Satisfaction vs Merit value

Each bubble a municipality. Satisfaction (yr 8) against average merit value.

Schools should deliver both good results and pupil well-being — but how well do these align? The chart places each municipality in a satisfaction-merit space. Are there municipalities where pupils are happy but grades are low? Municipalities with high grades but dissatisfaction? The answer adds nuance to the one-dimensional fixation on grades.

Cite
Skolkoll (2025). Satisfaction vs Merit value. Skolkoll.se. Retrieved 2025-12-31 from https://skolkoll.se/en/statistics/satisfaction-vs-merit/
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skolkoll.se/en/statistics/satisfaction-vs-merit — retrieved 2025-12-31 (data: Skolverket, 2025/26)
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@misc{skolkoll2025_satisfactionvsmeritv,
  author = {Skolkoll},
  title = {Satisfaction vs Merit value},
  year = {2025},
  url = {https://skolkoll.se/en/statistics/satisfaction-vs-merit/},
  note = {Retrieved 2025-12-31. Data: Skolverket, 2025/26}
}
License: Source-specific terms — no blanket sublicence granted · Source: Skolverket, 2025/26

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Happy pupils and high grades — do they go together?

Education policy has long focused on measurable results — merit values, qualification rates, national test scores. But pupils' experience of school is also measured: the School Survey asks year 8 pupils about satisfaction, study environment and safety every year.

The chart sets each municipality's average pupil satisfaction (year 8) against average merit values. The four quadrants tell four different stories: municipalities that succeed on both (upper right corner), municipalities that fail on both (lower left), and the interesting exceptions — high grades but low satisfaction, or vice versa.

'Happy schools with mediocre grades' and 'pressured top schools' are not myths — they exist in the data. But the majority of municipalities follow a positive correlation: well-being and results tend to co-vary.

The correlation is positive but weak (r ~ 0.3–0.4). There is room for municipalities to improve one without sacrificing the other. And there are municipalities that prove both are possible.

Statistics: academic year 2025/26. Source: Skolverket open data, Kolada and SCB. Processed by Skolkoll.Glossary · About the data.

Method and data sources

Use these links to understand how the visualization is built and which datasets sit behind it.

How the method worksRead how the metrics are collected, calculated, and interpreted before comparing results.Data sources and definitionsOpen the source catalogue with KPI definitions and update frequency.Download data and versionsFetch the latest dataset or switch to a historical version of the same file.

Primary sources in this visualization

Jump directly to the definitions and source notes for the measures used in this chart.

  • Qualified teachers
  • Pupils per teacher
  • Kolada meritvardeSnitt
  • Kolada kostnadPerElev

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