In the 2023-24 school year, 83% of Waukegan Community Unit School District 60 students failed the ELA portion of the Illinois Assessment of Readiness (IAR) test, according to the Illinois State Board of Education.
These students did not meet the required standards of the ELA portion of the IAR compared to the 17% who did.
The total number Waukegan Community Unit School District 60 students who failed their ELA assessments fell by 3.3% from the previous school year.
Waukegan Community Unit School District 60 roughly covers schools within Lake County and has a main office in Waukegan.
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.Â
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 did not meet met standards (%) |
|---|---|---|
| Clearview Elementary School | Waukegan Community Unit School District 60 | 94.9% |
| Carman-Buckner Elementary School | Waukegan Community Unit School District 60 | 93.4% |
| Lyon Magnet Elementary School | Waukegan Community Unit School District 60 | 93.1% |
| North Elementary School | Waukegan Community Unit School District 60 | 92.8% |
| Whittier Elementary School | Waukegan Community Unit School District 60 | 91.8% |
| Miguel Juarez Middle School | Waukegan Community Unit School District 60 | 90.4% |
| Glen Flora Elementary School | Waukegan Community Unit School District 60 | 88.5% |
| Jack Benny Middle School | Waukegan Community Unit School District 60 | 87% |
| Oakdale Elementary School | Waukegan Community Unit School District 60 | 85.5% |
| Glenwood Elementary School | Waukegan Community Unit School District 60 | 85.5% |
| Edith M. Smith Middle School | Waukegan Community Unit School District 60 | 85.3% |
| Washington Elementary School | Waukegan Community Unit School District 60 | 85.2% |
| Robert E. Abbott Middle School | Waukegan Community Unit School District 60 | 83.2% |
| Greenwood Elementary School | Waukegan Community Unit School District 60 | 80.9% |
| Hyde Park Elementary School | Waukegan Community Unit School District 60 | 78.2% |
| Little Fort Elementary School | Waukegan Community Unit School District 60 | 74.3% |
| John R. Lewis Middle School | Waukegan Community Unit School District 60 | 73.3% |
| H.R. McCall Elementary School | Waukegan Community Unit School District 60 | 60.8% |
| John S. Clark Elementary School | Waukegan Community Unit School District 60 | 60% |
| Andrew Cooke Magnet Elementary School | Waukegan Community Unit School District 60 | 54.2% |


