PISA 2025 Results (Volume I): Cambodia

The Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) assesses the knowledge, skills and attitudes of 15-year-old students. The tests explore how well students can solve complex problems, think critically and communicate effectively; data collected through questionnaires describe the context in which students learn. This gives insights into how well education systems are preparing students for real life challenges and future success. Cambodia participated for the first time in PISA in 2017, through the PISA for Development initiative. By comparing results internationally, policy makers and educators in Cambodia can learn from other countries’ policies and practices.

• Average 2025 results in Cambodia were up compared to 2022 in mathematics, reading and science.

• The recent gains extended and reinforced a positive trend, and mean scores were also higher than in 2017. Results are even more positive when the expansion of secondary education to previously marginalised populations is also considered. Indeed, between 2022 and 2025, the number of 15-year-olds eligible to sit the PISA test increased in Cambodia, despite a shrinking population of 15-year-olds. This suggests that secondary school enrolment increased significantly over this period.

• Over the most recent period (2022 to 2025), the gap between the highest-scoring students (10% with the highest scores) and the weakest students (10% with the lowest scores) narrowed in mathematics; did not change significantly in reading; and widened in science.

• Compared to 2017 the proportion of low-performing students (scoring below proficiency Level 2) decreased by eight percentage points in mathematics; by six percentage points in reading; and by 27 percentage points in science.

• Students in Cambodia scored less than the OECD average in mathematics, reading and science (Figure 3).

• A smaller proportion of students in Cambodia than on average across OECD countries were top performers (Level 5 or 6) in at least one subject. At the same time, a smaller proportion of students than on average across OECD countries achieved a minimum level of proficiency (Level 2 or higher) in all three subjects (Figure 4).

• Some 33% of students in Cambodia attained Level 2 or higher in science (OECD average: 74%). At a minimum, these students can recognize the correct explanation for familiar scientific phenomena and can use such knowledge to identify, in simple cases, whether a conclusion is valid based on the data provided. Over 85% of students in top performers B-S-J-Z (China), Macao (China), Singapore, Estonia, Japan, Chinese Taipei and Korea (in descending order of that share) performed at this level or above.

• In Cambodia, almost no students were top performers in science, meaning that they were proficient at Level 5 or 6 (OECD average: 7%). These students can creatively and autonomously apply their knowledge of and about science to a wide variety of situations, including unfamiliar ones.

• In Cambodia, 18% of students attained at least Level 2 proficiency in mathematics (OECD average: 65%). At a minimum, these students can interpret and recognize, without direct instructions, how a simple situation can be represented mathematically (e.g. comparing the total distance across two alternative routes, or converting prices into a different currency).

• Almost no students in Cambodia were top performers in mathematics, meaning that they attained Level 5 or 6 in the PISA mathematics test (OECD average: 8%). The largest shares of students attaining Level 5 or 6 were observed in Seven Asian countries and economies: B-S-J-Z (China) (54%), Singapore (37%), Chinese Taipei (32%), Macao (China) (29%), Korea (23%), Japan (22%) and Hong Kong (China) (21%). At these levels, students can model complex situations mathematically, and can select, compare and evaluate appropriate problem-solving strategies for dealing with them. In 13 countries and economies participating in PISA 2025, more than 10% of students attained Level 5 or 6 proficiency.

• Some 13% of students in Cambodia attained Level 2 or higher in reading (OECD average: 69%). At a minimum, these students can identify the main idea in a text of moderate length, find information based on explicit, though sometimes complex criteria, and can reflect on the purpose and form of texts when explicitly directed to do so. The share of 15-year-old students who attained minimum levels of proficiency in reading (Level 2 or higher) varied from 93% in B-S-J-Z (China) to 4% in Rwanda.

• In Cambodia, almost no students scored at Level 5 or higher in reading (OECD average: 6%). These students can comprehend lengthy texts, deal with concepts that are abstract or counterintuitive, and establish distinctions between fact and opinion, based on implicit cues pertaining to the content or source of the information.

• The PISA index of economic, social and cultural status is computed in such a way that all students taking the PISA test, regardless of the country where they live, can be placed on the same socio-economic scale. This means that it is possible to use this index to compare the performance of students of similar socio-economic background in different countries. In Cambodia, 67% of students (the largest share) were in the bottom international quartile of the socio-economic scale, meaning that they were among the most disadvantaged students who took the PISA test in 2025. Their average score in science was 381 score points (Figure 5, left chart). In B-S-J-Z (China) and Türkiye, students of similar socio-economic background tend to score significantly higher.

• The PISA index of economic, social and cultural status can also be used to order students from the most disadvantaged to the most advantaged within each country and economy, and to create four groups of students of equal size (each comprising 25% of the population of 15-year-old students in each country/economy). In Cambodia socio-economically advantaged students (the top 25% in terms of socio-economic status) outperformed disadvantaged students (the bottom 25%) by 9 score points in science. This is smaller than the average difference between the two groups (85 score points) across OECD countries.

• Between 2017 and 2025, the gap in science performance between the top and the bottom 25% of students in terms of socio-economic status narrowed in Cambodia, while the average gap across OECD countries remained stable. Over this period, performance improved to a larger extent among disadvantaged than among advantaged students.

• Socio-economic status was a predictor of performance in science in all PISA-participating countries and economies. It accounted for 0% of the variation in science performance in PISA 2025 in Cambodia (compared to 12% on average across OECD countries).

• Some 22% of disadvantaged students in Cambodia were able to score in the top quarter of science performance. These students can be considered academically resilient because, despite their socio-economic disadvantage, they have attained educational excellence by comparison with students in their own country. On average across OECD countries, 12% of disadvantaged students scored in the top quarter of science performance in their own countries.

• In Cambodia, 64% of students agree or strongly agree that they are curious about many different things, compared to 73% across OECD countries. Moreover, 70% of students reported that they apply additional effort when work becomes challenging (OECD average 60%). At the same time, 15% agree or strongly agree that school has been a waste of time (OECD average: 24%).

• Curiosity, perseverance and valuing school are most often associated with higher science performance. In Cambodia, after accounting for students’ and schools’ socio-economic profile, students who perceive greater value in school and disagree that it is a waste of time tend to achieve higher scores in science (by 40 score points ) than their peers who feel they are wasting their time at school (OECD average: 27 score points).

• PISA 2025 also asked students about other attitudes towards learning. For example, 48% of students in Cambodia have a growth mindset (OECD average: 69%), i.e. hold the belief that intelligence can be cultivated through work, effort and feedback. On average across OECD countries, students with a growth mindset score 28 score points higher in science than those with a fixed mindset. In Cambodia, this difference is 9 score points, after accounting for students’ and schools’ socio-economic profile.

• In 2025, 69% of students in Cambodia were in schools whose principals reported that instruction was hindered, at least to some extent, by a perceived lack of teaching staff (OECD average: 39%); the corresponding share for a perceived lack of assisting staff was 53% (OECD average: 39%). The prevalence of perceived teaching staff shortages in Cambodia did not change significantly compared to 2022.

• PISA 2025 data reveal that perceived shortages of material resources remain a concern in most countries and economies. Some 57% of students in Cambodia attended schools whose principals reported that a lack of educational material (e.g. textbooks, IT equipment, library or laboratory material) hindered instruction, at least to some extent, and 61% were in schools where a lack of physical infrastructure (e.g. buildings, grounds, heating/cooling systems, lighting and acoustic systems) was perceived to hinder instruction. In 2022, the corresponding shares were 59% and 66%, respectively.

• In Cambodia, students reported spending on average 2.0 hours per day using digital devices at school for learning activities (OECD average: 1.7 hours). At the same time, a non-negligible share of students’ device use on school days is dedicated to non-learning activities: students in Cambodia reported spending 1.1 hours per day using digital devices at school for leisure (OECD average: 1.1 hours).

• In 2025, 49% of students in Cambodia attended schools where cell phone use is not allowed on school premises (OECD average: 49%), up from PISA 2022 (33%; OECD average in PISA 2022: 34%). This indicates a substantial increase in the implementation of cell phone bans during this period.

• In Cambodia, 19% of students reported being victims of at least one form of bullying a few times per month or more in 2025 (OECD average: 20%). The prevalence of bullying did not change significantly between PISA 2022 and PISA 2025, whereas it increased in a large majority of participating countries and economies.

• Cyberbullying is relatively uncommon compared with other forms of bullying, but its victims tend to experience significant achievement deficits. In Cambodia, 3% of students reported that upsetting information about them was published online, without their consent, at least a few times a month during the 12 months prior to the PISA test (OECD average: 3%). These students scored, on average, 37 points lower in science than their peers.

• Student reports of family support substantially decreased in almost all PISA-participating countries and economies between 2022 and 2025. This was also the case in Cambodia. In 2025, 37% of students in Cambodia reported that their parents or guardians asked them, at least once per week, what they did at school , while 29% reported having at least weekly discussions about problems they might have at school. In 2022, the corresponding shares were 54% and 46%, respectively.

• In 2025, around 8% of students in Cambodia reported having skipped at least one day of school in the two weeks prior to the test (OECD average: 22%); 18% reported skipping at least one class (OECD average: 24%); 58% reported arriving late for school (OECD average: 50%). In previous years, the corresponding shares were 9%, 20% and 55% (in 2022); 21%, 40% and 33% (in 2018).

• PISA 2025 shows that students in most education systems report strong pro-environmental attitudes, although fewer feel confident about how to collaborate effectively. In Cambodia, 68% of students believe that they can positively impact the environment (OECD average: 81%); 91% believe that collective action can address environmental problems (OECD average: 82%); 63% report knowing how to work with others to positively impact the environment (OECD average: 68%).

• Most students engaged in environment-related activities at least once over the 12 months prior to the PISA test. On average across OECD countries, the most common forms of engagement are discussing with friends and family how to have a positive impact on the environment (Cambodia: 74%; OECD average: 56%) and making purchasing decisions based on the sustainability of products (OECD average: 54%; 41% in Cambodia).

• The PISA 2025 survey focused on science, with mathematics and reading as minor areas; an assessment of learning in the digital world measured students’ computational problem-solving skills and their ability to self-direct their learning in a digital environment; Cambodia did not participate in this assessment. Results for science, mathematics, reading and computational problem solving are released on 8 September 2026 and analyses of students’ self-directed learning in 2027.

• Over 760 000 students took the assessment in 2025, representing about 33 million 15-year-olds in the schools of the 91 participating countries and economies.

• In Cambodia, 5 464 students, in 186 schools, completed the assessment, representing about 136 800 15-year-old students (an estimated 43% of the total population of 15-year-olds).

• PISA students are aged between 15 years 3 months and 16 years 2 months at the time of the assessment, and they have completed at least 6 years of formal schooling. In this note, they are referred to as 15-year-old students.

• Students took a two hour test in mathematics, reading and science, using paper and pencil. Test items were a mixture of multiple-choice questions and questions requiring students to construct their own responses.

• Students also answered a background questionnaire, which took about 35 minutes to complete. The questionnaire sought information about the students themselves, their attitudes, dispositions and beliefs, their homes, and their school and learning experiences. School principals completed a questionnaire about school management, organisation, and the learning environment.

• Some countries/economies also distributed additional questionnaires, to students, parents and/or teachers, to elicit more information. The findings from these optional questionnaires are not covered by this note.