OECD education trends reveal progress but stubborn inequality gaps persist
Education trends across OECD countries show both progress and persistent challenges. More young adults now hold upper secondary qualifications, while early childhood enrollment continues to climb. Yet gaps remain, particularly for children from disadvantaged backgrounds and women entering the workforce.
The share of 25- to 34-year-olds with an upper secondary qualification has grown from 83% to 86% since 2016. Even among those without this level of education, employment rates have improved, rising from 59% to 61%. This suggests better job prospects for less-qualified young adults.
Ten OECD nations have also lowered the starting age for compulsory education to include pre-primary years. This shift reflects growing recognition of early childhood education’s role in reducing developmental gaps before primary school. Research shows it helps level the playing field, particularly for children from low-income families. Despite these gains, barriers persist. Enrollment in early childhood education has increased across all age groups, but children from poorer households are still less likely to attend. These same children often perform worse in standardised assessments, highlighting the lasting impact of family background on educational outcomes. Gender disparities also remain. Girls and women continue to outperform boys and men in educational attainment. However, this advantage does not translate into equal labour market opportunities, leaving many women at a disadvantage in their careers.
The latest data reveals steady improvements in qualification rates and early education access. Lowering the compulsory schooling age and expanding pre-primary programmes aim to reduce gaps. Still, challenges like socioeconomic gaps in enrollment and women’s limited career progression show that further efforts are needed to turn educational progress into broader equality.
