State Report Card Shows Students Still Trailing Pre-Pandemic Achievement
Chemistry students at downstate Litchfield High School.
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The annual Illinois school report card shows Illinois students are still performing below pre-pandemic levels.
The Illinois State Board of Education released the latest report Monday, show standardized test scores continue to fall below pre-2020 levels.
English proficiency was 34.6%, under the 37.4% figure from the 2018-2019 school year.
White students were 44.9% proficient, Hispanic students were 22% proficient, and 16% of Black students were proficient in English, showing wide gaps continue between Black and White students.
“Black students, in general, have less access to supports, to the resources they need to learn at the rate to be on par with their peers,” State Superintendent Dr. Tony Sanders said in a news conference.
Around 27% of students were proficient in math, which is still below the pre-pandemic level.
Education leaders also laid out concerns over chronic absenteeism among students. Nearly 29% of students reported missing school more than 10% of the school year. The pre-pandemic level was around 17.5%.
The high school graduation rate in the state last year was just under 88%, which was an increase from pre-pandemic levels.