Steven Isoye State Board of Education Chairperson | linkedin.com
Steven Isoye State Board of Education Chairperson | linkedin.com
The students' overall failure rate in the subject in Iroquois County rose by 8.4% compared to the previous school year.
In comparison, schools in Alexander County fared the worst among all Illinois counties, with 87.3% of students failing to meet test requirements.
At the other end of the spectrum, Woodford County had the highest success rate across the state, with 60.7% of its students passing the ELA portion of the IAR.
The Illinois Assessment of Readiness (IAR) measures how well students in grades 3-8 are progressing toward state standards in English language arts and mathematics.
Recent IAR data shows that while Illinois students improved slightly in the test, math performance remains below pre-pandemic levels. In 2024, 28.4% of students met math benchmarks, compared to 31.8% in 2019. However, data also indicates a significant achievement gap based on race and ethnicity.
The disparities were even more pronounced in math. White students achieved a proficiency rate of 38.7%, while Black students achieved 9.1% and Hispanic students 15.6%. Asian students achieved the highest proficiency rates in both subjects, hitting 68.2% in ELA and 61.4% in math.
| School | Students who did not meet standards (%) | Total students tested |
|---|---|---|
| Milford Grade School West Campus | 71.8% | 188 |
| John L. Nash Middle School | 68.9% | 269 |
| Chebanse Elementary School | 63.2% | 125 |
| Cissna Park Elementary School | 61.7% | 68 |
| Crescent City Grade School | 55% | 20 |
| Iroquois West Middle School | 54% | 215 |
| Iroquois West Elementary School/Thawville | 52.2% | 113 |
| Donovan Elementary School | 48.5% | 64 |
| Cissna Park Junior High School | 40.9% | 61 |
| Donovan Junior High School | 40.7% | 54 |
| Watseka Junior High School | 39.5% | 200 |
| Iroquois West Elementary School/Gilman | 36.2% | 47 |
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