France posts some of its lowest-ever results in PISA student assessment

French students recorded some of their lowest-ever results in mathematics, science, and reading comprehension, according to the OECD’s PISA 2025 survey published Tuesday.

Despite remaining close to the OECD average overall, France saw a sharp deterioration in student performance over the past decade, French broadcaster BFMTV reported.

“When we look at student performance, there has really been a significant drop in 10 years,” said Eric Charbonnier, an analyst at the OECD’s Directorate for Education and Skills.

Between 2015 and 2025, French students’ scores fell by 40 points in both mathematics and reading comprehension.

“Forty points represents the equivalent of two years of learning,” Charbonnier said. “We have a real problem with student performance, which has deteriorated in France as in many European countries.”

The decline also affected students from the most privileged families, whose scores fell by 50 points in reading comprehension and 28 points in mathematics over the same period.

Only 5% of French students achieved the highest performance levels in mathematics, compared with the OECD average of 8%.

The proportion of struggling students increased by four percentage points in science, 11 points in reading comprehension, and 12 points in mathematics compared with 2015.

The survey also revealed a widening gender gap in reading. Girls scored 32 points higher than boys, while boys continued to perform better in mathematics, although the gap narrowed.

Socioeconomic background remained a strong predictor of performance. The most advantaged French students scored 100 points higher in science than disadvantaged students, exceeding the average OECD gap of 85 points.

The report also highlighted declining parental involvement. Only 34% of French parents regularly asked their children whether they had experienced problems at school, while 60% showed interest in their school day once or several times a week.

“All the PISA results show that when families get involved in their children's schooling, the results and performance are significantly better,” Charbonnier said.

Teacher shortages and classroom disruption were also identified as concerns.

In 2025, 45% of French students attended schools where principals said teaching was hampered by staff shortages, compared with an OECD average of 39%.

Nearly half of French students said noise and disorder disrupted most or all of their science classes, against an OECD average of 31%.