The top reported proficiency rate is 58% in English language arts. The lowest is 51% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Worden Elementary School
Worden Elementary School serves grades 3 through 5 in Worden, a small residential village in northern Madison County about 35 miles northeast of St. Louis. The school sits in the Edwardsville CUSD 7 district, which recently approved a substantial zero-tax-rate-change bond for facility and security upgrades across all schools, including major work that has reshaped building environments. That investment frames the physical context families enter. The district also made staff reductions in early 2025, cutting non-tenured teachers and leaving some retiring positions unfilled; parents may want to understand how this affects class sizes and teaching continuity.
The school draws a small, stable enrollment from the surrounding village. The student population is predominantly white, with small Hispanic and multiracial shares; racial and ethnic counts show the enrollment is not diverse. Free-and-reduced-price lunch data was not available, so the economic profile of families cannot be assessed from that metric. The school's peer environment is one of moderate size for its grade band, with no obvious growth or contraction signals.
In terms of academic performance, math and English language arts proficiency on the Illinois Assessment of Readiness (IAR) sit in the middle range. Third-grade math proficiency is above the midpoint for proficiency across the school; fourth-grade math drops to around half; and fifth-grade math continues lower, showing a decline in proficiency as grades progress. English language arts is relatively stable across third and fourth grade at just above half, and fifth-grade ELA sits near that level as well. Fifth-grade science proficiency hovers just above half. Across the county's districts, Worden Elementary's overall proficiency index places it in the top quartile, a strength relative to neighbors. That said, the downward trend in math from third to fifth grade is worth exploring with the school, particularly if students move forward to middle school unprepared. The school had full test participation, so these numbers reflect the full student body tested. State assessment data for grades 6 and higher do not apply to this school because it serves only grades 3 through 5.
Worden itself is a small village of roughly a few hundred residents, characterized by rural and small-town life framed by farmland. Population has been roughly flat or slightly declining over the past decade. The village sits on Wall Street as its main road, best known for the annual Wordi Gras street celebration. A public library serves as a civic anchor. Housing values in the 62097 zip code are below the state benchmark and substantially below the national benchmark, reflecting the rural setting; mortgage affordability is reasonable and rental affordability appears favorable relative to national measures. The town sits in the orbit of Edwardsville, Alton, and the broader St. Louis metro, placing families within commuting range of larger employment centers.
Worden Elementary is a straightforward public elementary school, anchored in a small village with modest proficiency gains relative to its county, notably on the upside of the overall comparison but with weakening performance in math as children move through upper elementary grades. It fits families seeking a small, stable, rural-rooted setting without significant growth pressure or demographic diversity, and those comfortable with mid-range state assessment results and a question about math trajectory that merits conversation.
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