The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) released alarming findings on Tuesday, indicating an unprecedented decline in the mathematics and reading skills of teenagers across numerous countries. Contrary to solely attributing the downturn to COVID school closures, the Paris-based organization highlighted underlying structural issues as major contributors.
With nearly 700,000 youths participating in the two-hour test across 38 OECD developed countries and 44 non-members, the study marked the largest international comparison of education performance. The results revealed a significant drop in reading performance, averaging 10 points in OECD countries and 15 points in mathematics compared to the 2018 tests. This decline equates to three-quarters of a year's learning loss.
While more than half of the 81 surveyed countries experienced declines, Germany, Iceland, the Netherlands, Norway, and Poland saw particularly sharp drops in mathematics scores.
On average across the OECD, one in four 15-year-olds tested as a low performer in maths, reading, and science, indicating a struggle with basic algorithms or interpreting simple texts.
OECD Director of Education Andreas Schleicher acknowledged the impact of COVID but emphasized underlying structural factors as more substantial and likely to be permanent features of education systems. Notably, countries providing extra teacher support during COVID closures showed better results, highlighting the importance of accessible teacher assistance.
The study revealed that mobile phone use for leisure and reported teacher shortages were linked to poorer results. However, the decline was not deemed inevitable, with Singapore emerging as a standout performer. Singaporean students scored the highest in maths, reading, and science, positioning them three to five years ahead of their OECD peers.
Following Singapore, Macau, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Japan, and South Korea also excelled in maths and science. In reading, Ireland, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan earned top marks, particularly notable in Ireland and Japan, where spending per student was no higher than the OECD average. The OECD urged policymakers to address the identified structural issues seriously to reverse the concerning trend in global education standards.