SPRINGFIELD – Each year, the Illinois State Board of Education releases an annual report card with data showing how students are doing in the basic subjects of reading, writing and math.

And each year when those numbers come out, reporters, teachers, parents and school officials sift through the data looking for evidence to show whether scores are improving, holding steady or getting worse.

But one trend has been so consistent over the years, it rarely draws much public attention. Overall, students score lower in math than they do in English language arts.

That was true on the 2025 report card, which showed only 38.4% of Illinois students overall scored proficient or better in math , compared to 52.4% in English language arts .

Illinois students are not unique in that regard. Natio

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