Which country has the smartest students in the world? According to a study conducted by the Organization for Economic Co-Operation and Development, pupils in Finland tested higher than those in any other country. Second place went to South Korea, and Hong Kong, China, and Japan ranked three, four and five respectively.

The rankings were based on testing of over 250,000 15-year-old students in 41 countries. The two-hour test took place in their schools and examined their knowledge of mathematics, science, reading comprehension and problem solving.

The Finns have ranked high on the list every time this survey has been conducted, although they placed second in the mathematics section of the test to Hong Kong.

The United States ranked 24th on the list, and Washington was criticized by Andreas Schleicher, the coordinator of the report, for the way it spends education money. Canada was #11.

At the bottom of the list were Tunisia, Indonesia, Brazil, and Mexico.

These tests show that girls are better students than boys, even though boys are still outperforming girls in math. However, the gap between girls and boys in math has narrowed. Girls continue to excel in reading comprehension, however. The study finds that a good relationship between students and teachers is critical to good learning. Other factors that contribute to educational success are a non-stressful environment for the teaching of mathematics, and constructive rules to enforce discipline.

The study also concludes that , 'It is not the cognitive process underlying mathematics that gives boys an advantage, but the context in which mathematics appear in school,' the report said.