Top EU countries outperform US in education survey[fr][de] 

Finland, the top performer in the last PISA (Programme for International Student Assessment) study, has managed to further improve its scores. The 2003 study, which tests learning skills among 15-year-olds in 41 countries, has put the country ahead of the top-ranking Asian schools systems in Hong Kong, Japan and Korea. 

The focus of the 2003 survey was on mathematics, testing students' ability to develop and apply models to real-life situations. It also looked at problem-solving skills, science and literacy. In all areas, Finland either improved its performance or maintained the 2000 position. In maths, the Netherlands were also ranked among the top five.

While overall, wealthier countries tended to do better than poorer ones, the report showed that high education spending is not necessary to achieve high results. Many countries, including Belgium, the Czech Republic, Finland and the Netherlands, have managed to develop efficient education systems on a relatively low budget. Other 'big spenders' such as the US, on the other hand, have not been able to match their performance.

Since the last study carried out in 2000, some EU countries, such as Belgium, the Czech Republic, Germany and Poland, have been able to improve their position. While European countries generally perform at around or above OECD average (with the exception of Greece, Italy, Portugal and Latvia), the US only achieved relatively poor results in mathematics and problem-solving and average results in reading and science.

The report suggests that the performance of EU education systems shows a close correlation with the EU countries' competitiveness and innovation capacity (see  EurActiv 15 October 2004).