Lisbon, April 22, 2026 (Lusa) – Portuguese teachers stand out in an OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) study for having the highest level of pedagogical knowledge, which enables them to cope better with classroom challenges and help pupils learn more effectively.
A team of researchers sought to identify what "makes teachers excellent." After surveying approximately 20,000 teachers across eight countries, they found a clear link between pedagogical knowledge and pupils' academic success.
Pupils taught by teachers with greater pedagogical expertise tend to achieve better results in mathematics and reading, according to the OECD report "Teacher Knowledge Survey 2024". The report represents the first time researchers have assessed teacher expertise in a comparable way across different nations.
Portugal leads the ranking in pedagogical knowledge, followed by teachers from Poland, Croatia, US, Chile, South Africa, Morocco, and Saudi Arabia.
These educators can "read the classroom" and "adjust in real time". They are better prepared for tasks such as changing the way they explain content when a pupil does not understand, and managing to devote more time to learning and less to enforcing discipline.
"Excellence in teaching, it turns out, is not an accident," it said. The organisation urged countries to invest in pedagogical expertise. "And like any knowledge profession, it demands that we take seriously the preparation, development, and continuous learning of teachers – not as an afterthought, but as the core strategy for improving education systems. It demands that we recognise, reward, and elevate pedagogical expertise with the same respect we afford other high-skill professions," the researchers say.
In Portugal, most compulsory education teachers hold pedagogical training through master's degrees in teaching and professional certification. However, faced with teacher shortages and thousands of pupils without classes, Portuguese schools have increasingly hired graduates with subject-specific qualifications. These teachers represented 1.6% of the workforce in 2014/2015, rising to 6.5% in 2022/2023.
Last year, the Ministry of Education launched a recruitment drive to hire around 1,700 new teachers with subject-specific qualifications, following a similar move the previous year. The ministry has since launched special programmes with higher education institutions to allow these teachers to obtain professional certification free of charge.
The study highlights the benefits of qualifications and "shorter, accelerated, or specialised teacher training programmes". However, it also shows that in most countries studied, there is no strong link between having greater pedagogical knowledge and wanting to remain in the profession for more than five years. However, Portugal bucks this trend, alongside Saudi Arabia and Morocco.
Researchers believe a broad range of factors, including working conditions such as salaries, career progression opportunities, and working hours, influence teachers' career intentions. Consequently, they are calling for greater appreciation of the profession.
Educational authorities should find ways to better value and recognise the professional contribution of teachers, the experts argue in the study presented on Wednesday, noting that the future of education “will be written in the classrooms” by those who know how to bring subjects to life.
SIM/RYOL // AYLS
Lusa
