Philippines' PISA Scores Improve, But Room for Growth Remains

MANILA, Philippines – The Philippines’ performance in the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) improved in 2025, with the country climbing out of the bottom 10 in the subjects covered. The Philippines ranked 72nd out of 90 countries in reading, 74th out of 90 countries in mathematics, and 77th out of 91 countries in science, according to the 2025 PISA results released on Tuesday, September 8. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), which conducts the test, found that Filipino students had average scores of 373 in science (up by 17 points from the previous PISA edition), 371 in mathematics (up by 16 points), and 367 in reading (up by 20 points). The Department of Education (DepEd) noted that this is the Philippines’ “strongest PISA performance” to date since the country first joined the global assessment in 2018 and again in 2022, where it saw dismal results both times. Although an improvement, it “should be seen as a starting point” and “highlights the work that remains,” added the DepEd. “This is a significant achievement for our learners and for the entire Philippine education system. But more than the numbers, we are seeing evidence that our learners are capable of making real and meaningful progress,” Education Secretary Sonny Angara said in a press release. “We should be proud of how far our learners and teachers have come, but we should be even more determined about how much farther we can go.” The Second Congressional Commission on Education said the task now is to sustain the momentum, stressing that education reforms require “consistency of purpose, continuity in implementation, and the commitment of the entire country.” In 2018, the Philippines was ranked lowest in reading, and second to the last in science and mathematics. Four years after that, the Philippines was still among the bottom 10. Play Video The average scores among OECD countries for 2025 were 482 in science, 463 in mathematics, and 461 in reading. “PISA 2025 recorded the lowest OECD-average performance observed so far in science, reading, and mathematics,” the international group said. “Reading has declined after peaking around 2012, while science has declined more gradually over the past decade, and mathematics has fallen especially sharply after 2018.” Globally, the Chinese jurisdictions of Beijing, Shanghai, Jiangsu, and Zhejiang, along with Singapore, were the highest performers across science, mathematics, and reading in 2025. Also among the top 10 performing education systems in all three subjects were Estonia, Japan, Korea, Macau (China), Chinese Taipei, and the United Kingdom. According to the DepEd, around 8,000 15-year-old students from 208 schools in the Philippines took part in PISA 2025 through a computer-based assessment. Most of the participating schools were regular public schools, but there were also public science-oriented schools and private schools. – Rappler.com