Peoria Standard

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

A Wall Street Journal opinion piece, headlined "Illinois’s Shocking Report Card," stated that in 2019, pre-COVID-19, 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 on this skill, such as reading comprehension.

The Illinois State Report Card reported that in 2019, only 36.7% of 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 the ones that stand out in terms of poor performance.

A 2019 Wirepoints 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 Back 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 article 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 the 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.

As of 2021,Chicago Public Schools' 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.

Desi Anderson, Republican candidate for state Senate IL District 46, released the following statement regarding the issue:

“Between the shutdowns of COVID and power-hunger bureaucrats in the school systems, our children are being left behind,” Anderson said. “Enrollment has decreased yet the cost per student has significantly increased. Parents are left on the sidelines with no idea how their money is being spent. Students are not reading at their proper grade level while school administrators and teacher's unions are lining their pockets with our tax dollars.”

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

Low-reading scores aren't the only issue that students are facing. The Illinois State Report Card reported that 2021 SAT results statewide showed only 33% of juniors met or exceeded ELA standards, and 29.3% met or exceeded in mathematics.