Portugal’s PISA gains have largely faded

For years, Portugal moved up the PISA tables. The 2025 release shows how much of that progress has since receded. The clearest losses are in reading and maths, while science has also declined.

Scores turned down after 2015

Each line tracks a new sample of 15-year-olds. The survey does not follow the same students over time. Portugal’s 2025 scores are close to its 2006 results in the three subjects.

The decline reaches the lower end of the distribution

Average scores tell only part of the story. Since 2015, the share of students below Level 2, the OECD’s basic proficiency benchmark, rose in Portugal by 11 percentage points in reading, 11 in maths and 7 in science. That means more students are leaving the assessment below the level associated with foundational skills.

Comparisons of score points do not mean that an individual student lost that many points. Every PISA cycle samples a different group, and the estimate has sampling uncertainty. Portugal remains close to OECD averages in the latest cycle, even as its own earlier gains have faded.

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