Achievement of 15 year olds (Program for International Student Assessment) PISA national report: 2022

PISA 2022 involved 81 education systems, including Wales. In Wales, 2,568 15-year-old learners from 89 schools completed a 2-hour computer-based assessment and learner questionnaire.

The sample for Wales, and for many other countries, did not meet some of the PISA standards. Non-Response Bias Analyses were carried out to estimate the amount of bias within Wales’ sample, and the sample of other countries that did not meet PISA standards. The potential bias in the PISA results for Wales was effectively reduced statistically as part of the analysis process, through the use of adjusted weightings. However, in some of the education systems where the PISA standards were not met, such adjustments may be less effective and some results may therefore be somewhat higher than they might otherwise be. Given that the samples elsewhere in the UK, in several OECD countries, and in other comparator countries, may not be entirely representative of those countries’ populations, some caution is required when interpreting the analysis that is presented in this report, particularly when comparing Wales’ results with those of other countries, and with the OECD average scores that are reported throughout this report.

Main points

Mathematics

• The average PISA mathematics score for Wales in 2022 was 466. This score was significantly lower than the OECD average score of 472.
• Learners in 42 of the participating education systems achieved an average mathematics score that was significantly below that of Wales, compared to 26 achieving an average mathematics score that was significantly above that of Wales.
• Wales’ score of 466 was significantly lower than the 487 achieved in 2018. The OECD trend average was also significantly lower in 2022 than in 2018.

Reading

• The average PISA reading score for Wales in 2022 was 466. This was significantly below the OECD average of 476.
• Learners in 45 of the education systems who participated achieved an average reading score that was significantly below that of Wales, compared to 27 achieving an average reading score that was significantly above that of Wales.
• Wales’ average score in reading was significantly below the average score in 2018 (483). The OECD trend average was also significantly lower in 2022 (477) than in 2018 (488).

Science

• The average PISA science score for Wales in 2022 was 473. This was significantly lower than the OECD average of 485.
• There were 43 participating education systems that scored significantly lower than Wales in science, and 30 that scored significantly higher.
• Wales’ overall average science score for 2022 was significantly different to the score of 488 that was obtained in 2018. The OECD trend average was not significantly lower in 2022 than in 2018.

Note

The above figures are based on comparing Wales with other participating countries, including the component parts of the UK. This is consistent with the national report produced by the University of Oxford.

Further Information

The PISA 2022 international report, and additional information, can be found on the OECD website.