Suburban students make significant gains in English language arts proficiency, report card data shows

Schools across the suburbs have made notable strides in improving English language arts proficiency, mirroring a statewide trend seen in the 2024 Illinois School Report Card data released Wednesday.

Statewide, students in third through eighth grades achieved an ELA proficiency rate of 40.9% — the highest ever since they began taking the Illinois Assessment of Readiness in 2019, according to report card data.

“Illinois has seen tremendous, nation-leading recovery in English language arts, thanks to the talented teachers, principals, and superintendents in schools across the state who have worked diligently to implement shifts in their literacy practices,” State Superintendent of Education Tony Sanders said. “The U.S. Department of Education actually informed us that we are one of the few states in the nation that’s on track to completely spend down all of our pandemic relief funding and have academic gains to show for it.”

The overall state-level ELA proficiency rates now exceed pre-pandemic levels for students in every race/ethnicity group, as well as English Learners, students with Individualized Education Plans and those from low-income families. Black students achieved the largest year-over-year gains, seeing a 26% increase in the percentage of students meeting or exceeding state standards, report card data shows.

When COVID turned education on its head, a group of kindergarten through 12th grade teachers at Lake Zurich Community Unit District 95 troubled by pandemic learning loss sought to gain a deeper understanding of state standards for literacy.

The teachers started to break down what those standards mean, as well as the rigor and level at which they should be taught and assessed, which led to the development of a new ELA curriculum that would drive instruction districtwide. It’s the secret behind District 95’s improving ELA proficiency scores over the last three years, officials said.

“Our trend started to go up a few years ago, where we really started to see significant gains in proficiency, upward of 30% since COVID,” said Angela Stallion, District 95 assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction. “That was a paradigm shift in looking at the curriculum versus the resources. … What we also did was identify areas that need additional support. We have a very robust school improvement plan that allows us to be very targeted and use data to meet students needs.”

At Elgin Area School District U-46, the state’s second-largest district, officials attribute ELA proficiency gains to “a systemwide focus on improving literacy, starting with elementary schools outlining expectations for literacy instruction as well as providing ongoing professional learning for classroom teachers and administrators,” said Deputy Superintendent of Instruction Lela Majstorovic.

“We strategically allocated Title 1 funding to ensure that all Title I schools have a literacy specialist. We also revised our curriculum and assessments in elementary ELA to be more tightly aligned with state standards,” she said.

Naperville Community Unit District 203 is seeing similar post-pandemic recovery in the percentages of students in these groups meeting/exceeding Illinois Learning Standards.

“We attribute these gains to our strong instructional practices, engaging and rigorous curriculum, and family and community support for excellence,” said Patrick W. Nolten, District 203 assistant superintendent for assessment and accountability. “Relative to all other unit districts in Illinois, the district proportions of student proficiency in ELA and mathematics fell at the 99th percentile rank.”

State education leaders credit such outcomes to educators implementing best practices in literacy. Since October 2022, the Illinois State Board of Education has helped develop the Illinois Comprehensive Literacy Plan, to guide districts in examining local practices and data and implementing evidence-based literacy instruction.

Math gains

Recovery in math has been slower than in ELA. The math proficiency rate for third through eighth grades rose slightly last year, showing steady improvement since the pandemic, report card data shows.

The overall state-level math proficiency rates increased in every race/ethnicity group, as well as among English Learners, students with IEPs, and low-income students, but remained lower than pre-pandemic levels.

To accelerate math recovery, the Illinois State Board of Education is launching a statewide effort to develop a comprehensive math and numeracy plan, following its literacy plan model. It will offer educators the first comprehensive support in math instruction since Illinois adopted new math learning standards in 2010.

High school progress

Illinois high schools set a record for the highest-ever four-year graduation rate at 87.7%, driven by steady gains for Black students. The rate of ninth graders on track to graduate also has risen steadily, exceeding the pre-pandemic rate, report card data shows.

The state accountability system currently does not include a growth indicator for high schools — the graduation rate counts for 50% of the accountability score. Starting in the 2024-25 school year, the state education board will begin measuring students’ year-over-year growth in ninth through 11th grades.

Both graduation and proficiency measure whether a student met a set of standards/requirements, whereas the student growth percentile rewards growth toward or past the standards, no matter where the student started the year before.

“We are very much looking forward to learning more about how the state is going to measure growth at the high school level,” District 95’s Stallion said. “It is going to better inform our instruction and our practices in (the) classroom. Once a student reaches proficiency or above proficiency, we still have an obligation to grow that student.”

District 203’s Nolten welcomed the use of growth metrics as part of high school accountability.

“The measurement of growth supports our understanding of student group needs in core academic areas. Ultimately, increased growth leads to increased proficiency,” he said.

• Visit lllinoisreportcard.com for more information on your schools.

Some highlights of 2024 Illinois School Report Card

The 2024 Illinois Report Card provides a snapshot of school performance data from the 2023-24 school year. School quality is measured through multiple indicators of student success — standardized tests, alternative assessments, academic growth, English language and mathematics proficiency, science scores, fine arts participation, success on college entrance tests and graduation rates.

It includes data from standardized tests: the Illinois Assessment of Readiness in English language arts and math administered each spring to students in third through eighth grades; the Illinois Science Assessment taken by fifth-, eighth- and 11th-graders; and the SAT college entrance exam taken by 11th-graders. The tests measure student growth and proficiency in meeting state standards.

• Chronic absenteeism saw significant improvement for the second year, declining from 28.3% in 2023 to 26.3% in 2024 — a percentage change of 7%.

• Career and Technical Education participation grew among all major student groups with participation among English Learners rising 33% since 2022.

• ELA and math proficiency rates in high school have trended down since 2019, and slightly smaller percentages of high school students met or exceeded grade-level standards last year, compared to the year before.

• Illinois has cut the number of graduates in community college having to enroll in remedial courses by 44% since 2014. ISBE has partnered with other state agencies to implement transitional math and English courses at high schools statewide.

• Illinois schools enrolled greater numbers of English Learners and more Hispanic, Asian, and multiracial students in the 2023-24 school year. Enrollment decreased by a third of a percent last year.