Illinois school leaders envision more useful state tests, fewer burdensome mandates by 2030

A new report calls for making state standardized tests more useful for teachers and students and for the state to help school districts pay to repair and renovate school buildings, among other sweeping recommendations.

Officials from several state education associations, including the Illinois Association of School Boards and the Illinois Association of Principals, came together to develop Vision 2030. It tackles four areas: keeping students safe, getting high-quality educators into the classroom, enhancing postsecondary success and improving how the state evaluates schools.

The report offers up specific suggestions the authors hope will help shape policy for years to come.

It builds on its predecessor, Vision 2020, which was the first report of its kind. That laid the groundwork for the state to reform the way it distributes money to schools — from an outdated formula to one of the most equitable in the country, said Kristopher Monn, executive director of the Illinois Association of Business Officials.

Vision 2030 says the state should continue pumping an additional $350 million into the “evidence-based” funding formula, as it has since 2018. The report asserts school districts need that kind of predicability when it comes to funding for building repairs.

“We have not made significant investments, year over year, in establishing equitable statewide funding for capital and safety needs,” Monn said. “Some of the suggestions are increasing access to state maintenance grants and perhaps exploring a statewide sales tax, similar to some county sales taxes.”

The officials also recommend a host of changes to the state’s assessment and school rating system. Currently, students only take one set of tests at the end of the year; ratings, such as exemplary or commendable, are based heavily on the results of those exams. While students take the tests in the spring, schools don’t get the results until the fall.

The delay in getting the scores “really impacts the utility of those results and makes it difficult for us to make any real, quality decisions about improving our schools and the potential outcomes for our kids,” said Jason Leahy, executive director of the Illinois Principals Association.

The report calls for teachers to get the results more quickly, perhaps in real time, even if they are preliminary.

Leahy said the officials would like some flexibility in school ratings, so they are not weighted so heavily on test results and can factor in other features that communities believe are important.

The officials also want to make sure the state standards used to determine if students are proficient in reading and math are in line with national norms. A study found that Illinois’ proficiency standards are some of the highest in the nation. Leahy said that is important to him as a parent.

The education leaders also said state mandates need to be streamlined. The school code has doubled in size since 2000, and many new rules come with associated costs. Leahy said every new mandate takes away from something else the school district is focused on or paying for, so lawmakers need to be careful.

Sarah Karp covers education for WBEZ. Follow her on X @WBEZeducation and @sskedreporter.