https://nces.ed.gov/pubs92/web/92011.asp
This report provides a description of the international assessments and some of their findings, and addresses issues surrounding the collection and analysis of these data. Further, it offers suggestions about ways in which new data collection standards could improve the quality of the surveys and the utility of the reports in the future.
Three Mathematics Surveys
The First International Mathematics Study, conducted in the 1960s, involved 13-year-old students from 10 countries and students in their last year of secondary school from 10 countries.
The Second International Mathematics Study, performed in the early 1980s, involved 13-year-old students from 18 countries and students in their last year of secondary school from 13 countries.
The First International Assessment of Educational Progress, carried out in 1988, involved 13-year-olds from six countries.
Three Science Surveys
The First International Science Study, conducted between 1966 and 1973, involved 10-year-old students from 16 countries, 14-year-old students from 18 countries, and students in their last year of secondary school from 18 countries.
The Second International Science Study, performed between 1983 and 1986, involved 10-year-old students from 15 countries, 14-year-old students from 17 countries, and students in their last year of secondary school from 13 countries.
The First International Assessment of Educational Progress, carried out in 1988, involved 13-year-olds from six countries.
The evidence suggests, in general, that students from the United States have fared quite poorly on these assessments, with their scores lagging behind those of students from other developed countries.
Generally the "best students" in the United States do less well on the international surveys when compared with the "best students" from other countries.