The 2015 PISA education ranking, released Tuesday, puts teenagers from Singapore at the top of the heap for their knowledge in science, math, and reading, while U.S. students continue to lag behind.
The Program International Student Assessment study, done every three years by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, tests more than 500,000 15-year-olds in 72 countries, reported CNN. Science was the main focus of last year's test while math was the focus in 2012.
Singapore students recorded an overall score of 556, follow by Japan (538), Estonia (534), Taiwan (532), and Finland (531). The United States was 25th with an overall score of 496.
CNN said East Asian countries continue top the list overall, placing in seven of the top 10 spots for science. Estonia, Finland, and Canada were the top ranking non-Asian countries.
"The fact that students in most East Asian countries consistently believe that achievement is mainly a product of hard work, rather than inherited intelligence, suggests that education and its social context can make a difference in instilling values that foster success in education," said Andreas Schleicher, the OECD's director of education.
The study said about one in 10 students across OECD countries, and one in 4 in Singapore, performed at the highest level in science. More than one in five students fell short of baseline proficiency, noted the study.
Only students in Canada, Estonia, Finland, Hong Kong (China), Japan, Macao (China), Singapore, and Vietnam had at least nine out of 10 15-year-old students master the basics that every student should know before leaving school, according to the study.
"A decade of scientific breakthroughs has failed to translate into breakthroughs in science performance in schools," said OECD secretary-general Angel Gurría. "Every country has room for improvement, even the top performers.
"With high levels of youth unemployment, rising inequality, a significant gender gap, and an urgent need to boost inclusive growth in many countries, more must be done to ensure every child has the best education possible."
Quartz reported that U.S. students posted a math score of 470, below Singapore's top score of 540 and under the average for all countries. The U.S. science score of 496 was lower than its 2012 score while American students posted a reading score of 497, which was just above the average of 493.
The study did highlight the scores of students in Massachusetts, though, stating that their science score of 529 compared with top students in the world. In math, Massachusetts students' score of 500 was above of the OECD average of 490.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.