MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines has recorded its strongest performance ever in the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), with Filipino 15-year-olds posting substantial gains in science, mathematics and reading—a development lawmakers and education officials say offers fresh evidence that years of education reforms and investments are beginning to produce results.
The latest PISA 2025 results showed Philippine students scoring 373 in science, 371 in mathematics and 367 in reading.
Compared with the country’s 2022 results, that represents gains of 17 points in science, 16 points in mathematics and 20 points in reading.
The improvement was particularly notable because the Philippines moved upward in all three core areas simultaneously, reversing the largely stagnant performance seen in the previous PISA cycle.
House Speaker Faustino “Bojie” Dy III described the results as evidence that sustained government investment and education reforms are beginning to pay off, while crediting Education Secretary Juan Edgardo “Sonny” Angara, teachers and education-sector leaders for helping drive the gains.
“Progress is possible when we stay focused on learning outcomes and support our teachers and students,” Dy said.
The numbers tell a striking story
The latest results represent a dramatic change from the Philippines’ 2022 performance.
In 2022, Filipino students scored 356 in science, 355 in mathematics and 347 in reading. The OECD noted at the time that Philippine performance was essentially unchanged from 2018.
Three years later, the picture is considerably different.
The share of Filipino students reaching PISA Level 2 or higher, considered the baseline proficiency level, increased substantially:
- Science: 23% → 32%
- Mathematics: 16% → 21%
- Reading: 24% → 31%
The Philippines also improved its relative standing. In the latest assessment, it surpassed 18 education systems in reading, 16 in mathematics and 14 in science, according to Inquirer reporting based on the latest PISA results.
The country ranked 72nd out of 90 in reading, 74th out of 90 in mathematics and 77th out of 91 in science.
Philippines bucked a broader global decline
What makes the improvement more striking is that Philippine scores moved in the opposite direction from the broader OECD trend.
According to EDCOM 2, OECD average scores between 2022 and 2025 fell by 3 points in science, 9 points in mathematics and 14 points in reading, while the Philippines registered gains in all three subjects.
The OECD itself reported that reading and mathematics performance across OECD countries reached their lowest average levels recorded by PISA, underscoring the global learning challenges facing education systems.
The Philippines was also identified as having the fastest improvement in reading performance over the past decade, while showing notable improvement in mathematics.
Education reforms get a boost—but officials say the work isn’t over
For Speaker Dy, the results strengthen the argument for maintaining investments in basic education rather than treating the latest gains as a reason to slow down.
He credited the combined efforts of the national government, DepEd, school leaders and teachers, while saying education problems cannot be solved overnight.
EDCOM 2 likewise described the results as evidence that Philippine education reforms are “on the right track” and gaining momentum, pointing to the combined efforts of teachers, parents, civil society groups, legislators, local governments and communities.
DepEd has also signaled that it intends to sustain the momentum rather than declare victory.
BusinessMirror reported that the department is planning to roll out PISA for Schools, allowing schools to use comparable assessment data to better understand student performance and learning gaps.
But there’s a crucial warning behind the good news
Despite the historic improvement, the Philippines remains well below the OECD average.
The OECD’s 2025 country data put the Philippine science score at 373, compared with an OECD average of 485; mathematics stood at 371, compared with 472; and reading at 367, compared with 472.
The latest results also show that a large majority of Filipino students still do not reach the baseline PISA proficiency level.
In science, 68.4% of Filipino students remained low performers, according to OECD data.
And there are concerns beyond test scores.
Inquirer reported that the 2025 assessment showed increases in some forms of verbal and cyberbullying, with the proportion of students saying other students made fun of them rising from 22% in 2022 to 33% in 2025. Reports of rumors also increased from 15% to 19%.
That means the latest PISA numbers should be viewed as a breakthrough, not an endpoint.
From education crisis to possible turnaround?
The contrast with the Philippines’ previous PISA results is unmistakable.
In 2022, the country was near the bottom of the international rankings, with Philippine students performing roughly five to six years behind their counterparts in many participating education systems.
The 2025 results don’t erase those longstanding challenges.
But they do provide something the education sector badly needed: evidence that improvement is possible.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has welcomed the results, saying the gains in reading, mathematics and science demonstrate what Filipino students and teachers can achieve when they receive stronger support. He has pledged to continue investments in classrooms, internet connectivity, computers, school supplies and learning materials.
The bigger question now is whether the Philippines can turn one historic PISA improvement into a sustained, nationwide transformation in learning.
For millions of Filipino students, teachers and parents, that may be the real test still ahead.
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