The Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA)

The Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) is the most important international measure of the proficiency of 15-year-olds in maths, reading and science. It is run by the OECD and the last test was in 2022. Comparing the results of 2022 with those of previous years shows how well individual countries are doing compared to other countries and whether individual countries are making progress over time.

The 2022 results show:
In Maths the UK was ranked 12 (but England was 11th) out of 81 countries, a big improvement on the 2018 ranks.
In Reading the UK was ranked 13th as was England, a slight improvement on 2018.
In Science the UK was ranked 14th (England was 13th), the same as the 2018 ranks.

The raw scores in the 2022 PISA tests for the UK went down because of the impact of Covid and absenteeism. They went down in most countries.

The results for England were better than those for Wales and Scotland. This is important because the reforms introduced by David Cameron and Michael Gove after 2010 only applied in England. So to some extent these results are a judgement on those very wide-ranging reforms.

In mathematics, six East Asian education systems, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, Macao [China], Singapore and Taiwan outperformed all other countries and economies. In reading, top were Singapore, Ireland, Estonia, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan. In science, the highest performing countries are the same six East Asian countries/economies, plus Canada and Estonia.

The PISA scores have some defects. Many of the places that do best are just individual cities (like Macao) or very small countries (like Singapore). It is wrong to compare such places with a large and socially much more diverse country like the UK. If the UK just put forward test results from London, it would be higher in the PISA league table.
The focus on just three subjects devalues the excellence of other subjects in the UK, including the arts.

The 2010 coalition government was right to be concerned about the gradual decline of the UK in PISA rankings – as a country we increasingly compete with other countries on the basis of our population’s ability and education. The 2010 reforms have had a good effect, albeit one which has been stalled by the impact of school closures during Covid. Cameron, Gove and the Schools’ Minister Nick Gibb can be pleased.

By Professor Barnaby Lenon
Dean of Education, University of Buckingham