Improving education and skills in Czechia

By Federica De Pace, OECD

Czechs, young and old, possess solid skills. Since 2012, 15-year-olds have consistently outperformed the OECD average across all subjects in the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA). Adult skills, measured by the 2023 OECD Survey of Adult Skills, are broadly in line with the OECD average, but numeracy stands out as a particular strength. Yet, averages hide important inequalities in educational outcomes, with disadvantaged students falling further behind their advantaged peers than in most other OECD countries (Figure 1). In addition, high educational mismatches suggest that the education system does not always provide students with the right skills (Figure 2).

With skill shortages already biting, expanding the skilled workforce is vital for sustaining growth. Demographic decline, digitalisation, and the green transition will only heighten the pressure. Against this background, the 2025 Economic Survey of Czechia explores ways to enhance equality of opportunities and the quality of education for all students, and ensure that workers can upskill and reskill throughout their careers.

Expanding capacity and participation to high-quality affordable early childhood education and care will be paramount to improve educational outcomes of the most vulnerable, besides facilitating mothers’ participation in the labour market. Directing support to schools with a high proportion of disadvantaged students as well as better diagnostics to reduce Roma overrepresentation in special schools are also key to tackling educational inequality. Meanwhile, Czechia’s early school tracking disadvantages talented students lacking strong family support. Delaying tracking and narrowing quality gaps between general and vocational education would help Czechia make the most of its talent.

Strengthening the teaching workforce and improving the efficiency of the school network are essential for enhancing the quality of education. However, limited career prospects and challenging working conditions make it difficult for Czechia to attract and retain qualified teachers, with adverse effects on educational outcomes. Teacher shortages have worsened, particularly in scientific subjects and in both remote regions and Prague. The problem is exacerbated by an abundance of small schools, a consequence of a highly decentralised education system and administrative fragmentation. Enhancing working conditions—notably by diversifying career pathways—could help draw and retain talent. At the same time, consolidating the school network, by setting minimum school sizes to encourage mergers and cooperation, would allow resources to be redirected from administration to teaching.

Reforms are needed to better align skills with labour market demands. The vocational education and training (VET) system often falls short of equipping students for the workplace, partly due to limited exposure to work-based learning—only 16% of VET students participate, compared to an EU average of 64.5%. Reducing over-specialisation and expanding work-based learning, for example by tying VET school funding to student participation in work placements and strengthening the role of social partners in shaping curricula and delivering training, could help bridge this gap. Meanwhile, adult learning participation should be expanded, particularly for low-skilled workers. Offering flexible, modular learning options—where long programmes are broken into self-contained units, each with its own learning outcomes and qualifications (micro-credentials)—would make upskilling more accessible.

Tertiary attainment must also rise to meet growing demand for highly skilled graduates, particularly in technical fields such as civil engineering, ICT, and the natural sciences. In 2022, just 34.6% of young adults held a tertiary degree, well below the OECD average of 47.4%. Expanding access and improving completion rates—including through grants and loans for students from vulnerable backgrounds—would help ensure a better match between skill supply and labour market needs.

References

OECD (2025), OECD Economic Surveys: Czechia 2025, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://www.oecd.org/en/publications/oecd-economic-surveys-czech-republic_19990561.html