PISA is not a traditional school test. It does not measure how many definitions fifteen-year-olds have memorised, but rather how well they can apply what they have learned – to understand text, interpret data, solve a problem, or explain a phenomenon from everyday life.
In this year’s cycle, more than 760,000 students from 90 countries and economies participated. Serbia tested over 7,000 students. In the 2025 study, approximately 760,000 students from 90 countries and economies took part, including 7,041 students from 178 schools in Serbia (excluding Kosovo and Metohija).
This year’s global picture is not encouraging. The average across OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) countries is at an all-time low in mathematics and reading, while scores in science have also dropped. However, the decline is not uniform; some countries even managed to improve their results. Among the top performers are students from four Chinese jurisdictions and Singapore.
Serbia records a decline across all three domains
And Serbia? The scores are lower across all three domains compared to 2022. In science, the score fell from 447 to 429 points; in reading, from 440 to 415; and in mathematics, from 440 to 417.
This is not merely a continuation of the post-pandemic decline. Serbia’s 2025 results are also lower than those from 2018 and 2012. Compared to 2022, Serbia’s drop was significantly larger than the OECD average, particularly in reading.
Perhaps even more important than the average score is the structure of the results. Almost every second fifteen-year-old in Serbia failed to reach the basic level of reading literacy, while for mathematics, that figure is more than half.
Where Serbia stands in the region
Regional comparisons are not particularly favourable either. In science – the focus area of this cycle – Serbia’s score of 429 lags behind Montenegro’s 435, while Croatia and Slovenia are significantly higher, at 476 and 484 points respectively. North Macedonia achieved 422. Notably, Montenegro made progress across all three domains this year.
The OECD does not offer a definitive answer as to why Serbia’s results fell. It notes that the testing took place against a backdrop of student and teacher strikes, but also points to a broader global issue of declining engagement and learning quality.
The report also warns of a new dimension to the problem: the way students use digital tools and artificial intelligence, which sometimes replaces critical thinking. At the same time, students in Serbia display lower motivation to learn new things at school compared to the OECD average.
Ultimately, the most pressing issue is the growing number of students who fail to achieve even a basic level of knowledge, particularly in mathematics and reading.
(Newsmax Balkans, 10.09.2026)
https://newsmaxbalkans.com/vesti/drustvo/69146/kako-se-srbija-kotira-na-pisa-testiranju-2025-godine/vest
