The achievements of Israeli students and election lies | Prof. Arnon Hershkovitz

Prof. Arnon Hershkovitz analyzes the results of the PISA and "Tnufa LeMachar" tests, which indicate a significant decline in the achievements of Israeli students in reading, mathematics, and science. He links this weakness to citizens' ability to cope with disinformation and election lies, and warns against the political exploitation of public ignorance.

Prof. Arnon Hershkovitz analyzes in an opinion column the results of the PISA and "Tnufa LeMachar" tests, recently published, which paint a worrying picture of the knowledge and skills of Israeli students. The PISA test, conducted in the 2024-2025 school year, shows a significant decline in all three areas (reading, mathematics, and science) compared to the previous test in 2021-2022, and the average score in each area is the lowest in the last twenty years, placing Israel at the bottom of the OECD rankings. The "Tnufa" test, conducted for the first time that year, reveals that only about a third of sixth graders met the requirements in mathematics, 3% of ninth graders in science and technology, and only a fifth of Arab students met the requirements in Hebrew. Hershkovitz notes the COVID-19 years and the war as possible explanations, but focuses on the civic meaning: weakness in knowledge and skills may translate into civic weakness, making it difficult to identify manipulations and lies during election season. He warns against politicians who act to keep the public ignorant to ensure their survival, and emphasizes that investment in literacy is an investment in the democratic infrastructure.