U.S. students satisfied, but some foreigners happier
WASHINGTON - The good news: American high school students are generally satisfied with their lives. But many of their peers in other countries are happier.
Asked to rank their life satisfaction on a scale from 0 to 10, American 15-yearolds gave an average mark of 7.4, according to a study conducted by the Parisbased Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, which was released Wednesday.
American students scored close to the average of 7.3 among OECD’s 35 member countries. But students in some member countries are doing markedly better: an average Mexican high schooler rated life satisfaction at 8.2 out of 10. The Netherlands and Iceland had a level of 7.8 and Finland had 7.9. American students also reported higher levels of anxiety over tests, bullying or a feeling of not belonging at schools, compared with many of their peers.
What makes students feel good? According to the study, teacher and parental support, spending time with friends and being physically active make it more likely that a student will be satisfied with life. “In happy schools, teacher support — as perceived by students — tends to be much greater,” said Andreas Schleicher, one of the authors of the report.
Does studying hard mean being miserable? In China, Korea and Japan, students score well on reading and math, but are less satisfied with life, according to the study. Then there’s Turkey, Greece or United Arab Emirates, where students scored poorly and aren’t too happy.
But the authors highlight the cases of