A Good Comparison For Elmhurst D205?

ELMHURST, IL – Elmhurst School District 205 officials reported Tuesday what most residents likely already know – local students perform a lot better on standardized tests than the national average.

That is not surprising because schools in wealthier towns nearly always perform better academically.

In District 205, 14 percent of students come from low-income families, compared with about half statewide and nationally according to government statistics. And Elmhurst's median household income is about double the country's.

So Elmhurst students have an inherent advantage over their counterparts nationally. If Elmhurst test results dropped anywhere near the national average, residents would likely be outraged.

A couple of years ago, Elmhurst school board member Jim Collins expressed his frustration with the local district's practice of comparing local test results to national averages.

"I think a lot of people bristle when we talk about how we're above the national average because I think our community's expectations are far higher than that," Collins said at a school board meeting at the time.

He said the district should set goals that far exceed national averages.

Collins missed Tuesday's board meeting. But he may have bristled during the presentation on the spring results for the standardized test known as NWEA MAP. It is given to students from kindergarten to eighth grade.

Officials compared local numbers with national averages.

For example, the district looked at the example of a student who performed in the 50th percentile on the math test, meaning the student did better than half of all local students.

If the same student was compared to those nationally, the student would be in the 68th percentile, meaning the student outperformed 68 percent of those across the country.

"Our average student in fourth grade performs in the 70th percentile nationally," said Kevin Rubenstein, assistant superintendent of student services. "You put our average student in any other school, and they'll be outperforming their national peers."

Board member Kara Caforio said, "I really appreciate this data point."

In some analyses, the district compares local student outcomes with those in similarly wealthy districts in the suburbs. The numbers are typically in the same ballpark.