Teachers, headteachers, children, parents and politicians should all feel proud of England’s schools, which have bucked a disappointing international trend. Results from 15-year-olds in reading, maths and science have held up well compared with 90 other countries, according to the programme for international student assessment (Pisa). Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland did not match England’s success in reading and maths, although all four UK nations scored well in science.

Worries about children reading fewer books than in the past should be dispelled to some degree by England’s results, which show no decline in capability since 2022, when the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) last published results. The decision to place more emphasis on science, technology, engineering and maths (Stem), both at primary and secondary levels, has seemingly borne fruit.

Pisa scores do not record everything that schools are doing, and a positive set........

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