Wales has a school standards crisis. Will plans to fix it actually work?
Summary
Wales is facing a serious problem with its school standards, as recent international tests show students performing much worse than those in the rest of the UK. The new Welsh government, led by Plaid Cymru, is now under pressure to improve education after many years of mixed results and policy changes.Key Facts
- Wales ranked lowest among UK nations in global student tests (PISA) measuring reading, math, and science skills.
- The PISA test measures 15-year-olds’ academic skills across countries, with a large sample from Wales participating in 2025.
- Latest results show Welsh students lagging behind English students by about two years of learning in key subjects.
- Scotland and Northern Ireland also outperform Wales in reading by about one year.
- Wales stopped standard school league tables and tests in early 2000s as part of education reforms, creating a different system from England.
- Poor PISA results in 2010 led to new reforms including reintroduction of accountability tests for younger pupils.
- The COVID-19 pandemic worsened test scores in Wales more than in other UK nations.
- New school buildings, such as Saint Carlo Acutis Catholic School, aim to improve learning environments but are not enough to close the performance gap.
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