PISA Tests Expose an Educational Setback in Colombia

The results of the 2025 PISA tests have once again raised concerns about the state of education in Colombia. The country continues to perform below the averages of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and shows a decline in some fundamental skills, particularly in mathematics and reading.

The most concerning figure is in mathematics: 71% of 15-year-old Colombian students failed to reach the basic proficiency level. In other words, seven out of every ten students assessed were unable to demonstrate the minimum skills that PISA considers necessary to function in situations requiring the application of mathematical knowledge.

Colombia scored 381 points in this area, eight points above the Latin American average but 82 points below the OECD average.

PISA tests expose an educational setback in Colombia

PISA, which stands for the Programme for International Student Assessment, is an evaluation developed by the OECD that measures the knowledge and skills of students around the age of 15 every three years.

It does not simply assess how much content students remember, but seeks to determine the extent to which they can apply what they have learned to solve problems, analyze situations, and use their knowledge in real-life contexts.

The tests primarily assess mathematics, reading, and science, although each edition incorporates additional areas. In 2025, for example, science was the main area assessed, and an evaluation of learning in the digital world was included for the first time.

More than 760,000 students from 91 countries and economies participated, representing approximately 33 million 15-year-olds. Participants included countries from the Americas, Europe, Asia, Africa, and Oceania, both OECD members and associated economies.

Colombia has participated in PISA since 2006, and since then, its results have made it possible to track the evolution of the national education system compared with other countries and economies.

Mathematics and reading are the main concerns

The 2025 results confirm that Colombian students continue to face deep difficulties in mathematics. Only 29% reached Level 2 or higher, which is considered the basic proficiency threshold. Another 40% fell below Level 1a, while 31% were at Level 1a.

In practical terms, this means that a large majority of students have difficulty interpreting and representing simple situations mathematically without direct instructions. In addition, virtually no Colombian students reached the highest performance levels, while the OECD average shows a significantly higher proportion of students with advanced skills.

Colombia ranked sixth among the participating Latin American countries. It trailed Uruguay, Chile, Mexico, Costa Rica, and Peru, while outperforming Brazil, Argentina, Ecuador, El Salvador, the Dominican Republic, Guatemala, and Paraguay.

The decline is not limited to mathematics. In reading, Colombia scored 399 points, 10 fewer than in 2022, when it scored 409. In science, by contrast, there was a slight improvement, with the score rising from 411 to 414 points.

Recent trends therefore show a mixed picture. Between 2022 and 2025, mathematics scores fell from 383 to 381 points, while reading experienced a more pronounced decline. Science was the only one of the three main areas to record an improvement.

The OECD itself, however, introduces an important element for interpreting these figures. Colombia has significantly expanded access to secondary education and brought into the system young people from populations that were previously marginalized from the education system.

In this regard, the number of 15-year-old students eligible to take PISA increased between 2018 and 2025, even though the population of that age declined significantly.

🆕 #OECDPISA results, released today, show that student performance has declined across all three core subjects over the past decade. ⤵️ pic.twitter.com/lYO8bYmMd0

— OECD ➡️ Better Policies for Better Lives (@OECD) September 8, 2026

A trend that requires action

Colombia’s decline is also occurring against a challenging international backdrop. The OECD notes that mathematics and reading results have continued to deteriorate in numerous countries following the sharp decline recorded in PISA 2022. Across the OECD, the average mathematics score fell by 22 points between 2015 and 2025.

But Colombia’s case continues to pose a particular challenge. Although the expansion of educational coverage may explain part of the results, the fact that seven out of every ten students fail to reach basic mathematics proficiency reveals a gap that goes far beyond a position in an international ranking.

Thus, the expansion of access to the education system in Colombia is now accompanied by the need to overcome learning difficulties and ensure that remaining in school translates into the acquisition of fundamental skills.

And that is precisely where the country’s education authorities must focus their efforts in the coming years, ensuring that students leave the classroom with the tools they need to understand, solve problems, and function in an increasingly demanding society.