In terms of the quality of the teaching of mathematics and the natural sciences, Russia's school students in the fourth and eighth grades rank among the top ten countries out of the fifty-nine countries taking part in the TIMSS-2007 study. For Russia, TIMSS [Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study] is the first international longitudinal study in the field of general education, which makes it possible to track tendencies in the development of the teaching of mathematics and the natural sciences in the schools, from 1995 on, in accordance with international educational standards and priorities. (Contains 2 notes.)