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Reading and math: the Nation's Report Card
NAEP is the one test given the same way in every state. Percent of students at or above Proficient, 2024. “Rest of Illinois” is the statewide figure with Chicago Public Schools taken out, weighted by enrollment; that column is an approximate calculation, not a published figure.
| NAEP 2024, % Proficient | Chicago (CPS) | Rest of Illinois | Illinois | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grade 4 reading | 23% | 32% | 30% | 30% | Source |
| Grade 8 reading | 27% | 34% | 33% | 29% | Source |
| Grade 4 math | 24% | 41% | 38% | 39% | Source |
| Grade 8 math | 21% | 35% | 32% | 27% | Source |
National Center for Education Statistics, NAEP 2024 state and district snapshots.
Fair is fair: Chicago's 8th-grade NAEP scores improved from 2022 to 2024 by a statistically significant margin. Source: NAEP 2024.
Illinois' own tests
| Spring 2025, % proficient | Chicago (CPS) | Rest of Illinois | Illinois | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reading (ELA), grades 3-8 | 42.4% | 54.7% | 52.6% | – | Source |
| Math, grades 3-8 | 27.3% | 40.5% | 38.2% | – | Source |
| Grade 11 reading (ACT) | 39.8% | 53.6% | 51.3% | – | Source |
| Grade 11 math (ACT) | 25.2% | 41.8% | 39.0% | – | Source |
ISBE 2025 Report Card public data set. Illinois changed its tests and cut scores in 2025, so these can't be compared with earlier years or with NAEP.
The money
| FY2024 | Chicago (CPS) | Rest of Illinois | Illinois | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Current spending per student | $24,330 | $21,230 | $21,776 | $17,619 | Source |
| Property taxes, % of K-12 revenue | 40.2% | 46.4% | 45.2% | 27.3% | Source |
| State sources, % of K-12 revenue | 33.2% | 39.9% | 38.6% | 45.2% | Source |
U.S. Census Bureau, Annual Survey of School System Finances, FY2024. Illinois leans on property taxes more than almost any state, and the state itself pays a smaller share of school costs than the national average.
Evidence-Based Funding, the state formula, measures how close each district is to what the state says it needs. In the FY2027 calculation, Illinois schools statewide are funded at 81.3% of that “adequacy” target. Source: ISBE FY2027 EBF calculation.
Average teacher salary in Illinois was $78,495 in 2024-25, against a U.S. average of $74,495. Source: NEA Rankings and Estimates, 2026.
Showing up, finishing, and fewer students
| Chicago (CPS) | Rest of Illinois | Illinois | U.S. | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chronically absent (missed 10%+ of days), 2024-25 | 40.1% | 22.3% | 25.4% | 22.6% | Source |
| Four-year graduation rate (IL 2025; U.S. 2022-23) | 82.5% | 90.3% | 89.0% | 87.4% | Source |
| Enrollment change, 2015-16 to 2024-25 | -17.6% | -7.5% | -9.5% | – | Source |
ISBE Report Card data; U.S. absence figure from an AEI compilation of state data; U.S. graduation rate from NCES Digest Table 219.10. ISBE Report Card data · NCES
Illinois had 857 regular school districts in 2021-22, the third most in the country behind Texas and California. Every district has its own administration and its own levy. Source: NCES Digest Table 214.30.
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