The gap in academic achievement between rural and urban students exceeds three years
Ukrainian schoolchildren from rural areas lag significantly behind their peers from large cities in terms of knowledge. According to the results of PISA-2025, the difference between them in certain subjects is equivalent to more than three years of schooling.
The widest gap was observed between students in rural areas and those in cities with populations exceeding one million. In mathematics, rural students scored an average of 400 points, compared to 460 in large cities. In reading, the scores were 386 and 454 points, respectively, and in science, 416 and 481.
In PISA, approximately 20 points correspond to one year of schooling. Thus, the difference amounts to about three years in mathematics and more than three years in reading and science.
Researchers attribute the educational gap to unequal access to resources, differences in socioeconomic conditions, school staffing, and opportunities for extracurricular development.
Overall, the results showed a pattern: the larger the settlement, the higher the average student scores. The lowest scores were recorded by students from villages, hamlets, and settlements with populations of up to 3,000 people.
More than 7,000 Ukrainian 15-year-olds participated in the study. At the same time, a comparison with PISA-2022 showed that results for most types of settlements remained generally stable in 2025. The exception was large cities, where the average score in mathematics dropped from 501 points in 2022 to 460 points in 2025.
Source: PISA
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