PISA report shows declines in Paraguay’s reading and science performance

Paraguay’s latest PISA results show a sharp gap between its 15-year-old students and international performance levels, with especially troubling declines in reading and science.

The OECD published its 2025 Programme for International Student Assessment results on Tuesday. The assessment tests 15-year-old students in mathematics, science and reading every three years. About 760,000 students in 91 countries and territories took part, and the global report recorded the lowest average performance ever seen in the test, with particularly significant falls in reading and mathematics.

In Paraguay, only 24% of students scored above the baseline competency level in reading, compared with an international average of 69%. The corresponding figures were 10% against 64% in mathematics, 24% against 74% in science, and 14% against 64% in computer-based problem-solving. Almost no Paraguayan students ranked among the highest performers in reading, science or mathematics.

The Paraguayan assessment covered 6,510 students from 293 schools, representing more than 82,000 15-year-olds studying in the country. Mathematics performance remained broadly similar to the previous PISA assessment in 2022, but results in reading and science declined.

The OECD suggested that the percentage decline may partly reflect the expansion of secondary education to groups that previously lacked access. The number of students eligible for the 2025 test was higher than in 2022, even though Paraguay’s 15-year-old population was smaller. The report also highlighted schools where administrators reported shortages of teachers or material resources.