East Central Reporter

In the 2023-24 school year, 38.2% of the students in Effingham Community Unit School District 40 passed the ELA portion of the Illinois Assessment of Readiness (IAR), according to the Illinois State Board of Education.

Of the 915 students in Effingham Community Unit School District 40 who took the ELA portion of the test, approximately 350 (38.2%) passed.

The percentage of Effingham Community Unit School District 40 students who met or exceeded expectations on the IAR increased by 5.6% compared to the previous school year.

Effingham Community Unit School District 40 roughly covers five schools within Effingham County and has a main office in Effingham.

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	District	Students who met standards (%)	Students who exceed standards (%)
Central Grade School	Effingham Community Unit School District 40	37.4%	2%
Effingham Junior High School	Effingham Community Unit School District 40	35.8%	1.3%