OECD study: Latvian students' reading literacy has sharply declined over a decade
A new OECD study shows that reading scores among 15-year-old Latvian students have dropped by 51 points since 2015, now falling below the OECD average. A journalist reflects on the finding and his own relationship with reading.
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development's (OECD) international student assessment programme has found that Latvian students' knowledge has noticeably declined over the past decade, with reading literacy affected the most. According to last year's study results, 15-year-old students in Latvia scored an average of 430 points in reading, compared to the OECD average of 461 points. Compared with 2015, Latvia's average reading score has fallen by 51 points.
What reading literacy means
Within the study, reading literacy is not treated merely as the technical ability to read text, but as a broader skill set: understanding what has been read, identifying key information, maintaining concentration, distinguishing facts from opinions, and critically evaluating information. Such skills are becoming increasingly important as the volume of available information continues to grow.
Personal experience and the impact of digital devices
In an opinion piece, the author, a journalist, shares his own experience with reading. He explains that he learned to read at a very young age, but during his school years, reading assigned literature often felt like an obligation rather than a pleasure, and he admits he did not finish all the recommended summer reading. Around that time, smart devices and social media were beginning to gain popularity, offering constant opportunities for distraction — a trend that has since intensified to the point where schools now need to restrict phone use.
The author notes that he came to appreciate books more later in life, and now reads increasingly in English to keep improving his language skills. He says this practice helps him engage with good literature while also serving as mental exercise, since he often translates passages into Latvian in his head. This skill proves useful professionally as well, since his work involves interviewing people from other countries; he deliberately translates such material himself rather than relying on artificial intelligence, arguing that a feel for language and the ability to understand text and articulate thoughts are skills that should not be fully handed over to technology.
