Beyond the obvious: Aus Pisa nichts gelernt

Since 2000, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) has conducted an international student assessment program every three years. This program examines the skills of 15-year-olds in reading, mathematics, and natural sciences. Known in Germany by its English acronym, Pisa, the release of the Pisa results is met with great unease in the country.

This unease resurfaced early September 2026, as the results were once again devastating. Since the program's inception, Germany has never experienced such poor grades – a drop of 7 points in natural sciences, 15 points in reading, and 11 points in mathematics compared to 2022. However, this is not the only message sent by the Pisa assessment.

Along with the fact that nearly 21 percent of German students are underperforming in all three areas, social inequality stands out particularly prominently. In natural sciences, the gap between the socio-economically most privileged and the most disadvantaged quarters is 125 points, compared to just 85 points in the OECD average.

The socio-economic background explains 19 percent of the performance differences in Germany, while in the OECD average it is only 12 percent. The educational disaster was discussed in September 2023 between Daniel Stelter and Dr. Ludger Wößmann, Professor of Economics at the Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich and Director of the ifo Center for Education Economics, in Episode 207.

With the recurring German Pisa catastrophe, it is time for a much-needed refreshment with one of the world's most renowned education researchers. Note: Crash - How to rescue Germany: the new book by Daniel Stelter. Now available everywhere books are sold, including Thalia, Amazon, and geniallokal. Listen to the bto-Podcast #207 Setzen, Sechs!

(September 2023) with Prof. Dr. Ludger Wößmann: https://t1p.de/dme49. Germany's PISA 2025 Results (Part I) by OECD: https://t1p.de/zoidz. Press release INSM-Bildungsmonitor 2026: Saxony remains the education champion, Bavaria comes in second place in the Initiative Neue Soziale Marktwirtschaft (INSM): https://t1p.de/cfgrr. Beyond the obvious – New analyses, commentary, and assessments of the economic and financial situation can be found on think-bto.com.

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