Metro East Sun

It is no secret that Illinois school performances have been on the decline, and COVID-19 lockdowns only exacerbated the problem.

A Wall Street Journal editorial board recently detailed a report from Wirepoints regarding Illinois schools that it described as "shocking." The report found that the majority of third-graders could not read at grade level. Many state-level candidates are promising that, if elected, they will provide better representation for their constituents than their incumbent opponents have.

“Education is something everyone supports," Jennifer Korte, a candidate for state House District 112, said. "We want students to get a quality education in a safe environment, but we also need accountability in the education dollars we as taxpayers are investing.”

A Wirepoints illustration of "dismal'" school performance in Illinois. Illinois | Wirepoints

The Wall Street Journal opinion piece, with the headline, "Illinois’s Shocking Report Card," stated that in 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic, only 36% of all third-grade students in Illinois could read at grade level. The piece continued on to point out that by third grade, it is crucial for students to be proficient in reading because the following grades build this skill, such as reading comprehension.               

According to the Illinois State Report Card, in 2019 only 36.7% of high school juniors met English Language Arts standards.   

The Wall Street Journal opinion piece went further to identify the Decatur, Rockford, Peoria, Elgin and Chicago school districts as poor performers.

A 2019 Wirepoint's report found that of third-graders in Decatur public schools, only 2% of Black and 16% of White students could read at grade level. In Rockford, only 7% of Black students could read at grade level. In Peoria, 8% of Black students. In Elgin, only 11% of Hispanic students. And in Chicago, there were 30% of Black third-graders who could read at grade level.

The report stated that similar results can be found across the state. For example, the percentage of Waukegan Hispanic third-grade students that could read at grade level was 16%. Zero percent of Mount Vernon Black third-graders could. In Waukegan, 56% are listed as “on track” to graduate, and 87% in Mount Vernon. 

According to The Center Square, the NEA and AFT, the largest teacher’s unions in the United States, suggested that additional funding would solve performance issues in core subjects and teacher shortages.

Chicago Public Schools now spends over $29,000 per student, compared to $17,800 in 2020, which was in tandem with the Illinois state average, the story said.                    

As of 2021, CPS performance in the classroom declined with only 26% of juniors being able to read or practice math at grade-level, according to the Illinois Report Card.

“Spending nearly $30,000 per student in Chicago public schools and still having a majority of students unable to perform at grade-level is simply unacceptable,” Korte said. “How does anyone justify spending $30,000 for abysmal results like this?”                      

As of 2019, 91% of teachers in Chicago were considered “excellent or proficient” according to Wirepoints.

The Illinois State Report Card reported 2021 SAT results showed only 33% of juniors met or exceeded ELA standards, and 29.3% met or exceeded in mathematics. Korte emphasized to the Metro East Sun that she would “stand up for families and ensure their hard-earned tax dollars are being effectively utilized, while their children receive the best  education possible.”