Half of Mexican Students Finish Primary School Without Understanding What They Read, NGOs Warn

One in two students in Mexico finishes primary school without understanding what they read, according to figures highlighted by Mexicanos Primero and Fondo Alternativa. The organizations say the problem continues well into secondary education for many students.

They reported that 74% of students who face reading difficulties in third grade do not overcome the learning gap by the time they reach the third grade of lower secondary school. Another figure presented at the launch of the “Commitment to Reading Comprehension in Mexico” and the “Understanding Changes Everything” campaign showed that 47% of Mexican students do not reach the minimum reading-comprehension level.

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There is a silent educational deficit embedded in the country, one that concerns the learning that must take place in school.

Patricia Vázquez del Mercado, executive president of Mexicanos Primero, said the estimate that half of students leave primary school without understanding what they read comes from the World Bank. She acknowledged that Mexico has no updated data and said the indicator may have worsened after the pandemic.

“There is a silent educational deficit embedded in the country, one that concerns the learning that must take place in school,” Vázquez del Mercado said. She described reading comprehension, mathematical thinking and scientific thinking as minimum skills that cannot be treated as negotiable.

“If a girl or boy does not understand what they read at the age of 10, we are in a global condition called learning poverty,” she said. More than 35 million students are part of Mexico’s education system, making the challenge larger than simply ensuring that students complete primary school, secondary school or upper secondary education. They also need basic academic skills to continue learning.

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If a girl or boy does not understand what they read at the age of 10, we are in a global condition called learning poverty.

The organizations said students who read fluently have better chances of completing upper secondary education. Campaign materials also state that 57% of Mexican students reach the minimum level for understanding what they read. Vázquez del Mercado stressed that the figures do not mean no students are learning. “Many do achieve it, but we are missing the other half,” she said.

Mexicanos Primero presented its strategy to Education Secretary Mario Delgado the previous week. It plans to focus on reading comprehension during the 2026-2027 school year. Vázquez del Mercado said Delgado received the proposal favorably, but added that comprehension must become a priority not only in government offices, but also in classrooms. She also asked the ministry to publish data that would allow the figures to be checked against diagnostic evaluations and integrated learning exercises.

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Many do achieve it, but we are missing the other half.