US Reading Scores Fall to Lowest Level in Nearly 25 Years

Reading performance among 15-year-old students in the United States has fallen to its lowest level in nearly 25 years, according to the latest international assessment of student achievement.

The results were published by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) as part of the 2025 Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), which evaluates the academic performance of students across countries.

US students recorded a 14-point decline in reading compared with the previous PISA assessment in 2022.

The fall is part of a wider decline in reading performance internationally, with the average score across 23 OECD countries dropping by 16 points over the same period.

However, the United States recorded a particularly wide gap between its highest- and lowest-performing students.

The assessment found that about 25.7 percent of US students were classified as low performers in reading, while only 13.3 percent were considered top performers.

Michael Kieffer, a professor of literacy education at New York University, said the results highlighted significant weaknesses in the US education system and suggested that many students were not receiving adequate support.

The assessment comes at a time of major debate over the future of education policy in the United States.

President Donald Trump’s administration has been seeking to reduce the role of the federal government in education and give states greater control over schools.

Trump has argued that the federal Education Department has failed to deliver improved academic outcomes despite receiving substantial public funding.

In March 2025, he signed an executive order directing Education Secretary Linda McMahon to begin the process of dismantling the department and transferring many of its responsibilities elsewhere.

The federal Education Department, however, does not set school curricula or academic standards.

Those responsibilities largely remain with state and local authorities.

The administration has also promoted “school choice”, a policy that seeks to give parents greater freedom to select educational options, including charter schools, private schools and homeschooling.

Supporters say the approach can provide families with alternatives to struggling public schools and encourage innovation.

Critics, however, argue that directing public resources towards private and less-regulated education providers could weaken traditional public schools and increase inequality.

The administration has increased support for charter schools and introduced a federal tax credit for donations to organisations providing scholarships that can be used for private-school tuition and other educational expenses.

Despite the political debate over how schools should be managed and funded, education experts say the latest PISA results point to the need for broader efforts to improve student achievement.

OECD Secretary-General Mathias Cormann said reversing the decline in student performance should be treated as an urgent priority.

He said successful education systems tend to focus on core areas, invest in teachers, involve parents and provide additional support to students and schools that need it most.

The latest figures are likely to intensify discussions over educational inequality in the United States, particularly the large gap between high- and low-performing students.

With reading scores continuing to decline, policymakers and educators face growing pressure to identify effective ways of improving literacy, strengthening classroom support and ensuring that more students can achieve higher levels of academic performance.

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