Israel's Education System Under Yoav Kisch: Declining Test Scores, Rising Tech Baccalaureate
A data-driven review of Education Minister Yoav Kisch's tenure reveals a mixed performance for Israel's education system. While national scores in international assessments like PISA have hit historic lows, particularly in mathematics, there has been a significant increase in students qualifying for advanced "tech baccalaureate" diplomas.
The PISA results, conducted by the OECD every three years, showed a sharp decline in Israeli students' performance in math, science, and reading between 2022 and 2025, reaching the lowest point since measurements began. This drop was more severe than the global average, although the article notes a broader global trend of declining scores. Contributing factors cited include the impact of the ongoing war, a shortage of quality teachers, and overcrowded classrooms.
Despite the overall decline in test scores, the number of students achieving a "tech baccalaureate", signifying proficiency in 5-unit math, English, and physics or computer science, has surged. After reaching a four-year low, the rate of qualifying students jumped to a record 11.6% in the past year. This is attributed to long-standing Ministry of Education programs focused on strengthening STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) education, aimed at preparing graduates for the tech industry.
Minister Kisch's office stated that efforts are underway to address war-related learning gaps and implement the "New Deal in Education" program. This initiative includes reducing class sizes to around 20 students, shortening the school week to five days, and establishing long-term budget planning for the next decade. The "Israel Realit" (Realistic Israel) program, a national emergency initiative launched in April 2025 to bolster STEM education with a budget of approximately 1.5 billion shekels, is reportedly in initial or partial implementation across about 71% of its components, including additional teaching hours and retraining hundreds of teachers.
Separately, the number of students in the state-ultra-Orthodox (Mamlechti-Charedi) educational stream has grown significantly, from just over 4,000 in the 2015-2016 school year to nearly 27,000 in the current year, with an average annual growth of 20% (26% during Kisch's tenure). This growth is attributed to the integration of existing institutions from conservative Hasidic groups and community schools, as well as new school openings in cities like Beit Shemesh and Jerusalem. Kisch claims to have invested in promoting core curriculum studies within the ultra-Orthodox community through dialogue and agreement, with credit also given to the Ministry of Education's ultra-Orthodox district and grassroots activists for overcoming bureaucratic and political obstacles.