Eastern European educational proficiency trends

Educational assessments in Eastern Europe show varying trends in student proficiency. In Serbia, while fourth-grade students performed above international averages in mathematics and natural sciences according to TIMSS 2023 data, PISA 2022 results indicated a decline in proficiency by age fifteen. Approximately 43 percent of Serbian fifteen-year-olds failed to reach basic levels in mathematics, with experts citing digital distractions and classroom engagement as contributing factors.

By 2025, PISA results revealed divergent outcomes across the region. Romania experienced a significant decline, with over 52 percent of fifteen-year-olds failing to reach minimum competency in mathematics. In contrast, the Republic of Moldova reported progress, particularly in science and digital learning domains. Poland maintained strong performance, with students scoring above both OECD and European Union averages in mathematics, reading, and science.

New PISA 2025 data indicates further declines for Serbia and Croatia. In Serbia, average scores in mathematics, reading, and science fell below 2022, 2018, and 2012 levels, remaining below the OECD average. The proportion of Serbian students failing to reach basic functional literacy increased significantly since 2018, with mathematics failing rates rising by 13 percentage points and reading by 10. Reports suggest these results may have been influenced by widespread student and teacher strikes in the preceding year.

Croatia also saw a decline, particularly in reading literacy, which dropped to 453 points—a loss experts equate to “a full grade level of regression.” While Croatia’s international ranking remained stable due to broader regional trends, a significant gender gap emerged, with female students outperforming males by 47 points. Furthermore, only 5 percent of Croatian students reached the highest literacy levels required to distinguish fact from opinion.