Canadian teens score well on OECD tests, but sharp drops in reading, math raise concerns
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drops → score → concerns
Learning outcomes for all participants stagnate or continue to fall: OECD
Canadian teens have good knowledge of science, reading and math, according to a major international assessment, but the latest PISA results also indicate a long-term slide in scores for all three subjects, with a steep and worrisome drop in the latter two over the past few editions.
That downward trend — amid an overall decline for teens worldwide — raises concerns for some educators and researchers, who hope the latest results propel policymakers toward more consideration and action to improve student learning.
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results → stagnate → learning
The joint body comprising all Canadian ministers of education and higher education noted as much in a statement earlier this week, saying, "comparative results over time emphasize the imperative for ongoing attention to educational outcomes."
Held every three years, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)'s Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) tests 15-year-olds in about 90 countries and economies worldwide on three subjects, with a heavier, rotating focus on one subject each edition.
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Programme → comprise → subject
For the 2025 edition, about 24,600 students across Canada participated (Yukon, Northwest Territories and Nunavut did not participate and are not represented in the results).
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Yukon → participate → results
Additional data about student attitudes, behaviours and school atmosphere was gathered from student and school principal questionnaires.
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data → gather → questionnaires
The latest results show Canadian students rank above the OECD average and among the upper tier of top-performing PISA participants globally.
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students → show → participants
Canadian students scored 510 points in science, 490 in reading and 485 in math.
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students → score → math
Yet comparing Canadians' performance to past editions shows a notable decline over two decades.
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comparing → compare → decades
Canada has slipped gradually in science (24 points since 2006) and fallen sharply in reading and math (declining 37 and 42 points respectively since 2006, with a drop of 30 and 27 points alone since 2018).
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Canada → slip → 2018
Though small variations in scores are expected, the OECD considers changes greater than 20 points (which represent a school year's worth of learning) statistically significant.
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which → expect → learning
"If a country’s score falls by 20 points between two PISA assessments, it is as if students were performing at the level expected of 14-year-olds in the previous cycle," it says.
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it → fall → cycle
"The steepness of these declines post-pandemic is ... what some would call shocking.
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some → call → what
I would call it very concerning," said Louis Volante, a professor at Brock University who researches international achievement testing, educational governance and policy.
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who → call → testing
Volante points to factors that researchers think are impacting student achievement: more digital distractions, increased use of artificial intelligence since the last edition and teacher shortages worldwide.
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Volante → point → edition
"When you put those three together, they are being attributed to really having a negative impact on overall rating scores," he said from Oakville, Ont.
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he → put → Oakville
The 2025 edition had the lowest OECD-average performance observed so far, the organization said.
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organization → have → performance
After an unprecedented drop in performance in 2022 — the first edition reflecting the disruptions of COVID-19 — learning outcomes across all participants stagnated or continued to fall in 2025, OECD Secretary-General Mathias Cormann wrote in a report detailing the latest results.
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Cormann → reflect → results
Parents are pushing back on classroom screen time in a 'techlash' over too much technology in schools
In the age of AI, how do we teach young people to think critically?
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we → push → people
He singled out an overall steep drop in reading scores as particularly of note "because reading skills underpin learning across the curriculum and are essential for finding, evaluating, interpreting and reflecting on information in an increasingly digital world."
Countries with the largest reading declines also tended to see the largest drops in science and math, he said.
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he → single → science
It's something seen in classrooms, as well.
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It → see → classrooms
Both with her students in the West Quebec School Board and the University of Ottawa, Tasha Ausman has noticed a decline in student reading comprehension and ability to identify key information.
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Ausman → notice → information
During a test for an advanced math class this week, "students were asking me things that were directly written in the question," the high school teacher and university educator shared as an example.
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teacher → ask → example
Meanwhile, her post-secondary students regularly email questions easily answered at the start of her syllabus — like which textbook to buy or where to buy it.
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students → email → it
She praises students today as empathetic as they team up with classmates, eager to learn and connect and excited by hands-on learning.
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they → praise → learning
Yet she's also found them much more stressed by tests and struggling with some basics.
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them → find → basics
I think it's an actual literacy challenge.
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it → think → ?
, says consultant
In the past, Canada was a top 10 PISA participant, but our school systems have since weakened and we've been slow to respond, says education consultant Paul Bennett, director of Schoolhouse Institute.
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Bennett → say → Institute
The PISA results are "a cause for alarm, especially given the dramatic declines since 2015.
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results → give → 2015
The trends that were visible in 2022 after the pandemic are proving to be more permanent than we ever imagined," he said from Halifax.
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he → prove → Halifax
"We've lost ground to the countries in Asia who have focused much more on test preparation.
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who → lose → preparation
They've had great success in teaching that way.
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They → have → success
Given that education is a provincial rather than federal responsibility in Canada, as well as the different socioeconomic and other challenges in each jurisdiction, Bennett feels Canada has been inconsistent with education policy updates and changes.
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Canada → give → updates
He noted, for instance, that in provinces with higher PISA scores — Alberta, Ontario, British Columbia and Quebec — "there's much more of a focus on the science of learning," he noted.
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he → note → learning
They've begun to match their teaching methodologies with what works in the classroom."
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what → begin → classroom
Bennett thinks a host of practices require fresh consideration, from screen learning and technology use to a comeback for physical textbooks.
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host → think → textbooks
"I don't want to turn back the clock," he said, "but we need to readjust our focus."
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we → want → focus
An indicator for the future
What's behind sliding student performance is a billion-dollar question for everyone, says Darryl Hunter, a recently retired education professor at the University of Alberta.
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Hunter → slide → Alberta
PISA, national tests like the Pan-Canadian Assessment Program and provincial assessments are designed to serve as periodic status checks, Hunter explained — to inspire deeper conversation, thorough investigation and new research to guide educational policymakers.
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Hunter → design → policymakers
"If Canada is going to be a dynamic country in the future, we have to attend to the performance of our students."
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we → go → students
While PISA results are a high-profile measure, Volante at Brock University cautions it should be taken in perspective and that comparing test scores shouldn't be the sole focus.
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comparing → caution → scores
…and 5 more, not listed.
