Carbondale Reporter

In the 2023-24 school year, 81.5% of DeSoto Consolidated School District 86 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 18.6% who did.

The total number DeSoto Consolidated School District 86 students who failed their ELA assessments grew by 1.9% from the previous school year.

DeSoto Consolidated School District 86 roughly covers schools within Jackson County and has a main office in De Soto.

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 did not meet met standards (%)
DeSoto Elementary School	DeSoto Consolidated School District 86	81.5%