Grundy Reporter

IAR results are in and 70% of Grundy 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 Grundy County rose by 1.5% 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
Braceville Elementary School	92%	75
Mazon-Verona-Kinsman Middle School	83.5%	140
White Oak Elementary	79.8%	326
Shabbona Middle School	79.3%	343
Minooka Intermediate School	76%	950
Minooka Elementary School	75.1%	217
Aux Sable Elementary School	75%	240
Minooka Junior High School	73.6%	996
Gardner Elementary School	68.6%	86
South Wilmington Grade School	65.4%	52
Mazon-Verona-Kinsman Elementary School	61.2%	67
Saratoga Elementary School	58.9%	476
Coal City Elementary School	57.7%	149
Coal City Intermediate School	55.5%	261
Nettle Creek Elementary School	51.8%	56
Coal City Middle School	51.7%	476