McLean County Times

Nearly 5 in 10 McLean County public students aren't at grade level based on their performance in the English portion of the 2023 SAT.

That's according to a McLean County Times analysis of test score data compiled by the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE).

ISBE reports that last year, 46.8% of McLean County's 10,201 public high school students failed the ELA portion of the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) and have "minimal (or) incomplete… understanding of the knowledge and skills relative to Illinois Learning Standards."

Students can achieve four proficiencies in their subjects (partially met, approaching, meets, and exceeds standards). This report concludes students who partially met or approached the standards have failed in the subject.

Ridgeview Junior High School (66.5%), Olympia Middle School (60.5%) and Ridgeview Elementary School (57%) had the highest failure rates in McLean County. Meanwhile, Thomas Metcalf School (30.2%) and Tri-Valley Elementary School (25.4%) had the lowest.

Of 41 McLean County high schools, 27, including Hudson Elementary School, Oakdale Elementary School, and Colene Hoose Elementary School had passing rates of more than 50%.

Countywide, English test failure rates fell from 48.7% in 2021 to 46.8% in 2023.

The failure rate rose in 23 McLean County high schools in 2023, with the most significant increase happening at Stevenson Elementary School (53.8%).

Data shows that the highest failure rates growths were seen in Christian County (72.5%), Hancock County (73.8%), Cook County (74.1%), White County (74.1%), and Morgan County (76.7%).

Statewide, 39.9% of Illinois students failed the 2023 state English exam, down from 64% in 2019.

The SAT test is administered to Illinois high school sophomores "to fulfill the requirement that students take an assessment for college and career readiness in order to receive a regular high school diploma."

High School	# of Students	Failing % in 2021	Failing % in 2022	Failing % in 2023
Ridgeview Junior High School	134	64%	61.2%	66.5%
Olympia Middle School	370	55.1%	54.1%	60.5%
Ridgeview Elementary School	107	57.8%	50.5%	57%
Lexington Junior High School	111	42.7%	50%	56.7%
Carlock Elementary School	59	66.1%	48.2%	55.9%
Leroy Elementary School	206	52.8%	55%	54.4%
Stevenson Elementary School	147	54.7%	41.6%	53.8%
Leroy Junior High School	123	54%	56.9%	53.7%
Fairview Elementary School	125	42.9%	45.7%	53.6%
Heyworth Elementary School	252	50%	43.8%	53.6%
Heyworth Junior-Senior High School	128	57.5%	51.4%	53.1%
Washington Elementary School	156	49.2%	46.5%	52.6%
Kingsley Junior High School	746	55.6%	53.8%	52.4%
Bloomington Junior High School	969	47.4%	50.4%	51.8%
Hudson Elementary School	128	57.9%	43.8%	48.5%
Oakdale Elementary School	184	46%	47%	48.4%
Colene Hoose Elementary School	197	46.5%	53.6%	47.7%
Glenn Elementary School	99	51.1%	45.2%	47.5%
Pepper Ridge Elementary School	141	46.1%	47.9%	47.5%
Cedar Ridge Elementary School	173	39.9%	40.7%	47.4%
Sugar Creek Elementary School	107	56.2%	44.4%	46.8%
Parkside Elementary School	126	42.4%	47.9%	46%
Parkside Junior High School	624	52.9%	52.7%	45.9%
El Paso-Gridley Junior High School	374	48.1%	50.7%	45.7%
Prairieland Elementary School	221	43.6%	43%	45.3%
Chiddix Junior High School	574	52.2%	55.2%	45.1%
Fox Creek Elementary School	155	52%	52.3%	45.1%
Lexington Elementary School	101	50%	44%	44.5%
Olympia North Elementary School	128	46.7%	39%	44.5%
Sheridan Elementary School	178	38.3%	41.7%	44.4%
Oakland Elementary School	217	49.3%	44.4%	43.7%
Evans Junior High School	724	50.5%	50%	43.5%
Irving Elementary School	176	38.6%	43.6%	42.6%
Bent Elementary School	187	38.3%	36.4%	42.3%
Benjamin Elementary School	314	47.5%	41.8%	40.7%
Northpoint Elementary School	244	49.7%	52.4%	40.2%
Grove Elementary School	269	43.7%	36.7%	37.2%
Towanda Elementary School	96	59.8%	45.1%	34.4%
Tri-Valley Middle School	460	39.9%	42.6%	32.6%
Thomas Metcalf School	292	31.7%	39.1%	30.2%
Tri-Valley Elementary School	79	31.9%	24.7%	25.4%