Peoria Standard

IAR results are in and 81.3% of Fulton County students failed the mathematics portion of the test in the 2023-24 school year, according to the Illinois State Board of Education.

The students' overall failure rate in the subject in Fulton County rose by 5.4% compared to the previous school year.

In comparison, schools in Alexander County fared the worst among all Illinois counties, with 97.1% of students failing to meet test requirements.

At the other end of the spectrum, Monroe County had the highest success rate across the state, with 50% of its students passing the mathematics 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
VIT Elementary School	98.4%	65
Cuba Elementary School	93.2%	73
VIT Junior High School	92.3%	77
Central Elementary School	90.9%	152
Cuba Middle School	88.5%	78
Lewistown Junior/Senior High School	83.3%	96
Abingdon-Avon Middle School	83.1%	172
Astoria Elementary School	80%	50
Astoria Junior High School	79.4%	58
Ingersoll Middle School	78.5%	586
Westview Elementary School	77.4%	119
Eastview Elementary School	76.5%	102
Lincoln Elementary School	75.1%	80
Spoon River Valley Junior High School	61.9%	42
Spoon River Valley Elementary School	56.6%	53