The latest Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) by the Organisation for Economic Co‑operation and Development (OECD) shows that England was one of a small number of countries to avoid the general international decline in 15‑year‑olds’ performance in maths, reading and science.
What the survey measured
The OECD tested about 760,000 15‑year‑olds in 91 countries and regions. Overall, scores fell in almost all participating countries compared with previous cycles, but England’s results held steady and in some areas improved. That relative resilience helped lift the UK into the top 10 of participating systems when national results were compared.
Where England improved
England’s most noticeable improvement was in science, the OECD found, but it was performance in reading that made the biggest international impression. On reading, England outperformed several high‑income systems often regarded as strong performers:
- Australia
- United States
- Finland
- France
Only a small set of jurisdictions achieved substantially better reading results: Singapore, Taiwan and the combined Chinese regions of Beijing, Shanghai, Jiangsu and Zhejiang.
“Despite the international trend of declining performance in reading, we found 15‑year‑olds in England, Wales and Northern Ireland to be reading just as well as they were in 2022,” said Prof Mary Richardson of University College London, the lead author of the PISA reports for Wales and Northern Ireland.
Policy concerns remain
While England’s comparative position is stronger than many countries, the OECD and England’s schools minister pointed to persistent challenges. Georgia Gould, England’s schools minister, emphasised that national performance was plateauing and that large gaps remained for disadvantaged pupils. She said the data showed pupils reporting low levels of belonging and a lack of belief in the value of education.
The minister highlighted what she described as pressing policy priorities:
- Targeting high‑quality teachers to work with disadvantaged pupils;
- Addressing pupils’ sense of belonging and engagement with schooling;
- Ensuring improvements in average scores translate into reduced inequality.
Wider context and implications
The PISA cycle underscores a wider international pattern: many education systems are seeing falling results among 15‑year‑olds. The OECD has flagged “digital distractions” and changing out‑of‑school behaviours as possible contributors to weakening academic skills in some countries. In England, by contrast, the steadiness of scores suggests that recent policy and classroom practices have at least halted the declines seen elsewhere, particularly in reading and science.
For readers in South Africa, the findings are both a prompt for reflection and a caution. International comparisons such as PISA do not map directly onto any single country’s context, but they do offer a useful benchmark on how national systems are performing relative to peers. The English case illustrates that improving or stabilising average outcomes does not remove the need to wrestle with deep‑seated inequality within the system — a theme familiar to educators and policymakers here.
| Fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Number of pupils tested | ~760,000 15‑year‑olds |
| Participating countries/regions | 91 |
| Top reading performers (noted) | Singapore, Taiwan, Beijing/Shanghai/Jiangsu/Zhejiang |
Although the OECD’s headline results show England doing better than many peers, the report and officials emphasise that maintaining and extending gains will require focused policy work — especially to raise achievement among disadvantaged pupils and to strengthen young people’s engagement with learning in an era of rapid digital change.
