S. Korean students rank among top performers among OECD nations in educational performance: report
South Korean 15-year-olds were among the top performers in mathematics, reading and science among their peers from the member nations of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), a report showed Wednesday, Yonhap reports.
The findings were made in the latest report by the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), operated by the OECD.
In the 2022 report, PISA measured the abilities of 15-year-olds from a total of 81 countries to use their reading, mathematics and science knowledge and skills to meet real-life challenges, including 37 OECD member nations.
A total of 6,931 students from 186 schools in South Korea participated in the survey.
Korean students scored 527 points in mathematics, 515 points in reading and 528 points in science, far higher than the averages of 472 points, 476 points and 485 points among the OECD nations, respectively.
Among the students from all countries surveyed, Korean students ranked between third and seventh in mathematics, between second and 12th in reading, and second and ninth in science. The rankings were broadly set in consideration of sampling errors.
Pit against peers from the OECD member nations, Korean students came in between first and second place in mathematics, first and seventh in reading, and second and fifth in science.
"During years of disruption during which many countries and economies saw student learning outcomes decline, Japan, Korea, Lithuania and Chinese Taipei were able to maintain or improve learning outcomes, fairness in the distribution of learning opportunities, and student well-being," the OECD said on its website.
Compared with the previous PISA report from 2018, the 2022 scores for Korean students were one point higher both in mathematics and reading and nine points higher in science.
In the meantime, the OECD averages fell from 489 points to 472 in mathematics, from 487 to 476 in reading and from 489 to 485 in science.
Of all the countries surveyed, Singapore had the most points in all three categories, with 575 points in mathematics, 543 points in reading and 561 points in science, the report showed.