SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) today released the 2017 Illinois Report Card at http://webprod.isbe.net/ere
State-level data on the 2017 Illinois Report Card show students achieved gains in a number of indicators from the 2015-16 school year to the 2016-17 school year. Student outcomes improved in English language arts achievement on the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) assessment, the four-year graduation rate, college enrollment rates, Advanced Placement participation and success, the community college remediation rate, ninth-grade students on track to graduate, and eighth-grade students passing Algebra I.
“The 2017 Illinois Report Card demonstrates our students’ and educators’ tremendous capacity for growth,” said State Superintendent of Education Tony Smith, Ph.D. “We are making real progress. Our educators and educational leaders are diving into the data to uncover what’s working and to identify new strategies and partnerships to support the whole child. At the Those Who Excel banquet on Saturday, I had the opportunity to honor hundreds of extraordinary educators who are doing exceptional work. We have so much talent in our state. We need to accelerate the growth we’re seeing by facilitating connections and knowledge-sharing between schools and districts.
“The strengths and opportunities apparent in the data show that our balanced accountability system is looking at the right measures. Educators know how students’ attendance and success at critical transition points like the third grade, the ninth grade, and the first year of college strongly correlate to future success. Accountability starts with focusing on the numbers that matter for students. Illinois’ Every Student Succeeds Act Plan uses data and local context to drive appreciative inquiry and inform more holistic supports.
“Illinois’ educators and students worked incredibly hard under extreme financial uncertainty. Their passion and dedication is clear. The state is committed to exploring new ways to attract highly qualified and diverse professionals to answer the call to teach. With more equitable funding and our Illinois ESSA Plan in place, I believe we are on the right path to create the conditions for students to thrive.”
The 2017 Illinois Report Card includes data for the first statewide administration of the SAT. All 11th-grade students took the SAT in the spring of 2017 as both a free college entrance exam and Illinois’ high school accountability assessment for math and English language arts.
The new Illinois SAT Performance Levels, determined through an educator-led process, show how well Illinois students know the Illinois Learning Standards in math and English language arts. The four levels (Exceeds Standards, Meets Standards, Approaching Standards, and Partially Meets Standards) indicate different levels of mastery of the Illinois Learning Standards. Illinois educators use the Illinois SAT Performance Levels to see how well their curriculum and instruction align to the state’s learning standards. The Illinois Learning Standards and the Illinois SAT Performance Levels are intentionally rigorous to further the goal of reducing the number of graduates who need to take remedial courses in college.
State-level highlights from the 2017 Illinois Report Card include:
Academic achievement:
- The spring 2017 statewide administration of the SAT established Illinois’ new baseline for high school student achievement: 39.8 percent of 11th-grade students achieved proficiency in English language arts and 36.4 percent achieved proficiency in math. Students will continue to have access to free, supplemental, online resources from Kahn Academy to improve their mastery of Illinois Learning Standards assessed by the SAT.
- The percentage of third- through eighth-grade students meeting or exceeding standards in English language arts on the PARCC assessment increased from 36.5 percent in 2016 to 37 percent in 2017.
- The percentage of third- through eighth-grade students meeting or exceeding standards in math on the PARCC assessment decreased from 31.6 percent in 2016 to 31.2 percent in 2017.
College enrollment and preparation:
- The four-year high school graduation rate increased from 85.5 percent to 87 percent.
- The percentage of students enrolled in college 12 months after graduating also increased from 67.8 percent to 69.5 percent.
- The percentage of students enrolled in college 16 months after graduating increased from 71.4 percent to 73.2 percent.
- The percentage of Illinois public high school graduates enrolled in Illinois community colleges taking remedial courses improved from 49.4 percent for the class of 2015 graduates to 46.8 percent for the class of 2016 graduates.
- The number of students in the 10th, 11th, and 12th grades taking advanced course work (Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate, and dual credit courses) increased from 154,290 in 2016 to 160,657 in 2017.
- The number of students in the 10th, 11th, and 12th grades taking Advanced Placement courses increased from 112,156 in 2016 to 116,505 in 2017.
- The number of Advanced Placement exams taken by the 12th-grade class at any point during high school increased from 155,180 in 2016 to 167,009 in 2017.
- The percent of Advanced Placement exams passed remained stable, increasing slightly from 65.9 percent in 2016 to 66.4 percent in 2017 of all exams taken by the 12th-grade class.
- The number of students in the 10th, 11th, and 12th grades taking International Baccalaureate courses increased from 4,466 in 2016 to 9,988 in 2017.
Student success:
- The percentage of ninth-grade students on track to graduate increased from 82.4 percent in 2016 to 87.1 percent in 2017.
- The number of eighth-grade students passing Algebra I increased from 28.4 percent in 2016 to 29.5 percent in 2017.
- Concern: The rate of chronic truancy increased from 9.8 percent in 2016 to 10.8 percent in 2017. Chronic truancy measures the percentage of students who miss 5 percent or more of school days per year without a valid excuse.
Educator workforce:
- The teacher retention rate increased from 85.8 percent in 2016 to 86.3 percent in 2017.
- The principal turnover remained stable, increasing slightly from 1.9 principals at the same school in six years in 2016 to two principals in 2017.
- Overall teacher diversity remained mostly unchanged. In the 2016-17 school year, 83.3 percent of Illinois teachers were White, compared to 48.5 percent of Illinois students.
- The average teacher salary increased by $1,066 from $63,450 in 2016 to $64,516 in 2017.
- The average administrator salary increased by $2,639 from $103,634 in 2016 to $106,273 in 2017.
Additional data and information, including a glossary of Report Card terms and FAQ, are available at www.isbe.net/