Tens of thousands more K-12 students in West Cook County are now testing below grade level in English and math, suffering the aftereffects of Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker's school lockdowns, according to an analysis of Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) test data by West Cook News.
All 27 school districts reviewed showed significant student declines in scores for tests taken in 2021, versus 2019, before Pritzker barred students from attending classes.
Districts seeing the greatest declines included:
--LaGrange Highlands School District 106, which saw test failure rates of 41% in math (from 37% to 53%) and 38% in English (from 30% to 48%).
--Brookfield LaGrange Park School District 95, which saw test faillure rates of 21% in math (from 61% to 74%) and 36% in English (from 39% to 60%).
--Riverside School District 96, which saw test failure rates of 26% in math (from 42% to 52%) and 42% in English (from 27% to 46%).
--Western Springs School District 101, which saw test failure rates of 27% in math (from 25% to 32%) and 40% in English (from 23% to 38%).
The COVID-19 pandemic had “devastating” impacts on student learning, according to a report from the Brookings Institute.
“These numbers are alarming and potentially demoralizing, especially given the heroic efforts of students to learn and educators to teach in incredibly trying times,” the report said. “There is much work to be done, and the challenges for students, educators and parents are considerable.”
A report from Illinois Policy found while all students were affected by the pandemic, low-income and minority students saw the biggest losses in their proficiency scores.
“Among low-income high school juniors in 2021, under 16% scored at proficiency level in reading and fewer than 13% were proficient in math," the report said. "This represents a nearly 15% and 25% overall proficiency decline since 2019 in each subject. Comparatively, proficiency scores in reading and math for higher-income juniors dropped around 11% and 16%, respectively.
“By the end of the 2021 school year, higher-income juniors were almost three times more likely to be proficient than low-income students.”
There are many lingering effects of students learning less due to disruptions caused by COVID-19. A McKinsey report found K-12 students were “on average five months behind in mathematics and four months behind in reading by the end of school year.”
The switch to remote learning, where students would attend classes virtually using their laptops instead of being in the classroom, was often pinpointed in reports as the biggest reason for diminishing student proficiency.
Classrooms across the U.S. moved to remote learning when the pandemic began in early 2020. However, an Inside Higher Ed investigation found it was never designed to be the long-term solution it became.
“Students talked a lot about really missing being in person with their classmates … and having those spontaneous, organic conversations and relationships,” Rayane Alamuddin of Ithaka S+R consulting said. “They miss the relationships they make in school because not only does it make them excited about learning and motivate them to stay engaged in school, but they also actually learn a lot more.”
Many school districts have returned to in-class learning, though still with some COVID-19 precautions in place.
| District | 2019 Math Failing Rates | 2021 Math Failing Rates | 2019 English Failing Rates | 2021 English Failing Rates |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bellwood School District 88 | 90.2% | 95.4% | 85.7% | 90% |
| Berkeley School District 87 | 85.3% | 88.7% | 75.6% | 84.7% |
| Berwyn North School District 98 | 74.7% | 87.8% | 56.1% | 77.5% |
| Berwyn South School District 100 | 76.2% | 85.5% | 69.6% | 80.4% |
| Brookfield LaGrange Park School District 95 | 61.3% | 73.9% | 38.7% | 60.3% |
| Central Stickney School District 110 | 70.9% | 83.4% | 65.5% | 72.9% |
| Cicero School District 99 | 84.4% | 94.8% | 78.5% | 90.1% |
| Elmwood Park Community Unit School District 401 | 71.8% | 87.9% | 57.3% | 74.5% |
| Forest Park School District 91 | 77.7% | 86.2% | 66.2% | 72.6% |
| Franklin Park School District 84 | 60.7% | 74.5% | 56.1% | 68.9% |
| Hillside School District 93 | 82.9% | 95.4% | 60.2% | 86.6% |
| Komarek School District 94 | 69.7% | 76.1% | 52.1% | 70.7% |
| La Grange School District 102 | 44.1% | 45.9% | 34.3% | 46.6% |
| La Grange School District 105 South | 54.2% | 60.3% | 44% | 52.8% |
| LaGrange Highlands School District 106 | 37.2% | 52.6% | 30% | 48.4% |
| Lindop School District 92 | 80.6% | 89.9% | 72.6% | 82.4% |
| Lyons School District 103 | 81.6% | 93.2% | 71.6% | 85.1% |
| Mannheim School District 83 | 81.4% | 89.5% | 68.5% | 76.9% |
| Maywood-Melrose Park-Broadview School District 89 | 86.5% | 94.3% | 79.7% | 86.8% |
| Oak Park Elementary School District 97 | 51.4% | 58.5% | 53% | 55.9% |
| Rhodes School District 84-5 | 81.4% | 87.9% | 65.7% | 79.2% |
| River Forest School District 90 | 36.7% | 42.7% | 30.8% | 41.5% |
| River Grove School District 85-5 | 72.9% | 82.9% | 54.4% | 73.7% |
| Riverside School District 96 | 41.6% | 52.4% | 26.9% | 46.4% |
| Schiller Park School District 81 | 68.1% | 83.4% | 61% | 72.7% |
| Westchester School District 92-5 | 72% | 78.8% | 62% | 72.6% |
| Western Springs School District 101 | 25.1% | 31.9% | 23.2% | 38.4% |
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