Ireland’s 15-year-olds have ranked first for reading, third for science and fourth for mathematics out of 27 EU countries, in a major international educational study.
The Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) measures how well a cohort of 15-year-old students are doing in the three core domains of reading, mathematics and science.
The study is conducted every four years, with the next cycle due in 2029.
Students in Ireland also rated above the EU and OECD averages in computational problem solving. However, overall the report revealed that Irish students’ performance in reading and mathematics is lower than in previous cycles of the study.
In terms of PISA scores, declines were observed across all three core domains in the OECD and EU. Ireland also experienced such declines but to a lesser extent than the OECD or EU.
While Ireland’s performance was above the OECD and EU averages in all domains, the study revealed that there were considerably lower proportions of low performers, defined as students lacking key skills and competences in Ireland across all domains compared to the average across OECD and EU countries.
Additionally, Ireland did not have as high a proportion of top performers, those students with advanced competencies, as might be expected given its strong overall performance.
Students in secondary schools and those in non-DEIS schools performed better, on average, than their peers in other school types.
Among the other findings, Irish boys outperformed girls in all the subjects surveyed in the study apart from reading.
Mean scores were higher across all three domains for students attending single-sex schools, with boys benefiting more from single-sex schooling than girls.
The Department of Education said that the PISA study highlights how Ireland remains a high performer above most of the participating countries in the OECD and EU, producing ‘world class outcomes’ reflecting the levels of investment in education.
“I am particularly pleased that Ireland continues to have one of the lowest proportions of lower-achieving students across the OECD and EU,” said Minister for Education Hildegarde Naughton.
“Our reading performance remains a significant success story. Irish students continue to rank among the very best readers in Europe, maintaining first place in the EU.
“However, we cannot ignore the fact that reading achievement has declined internationally,” Minister Naughton added.
While the PISA study recorded Ireland as having a stable pattern of performance in science, Ireland’s reading and mathematics scores were found to be significantly lower comparted to other cycles of the study, which is in line with the EU and OECD countries.
Results also highlight ‘a trend of decline’
“While our mathematics performance remains above OECD and EU averages, the results also highlight a trend of decline that has been observed both here and internationally.
“We must carefully examine these findings and continue to strengthen our efforts to improve numeracy outcomes for all learners,” the minister said.
The Department of Education said it will closely study the findings. Officials said other factors may be impacting the lower marks for maths and reading, such as a decline in school attendance since the Covid-19 pandemic and students’ use of technology inside and outside of the classroom.
The proportion of students in Ireland from an immigrant background participating in PISA increased from 17.4% in 2022 to 23.1% in 2025.
Non-immigrants in Ireland performed better than first and second generation immigrants and transition year students performed better than third year students.
The main study was administered in 172 schools in Ireland between March and April, with 6,356 students participating. The research is considered a snapshot of students’ performance at a single point in time.
In 2025, the number of participating countries and economies in the study was 91 compared to 81 in 2022.