What Illinois Educators Are Telling Us in 2026

What’s Shifting Across Illinois Schools Right Now

Illinois educators are heading into the 2026–27 school year in the middle of a real reset. Assessment benchmarks have shifted. The ACT® transition is still being worked through. Chronic absenteeism remains higher than pre-pandemic levels. Federal funding questions are influencing planning conversations earlier and more directly.

To better understand how this is impacting schools, we surveyed nearly 200 educators across Illinois, including teachers, principals, district leaders, and instructional coaches. The group included 91 teachers, 31 principals/APs, 20 district leaders, and 7 instructional coaches, representing a wide range of perspectives. 58% serve high school, 23% elementary, and 18% middle school, with district sizes ranging from under 500 to more than 10,000 students.

Several state-level changes are happening at the same time, and each one is influencing how districts interpret performance and make decisions.

• New IAR cut scores took effect with 2025 results, resetting the baseline
• ELA and math thresholds were lowered, while science thresholds increased by 13 points (Proficient) and 23 points (Above Proficient) in grades 5 and 8
• Year-over-year comparisons are no longer reliable, removing a key method districts use to measure growth
• The SAT® to ACT® transition is in its second year, and the first ACT® administration in spring 2025 included technical issues affecting roughly 11,000 students
• Chronic absenteeism remains around 25% statewide, still nearly 8 points above 2019 levels
• A state Chronic Absence Task Force (in SB 407) was established in September 2025, but actionable guidance has not yet reached districts
• Federal funding uncertainty is already shaping planning, with 87 respondents reporting moderate to significant impact on 2026–27 decisions

What We Heard From Illinois Educators

The survey results highlight consistent themes across roles and grade levels, particularly around clarity, timing, and implementation.

Cut scores are unfamiliar

The shift in IAR cut scores has created a gap between available data and how confidently educators feel they can use it.

• 56% of respondents rated their familiarity as a 1 or 2 out of 5
• Only 9 said they were very familiar

Educators described the impact in two primary ways:

• Difficulty making year-over-year comparisons (75 respondents)
• Confusion about what “proficiency” now means (55 respondents)

This creates a situation where teams are working from the same data but not always interpreting it the same way, which can lead to misalignment in goals, instruction, and intervention planning.

Data timing makes it hard to act

State assessment data is still not arriving in time to influence instruction for the students who generated it. Educators consistently described IAR and ISA results arriving in late summer or fall, after students have already moved on.

That challenge is reflected clearly in what educators value most in a platform:

• “Provides immediate, actionable data” was the highest-rated feature (4.32 out of 5)
• Elementary educators rated it even higher at 4.8, nearly a perfect score

The need is not for more data. It is for data that can be used during instruction, while it still applies to the students in front of the teacher.

Intervention is a priority, but consistency is the challenge

Intervention and differentiation continue to be top challenges across grade levels, especially in elementary settings.

• 63% of respondents selected both differentiating instruction and providing effective intervention as top challenges
• 79% of elementary educators ranked intervention as a top concern

At the same time, implementation is uneven:

• 50% said intervention resources are inconsistently implemented
• Only 19% reported having a robust, systematic program

Math intervention came up more than any other subject in open-ended responses. This points to a gap between having intervention tools available and using them in a consistent, measurable way across classrooms and campuses.

The ACT® transition is still creating friction

High school educators are still adjusting to the ACT®, both in terms of instruction and assessment alignment.

• 85 respondents said the transition required new test prep materials
• 72 said they are still adapting

ACT® readiness is also shaping priorities:

• ACT® prep rated 4.0 out of 5 as a feature priority
• “ACT® alignment and college readiness” is a top-five instructional priority for 2026–27

This continues to influence how districts define readiness and prepare students for postsecondary expectations.

Platform fragmentation is slowing schools down

When it comes to tools, educators were consistent in both what they value and what is not working.

Top-rated platform features:

• Immediate actionable data (4.32)
• Illinois Learning Standards alignment (4.24)
• Adaptive learning paths (4.10)

Top purchase drivers:

• Ease of implementation (4.38)
• Teacher training and support (4.36)

The most common frustration was platform fragmentation. Many schools reported managing three to five tools that do not connect, with a recurring request for one platform that does everything.

Early literacy preparedness is mixed

Elementary responses showed that early literacy screening requirements are not yet fully embedded.

• 36 of 80 elementary-serving respondents said they are somewhat prepared or not at all prepared
• 30 respondents (17%) were not aware of the requirement

Turning Insights Into Action at the District Level

The survey results point to a few clear areas where districts can focus their efforts.

• Close the familiarity gap before it becomes a strategy gap by ensuring educators understand the new IAR baseline
• Move intervention from “we have it” to “we’re doing it well”, with consistent implementation and measurable impact, especially in math
• Solve the data timing problem by prioritizing tools that provide same-week, actionable insight
• Do not assume the ACT® transition is behind you, as alignment and adaptation are still ongoing
• Reduce platform fragmentation by consolidating tools and simplifying implementation

How Progress Learning Supports Illinois Schools

Progress Learning is designed to support districts in each of the areas highlighted in this survey.

• For the data gap, our reporting shows performance by standard at the student, class, campus, and district level, giving educators actionable insight during the school year instead of waiting for state results.
• For intervention consistency, Liftoff (grades 2–8) uses built-in diagnostics to identify each student’s learning level and automatically generate adaptive, standards-aligned learning paths. For districts using NWEA MAP, Liftoff integrates directly with RIT scores, turning diagnostic data into a structured intervention plan without requiring manual setup.
• For the ACT® transition, College and Career Readiness tools include benchmark assessments modeled after the ACT®, along with reporting that provides visibility into student readiness across the building.
• For standards alignment and test format familiarity, questions from the platform’s 200,000+ item bank support the Illinois Learning Standards, so students encounter the same types of questions and formats they will see on test day.
• For platform consolidation, Progress Learning supports ELA, math, science, social studies, and college and career readiness in a single platform across K–12, replacing the fragmented tools many districts described.

Where Districts Go From Here

Illinois educators are navigating a complex set of changes, but the priorities coming out of this survey are clear. Clarity around benchmarks, access to timely data, and consistent intervention practices are shaping how districts move forward. When those pieces are in place, it becomes easier to move from data to decisions, from intervention to impact, and from planning to measurable progress.

If your district is looking to simplify systems while strengthening instruction, intervention, and progress monitoring, Progress Learning can help bring those pieces together in one place.