York High Test Scores Fell In 2021

ELMHURST, IL – Elmhurst's York High School saw a big drop in its standardized test scores in 2021, according to state data.

The school is still well above the state average in SAT scores, as is typically the case in wealthy school districts.

With the pandemic, the state average dropped considerably, with York's decrease even steeper. That was also the case for Elmhurst School District 205's eighth graders' standardized test scores.

Because of the school shutdowns, data from 2020 is unavailable. The test is taken by juniors.

In 2021, 56.6 percent of York's juniors met state standards in the English language arts section of the SAT, according to the Illinois Report Card website. That was down from 65 percent in 2019, the year before the pandemic.

Statewide, students meeting standards dropped to 33 percent in 2021, from 36.7 percent two years before.

For math, 57.3 percent of York's juniors met standards in 2021, down from 63 percent in 2019.

At the state level, 29.3 percent met math standards in 2021, a drop from 34.8 percent two years before.

In both cases, outcomes at York and statewide were about the same in the three years before the pandemic.

Lyons Township also saw bigger drops in SAT outcomes in 2021 than the rest of the state. Hinsdale Central and South high schools experienced smaller decreases.

In 2021, 54.2 percent of Lyons' 11th graders met standards in English language arts, down from 59.9 percent two years before.

Lyons' drop in math was more pronounced, down to 51.2 percent in 2021, from 64.4 percent two years before.

At Hinsdale Central, based in one of the wealthiest towns in the United States, 72.6 percent of juniors met standards in English language arts in 2021, a small drop from 75.3 percent in 2019.

For math, 71.5 percent of students met standards at Central in 2021, down from 79.3 percent in 2019.

Hinsdale South in Darien actually saw its rate of juniors meeting standards in English language arts increase to 48 percent, from 44.3 percent two years before.

For math, South was at 43 percent in 2021, down from 46.8 percent in 2019.

In Elmhurst, the school district's spokeswoman, Tonya Daniels, said in an email that the district provides public updates to the school board and community about academics, specifically on “Student Growth and Achievement Highlights.”

"The results of our student outcomes on the SAT from 2021-2022 will be presented publicly in an upcoming fall Board of Education meeting," she said.

Elmhurst School District 205 officials said they were worried about "learning loss" in early 2021, as reported in a Patch story.

York High School

Here are the percentages of juniors meeting standards on the English language arts portion of the SAT:

Here are the percentages of juniors meeting standards on the math portion of the SAT:

Lyons Township High School

Here are the percentages of juniors meeting standards on the English language arts portion of the SAT:

Here are the percentages of juniors meeting standards on the math portion of the SAT:

Hinsdale Central High School

Here are the percentages of juniors meeting standards on the English language arts portion of the SAT:

Here are the percentages of juniors meeting standards on the math portion of the SAT:

Hinsdale South High School

Here are the percentages of juniors meeting standards on the English language arts portion of the SAT:

Here are the percentages of juniors meeting standards on the math portion of the SAT: