response rate and a lower blank-response rate, as well as relatively high response speed and accuracy.
Differences were also observed in basic calculation methods. In Japan, 68.0% of respondents said they could immediately answer “8+5” mentally, compared with a combined 40.3% in the other 9 countries. Meanwhile, 13.4% in Japan chose methods other than mental calculation, such as writing on paper or using their fingers, compared with 37.0% in the other countries. Children who could quickly determine the answer mentally also tended to have higher correct-response rates.
A relationship was observed between parental involvement and calculation skills. When asked how they responded when a child was not performing well, the most common answers included encouragement, teaching the child how to solve problems and discussing the next goal. In particular, parents who took specific steps together with their children, such as encouraging them by saying “You can do it next time,” tended to account for a share approximately 14 percentage points higher among parents of students who passed than among parents of students who failed.
There was a correlation between the frequency of ICT-device use and calculation skills. The proportion who said they never used smartphones, tablets or PCs in class was 17.5% among TOFAS passers and 32.8% among non-passers. Among teacher responses from the 9 countries other than Japan, 14.6% of schools had one device available per student, 62.3% had shared devices, and 23.1% had no usable devices. Although the number of responses from Japanese teachers was small, all said that one device per student was available.