Education
2025 PISA results rock European education systems with record-low scores
September 19, 2026 at 10:27 AM
Coverage
2 reports · 1 in Arabic, 1 in English · over 3 hours
The 2025 PISA study shows reading, maths and science scores tumbling across France, Germany, the Netherlands and Finland, with nearly a third of 15-year-olds now lacking basic functional skills.
- France, Germany and the Netherlands recorded their worst-ever PISA results, while Finland's scores slipped further in maths and reading, continuing a decline that began in 2018.
- The study found roughly one in three 15-year-olds in those countries lacks basic functional literacy and numeracy, with Germany sliding back to the OECD average.
- German education minister Karin Prien said the report required an urgent response and pledged new measures to protect younger children by the end of the year.
- The Dutch education ministry promised urgent action, acknowledging the decline was a structural issue rather than a temporary post-pandemic dip.