PISA 2025: Philippines breaks out of bottom 10, sees best lift in reading

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines posted its highest scores in science, mathematics and reading since the country joined the PISA in 2018, according to results released Tuesday, September 8, but nearly two-thirds of Filipino students still fall below the test's baseline proficiency.

The Philippines scored 373 in science, up 17 points from 2022; 371 in mathematics, up 16; and 367 in reading, up 20. 

The reading gain alone is worth roughly a year of schooling by the OECD's own rule of thumb, which treats 20 points as one year's worth of learning.

The Philippines' 2025 showing has allowed it to escape a flatline trend since its last two participations in PISA. 

In 2018, its first cycle, the Philippines ranked last of 79 countries in reading and second-lowest in mathematics and science. In 2022, it placed sixth-lowest in mathematics and reading and third-lowest in science among 81 countries.

The average score among OECD countries this cycle is 482 in science, 463 in mathematics and 461 in reading. That leaves Filipino students 109 points behind in science, 94 in reading and 92 in mathematics — between four and five years of schooling by the OECD's conversion.

More than two-thirds, or some 64.3%, of Filipino students scored below Level 2 in science, reading and mathematics, the threshold the OECD treats as the minimum for participating in everyday economic and social life. 

Only 0.3% of Filipino students reached Level 5 or 6, the top bands. 

Part of the leaps made by the Philippines in this PISA round came after other countries' decline in all three subjects. Data show OECD averages fell in all three subjects this cycle, by 15 points in reading, nine in mathematics and three in science. 

The OECD average refers to the benchmark value, calculated by taking the average score or data point across all member countries in the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development).

PISA is historically administered every three years and selects test-takers through random sampling. The test targets fifteen year-olds as this is the age that marks the end of compulsory schooling in several countries.  

Fastest improving in reading

According to the OECD, the organization that administers the PISA, the Philippines is the "fastest improving" nation in terms of reading comprehension.

On the OECD's trend chart, which tracks all countries' mean performance in reading comprehension, the Philippines sits at the very top of the positive-trend column — ahead of Cambodia, Türkiye and Brunei — while Singapore, the United Kingdom and the United States all register declines.

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