Monitor toolbox by theme

Main indicator

• Underachievement in basic skills, measuring the share of 15-year-old students who do not reach level 2 on the proficiency scale in the respective domain (reading, mathematics, or science). OECD PISA [educ_outc_pisa]
• Top performance in basic skills, measuring the share of 15-year-old students who reach level 5 or higher on the proficiency scale in the respective domain (reading, mathematics, or science). OECD PISA

A closer look

• The main indicator on underachievement in basic skills is broken down by sex. OECD PISA [educ_outc_pisa]
• The main indicator on top performance in basic skills is also broken down by sex. OECD PISA [educ_outc_pisa]

Policy response

• European Commission/EACEA/Eurydice 2025 report on policy responses to strengthen learning support for basic skills.

Further reading

• European Commission communication 2025 Action Plan on Basic Skills.
• European Commission/EACEA/Eurydice 2025 report on recommended annual instruction time.
• European Commission/EACEA/Eurydice 2025 report on addressing underachievement in basic skills.
• European Commission (Joint Research Centre) 2024 study on mathematics teaching practices and 2023 technical report on the impact of COVID-19 school closures.
• European Commission 2024 comparative analysis of the PISA 2022 results.
• European Commission 2022 report of the expert group on quality investment in education and training.
• ENESET 2025 report on factors contributing to basic skills decline.
• ENESET 2025 report on smartphone use in schools.
• EENEE 2023 report on COVID-19 learning deficits.
• OECD 2025 policy paper on teacher support for student learning.
• OECD 2024 working paper on the negative effects of smartphone and social media usage on student performance.
• IZA Institute of Labour Economics 2021 discussion paper on effective intervention measures.
• KU Leuven 2023 working paper on the impact of teacher shortages and COVID-19 school closures.