4 Western Springs Schools Among Best For Grades K-8: U.S. News

WESTERN SPRINGS, IL — Four elementary and middle schools in Western Springs have been ranked among the best in Illinois, according to a brand-new ranking released Tuesday by U.S. News & World Report.

For the inaugural list, U.S. News published rankings and data on more than 80,000 public elementary and middle schools across the United States.

Schools are ranked at the state and district levels. The best charter schools and best magnet schools ranked as stand-alone categories.

U.S. News ranked McClure Junior High School as the highest in the state among schools in Western Springs, according to the new list. McClure was ranked #14 in the state.

Here’s a look at how elementary schools in Elmhurst ranked compared with others in the state:

• #24: Forest Hills Elementary School
• #80: John Laidlaw Elementary School
• #99: Field Park Elementary School

Middle schools

• #14: McClure Junior High School

To determine the rankings, U.S. News used data from the U.S. Department of Education to analyze two areas at each school:

• Math and reading proficiency — or how well students perform on state assessments.
• Math and reading performance — or how well they perform compared with expectations.

The state assessment data used in the rankings is from the 2018-19 school year and, therefore, predates any effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on test-taking.

Schools were also ranked by how they compared to other schools in their district. Here’s how the three elementary schools in Western Springs measured up:

Elementary

1. Forest Hills Elementary School
2. Field Park Elementary School* (tied with Laidlaw)
3. John Laidlaw Elementary School* (tied with Field Park)

Nationally, California has 5,534 ranked elementary schools — the most of any state — followed by Texas at 4,446; New York at 2,211; Florida at 2,128; and Illinois at 2,038 schools.

California also has the most ranked middle schools with 2,319, followed by Texas at 1,942; Illinois at 1,243; New York at 1,219; and Florida at 997.

See the complete list of 2021’s Best K-8 Schools.