The top reported proficiency rate is 18% in English language arts. The lowest is 12% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Washington Elementary School
Washington Elementary serves kindergarten through fifth grade in the West Side neighborhood of Rockford, a mid-sized Illinois city experiencing renewed growth after a long period of population decline. The school sits at 1421 West Street and enrolls about five hundred students, most of whom are Hispanic, with a sizable Black student population and smaller representation of other groups. Free and reduced-price lunch eligibility data were not available, but the composition and location suggest a student body facing economic pressures typical of urban elementary schools in this region.
State test results from Illinois Assessment of Readiness in math and English language arts, and the Illinois Science Assessment in grade five, paint a picture of substantial academic challenge. In third-grade math, about one-quarter of students reached proficiency; in fourth grade, proficiency dropped sharply to only a few students. By fifth grade, math proficiency rose slightly but remained very low. English language arts proficiency ran similarly low across grades three through five, clustering in the range of roughly one in six to one in five students meeting the state standard. In fifth-grade science, proficiency was at about one in eight students. The data note that state cut scores changed this year, which can affect comparability to prior years, but the school's proficiency index places it in the bottom quartile among Winnebago County school districts.
Test participation was near universal, and the school's near-complete participation rate reflects consistent engagement with state assessment requirements. However, the pattern of low proficiency across all tested grades and subjects, with no strong performance tier visible in any grade, suggests the school would benefit from a close look at instructional fundamentals, professional development, and student support systems. A parent may want to explore with the school what specific interventions are in place to address these results, how the school identifies students for extra help, and what collaboration happens between classrooms and support staff.
The school serves a neighborhood in Rockford that has seen investment alongside typical urban challenges. The locale brief notes that Rockford, after losing population for roughly a decade, gained residents between 2023 and 2024 and is undertaking downtown revitalization, a new public library, and mixed-use housing projects. The school district this year moved up its opening date by about two weeks, now starting in mid-August, which affects family planning across the region. The district is also implementing a major five-year facilities plan that will reshape how career and advanced programs are delivered at the high school level, though that will not directly touch Washington Elementary's students.
Washington Elementary is a traditional public school with no charter or magnet designation, meaning it draws its attendance area through the district's regular boundaries rather than by application or specialty focus. The school has air conditioning, part of a districtwide effort to modernize facilities. For families choosing to live in or near this neighborhood, the school represents the neighborhood attendance area option at the elementary level, and its current state test results are the primary available measure of academic standing.
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