DATA

POINT

Problem Solving Skills 

of 15-Year-Olds: 

Results from PISA 2012 U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION 

JULY 2014 NCES 2014-103 

The Program for International Student 

Assessment (PISA) is an international assessment 

that measures 15-year-old students' reading, 

mathematics, and science literacy and, in 2012, 

general problem solving and financial literacy. 

PISA is coordinated by the Organization for 

Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), 

an intergovernmental organization of industrialized 

countries, and is conducted in the United States by 

NCES. In 2012, all 34 OECD member countries 

and 31 other education systems, some of which 

are countries and some of which are subnational 

entities, participated in PISA, for a total of 65 

participating education systems. Forty-four of the 

65 education systems administered the problem 

solving assessment. The PISA computer-based 

assessment of problem solving assessed how well 

prepared students are to confront the kinds of 

problems that are encountered almost daily in 

21st century life. More information about the 

PISA problem solving assessment is available 

at www.pisa.oecd.org. 

How did U.S. 15-year-olds perform, 

on average, on the Program for 

International Student Assessment 

(PISA) problem solving assessment 

compared to their peers in 43 other 

education systems?

• Average scores in problem solving ranged

from 562 in Singapore to 399 in Colombia. The

U.S. average score was 508, which was higher

than the OECD average of 500. The U.S.

average was lower than the average in ten

education systems, higher than the average in

twenty-two education systems, and not

measurably different from the average in

eleven education systems (table 1).

What were the percentages of top 

performers and low performers on the 

PISA problem solving assessment?

• Percentages of top performing 15-year-old

students (those scoring at level 5 or above) in

problem solving ranged from 29 percent in

Singapore to 1 percent in Colombia, Malaysia,

Montenegro, and Uruguay. In the United States,

12 percent of 15-year-old students scored at

proficiency level 5 or above, which was not

measurably different than the OECD average

of 11 percent. The U.S. percentage of top

performers was lower than in eleven education

systems, higher than in twenty-two education

systems, and not measurably different than in

ten education systems (figure 1).

• The percentage of 15-year-old students scoring

below level 2, which is considered a baseline

of proficiency by the OECD, ranged from

7 percent in Korea and Japan to 61 percent in

Colombia. In the United States, 18 percent of

15-year-old students scored below level 2,

which was lower than the OECD average of

21 percent and the percentage in twenty

education systems. The U.S. percentage of low

performers was higher than the percentage in

nine education systems and not measurably

different from the percentage in fourteen

education systems (figure 1).

Data in this report are from the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA), an 

international assessment of 15-year-old students, a sample-based survey. To learn more, visit 

http://nces.ed.gov/surveys/pisa. For questions about content or to view this report online, go to 

http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2014103.
TABLE 1. Average scores of 15-year-old students on PISA problem solving scale, by education system: 2012

Education system Average score s.e. Education system Average score s.e.

OECD average (PS) 500 0.7

Singapore 562 1.2 Denmark 497 2.9

Korea, Republic of 561 4.3 Portugal 494 3.6

Japan 552 3.1 Sweden 491 2.9

Macao-China 540 1.0 Russian Federation 489 3.4

Hong Kong-China 540 3.9 Slovak Republic 483 3.6

Shanghai-China 536 3.3 Poland 481 4.4

Chinese Taipei 534 2.9 Spain 477 4.1

Canada 526 2.4 Slovenia 476 1.5

Australia 523 1.9 Serbia, Republic of 473 3.1

Finland 523 2.3 Croatia 466 3.9

United Kingdom 517 4.2 Hungary 459 4.0

Estonia 515 2.5 Turkey 454 4.0

France 511 3.4 Israel 454 5.5

Netherlands 511 4.4 Chile 448 3.7

Italy 510 4.0 Cyprus 445 1.4

Czech Republic 509 3.1 Brazil 428 4.7

Germany 509 3.6 Malaysia 422 3.5

United States 508 3.9 United Arab Emirates 411 2.8

Belgium 508 2.5 Montenegro, Republic of 407 1.2

Austria 506 3.6 Uruguay 403 3.5

Norway 503 3.3 Bulgaria 402 5.1

Ireland 498 3.2 Colombia 399 3.5

 Average score is higher than U.S. average score.

 Average score is lower than U.S. average score.

NOTE: Education systems are ordered by 2012 average score. Scores are reported on a scale from 0 to 1,000. All average scores reported as 

higher or lower than the U.S. average score are different at the .05 level of statistical significance. The OECD average (PS) is the average of 

the national averages of the 28 OECD member countries that participated in the problem solving (PS) assessment, with each country weighted 

equally. Standard error is noted by s.e. Italics indicate non-OECD countries and education systems.

SOURCE: Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), Program for International Student Assessment (PISA), 2012.
FIGURE 1. Percentage of 15-year-old students performing at PISA problem solving proficiency level 5 and above and 

below level 2, by education system: 2012

*p <.05. Significantly different from the U.S. percentage at the .05 level of statistical significance.

NOTE: Education systems are ordered by 2012 percentages of 15-year-olds in level 5 and above. To reach a particular proficiency level, a 

student must correctly answer a majority of items at that level. Students were classified into problem solving levels according to their scores 

on a scale from 0 to 1,000. Exact cut scores are as follows: below level 1 (a score less than or equal to 358.49); level 1 (a score greater than 

358.49 and less than or equal to 423.42); level 2 (a score greater than 423.42 and less than or equal to 488.35); level 3 (a score greater than 

488.35 and less than or equal to 553.28); level 4 (a score greater than 553.28 and less than or equal to 618.21); level 5 (a score greater than 

618.21 and less than or equal to 683.14); and level 6 (a score greater than 683.14). Standard errors are available in table PS1b at: 

http://nces.ed.gov/surveys/pisa/pisa2012/index.asp. The OECD average (PS) is the average of the national percentages of the 28 OECD 

member countries that participated in the problem solving (PS) assessment, with each country weighted equally. Italics indicate non-OECD 

countries and education systems.

SOURCE: Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), Program for International Student Assessment (PISA), 2012.

This NCES Data Point presents information on education topics of current 

interest. It was authored by Patrick Gonzales and Dana Kelly of NCES. 

Estimates based on samples are subject to sampling variability, and 

apparent differences may not be statistically significant. All noted 

differences are statistically significant at the .05 level. In the design, 

conduct, and data processing of National Center for Education Statistics 

(NCES) surveys, efforts are made to minimize the effects of nonsampling 

errors, such as item nonresponse, measurement error, data processing 

error, or other systematic error.