PISA 2025 results reveal sharp decline in reading, core skills across five European nations

The 2025 Programme for International Student Assessment results, released on Sept. 8, show declining student performance in reading and core skills across Germany, France, Slovenia, Romania, and Austria, with experts and officials linking the drop to social media use, pandemic disruptions, and systemic educational challenges.
In Germany, the study recorded historic lows in basic competencies, with Wolfgang Büscher of the Arche initiative warning of severe language deficits in disadvantaged schools and the obstacles posed by federal education structures . Austrian officials noted that tasks requiring sustained attention, such as long text passages, posed particular difficulties, with digital media habits and pandemic effects compounding the issue .
Romania’s scores fell well below OECD averages, with reading at 413 points, math at 419, and science at 425, and only about 50% of students meeting minimum competency levels. Education expert Marian Staș attributed the decline to pandemic disruptions and a systemic failure to adapt, calling the collapse in Romanian language performance “not at all coincidental” .
In Slovenia, Education Minister Borut Rončević announced plans for a comprehensive reform, including transitioning to an eight-year primary school system, in response to the results. Branimir Štrukelj of the education union SVIZ criticized the move as impulsive, arguing that complex systems require long-term, deliberate work rather than quick fixes . French results reignited debates about national decline, with the findings expected to feature prominently in the 2027 presidential election .
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