Thailand placed a disappointing 55 out of 70 countries on the most recent Program for International Students Assessment (PISA). Thailand’s placement in the assessment, which tested students in 2015, was even lower than it was in 2012, the last time the assessment was done.

PISA ranks countries for performance but also applies a numerical grade to the students of each country in the categories of science, reading and math. Singapore won the top spot in the latest assessment, with scores of 556, 535 and 564, respectively. Japan took second place with scores of 538, 516 and 532. Thailand, in 55th place, had scores of just 421, 409 and 415.

In 2012, Thai students scored 444, 441 and 427, so the country has suffered a significant drop in skills over the last three years.

Other Asian countries that did well on the recent PISA assessment include: Taiwan in fourth place, China in sixth and Vietnam in eighth, reported Bangkok Post.

The survey is done every three years and tests 500,000 15-year-olds from 70 countries worldwide.

Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha is disappointed and has asked the Education Ministry to work harder to implement a national education plan, one that he hopes will increase Thailand’s PISA score by 100 points in each subject over the next 15 years, reported Thai PBS.

It’s been noted that there is a very large gap between the performance of students in underprivileged schools and those that attend elite schools. Students at top-ranking schools like Mahidol Wittthayanusorn and Chulabhorn Wittayalai scored much higher than their peers that attend less privileged schools.

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