2023 Illinois Report Card - Tell Your Story of Learning Renewal - How to Tell Your Story

Oct 10, 2026

Uploaded by Noah

2023 Illinois Report Card guidance explains how schools and districts can communicate their federally required Annual Summative Designation. It frames the purpose of telling each school’s learning renewal story and prompts stakeholders to identify key audiences, select three top messages, and connect designation data to strengths, growth areas, and recovery progress. The guide includes suggested messaging for multiple designation scenarios and outlines practical channels and timing from October preparation to finalization.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryExam

FormatPDF

Pages3

Reading Time8 min

AccessFree to download

Who needs to know?

What is the most important thing for people to know or understand?

Consider these questions and then choose your top three key messages.

Potential Scenario - Suggested Messaging

How can we share information?

When should we communicate?

2023 ILLINOIS REPORT CARD TELL YOUR STORY OF LEARNING RENEWAL How to Tell Your Story The 2023 Illinois Report Card provides an opportunity for each school and district to tell its story – but what does that mean? Each school will receive a new Annual Summative Designation in 2023, as federally required. This guide showshow you can foster deeper conversations about what your designation means and engage your stakeholders in your school improvement efforts. 1. Who needs to know? Identify your target audiences – the primary groups of people who influence the success of your school improvement efforts, such as: • Teachers, principals, and school staff-primary change agents for student success and key messengers to parents and families • School board members-oversee personnel, budgets, and policies • Media-provide information to the broader community • Parents and families-partners in their children's education and in school improvement • Students-empowered to own their learning • Community partners and businessessupport school initiatives 2. What is the most important thing for people to know or understand? Consider these questions and then choose your top three key messages. • What questions will our target audiences ask about our data and designation? What do they care about? • Do they know what the designation means? Check out these fact sheets: • Annual Summative Designations • Multiple Indicators of Student Success • What does our data say about our strengths, areas for growth, and progress in learning recovery? Consider comparing 2023 data to both 2022 (the first year of stable data postpandemic) and 2019 (pre-pandemic) . • What have we invested in improving over the past year? What instructional changes have we implemented? How has this impacted our Student Growth Percentile? • What do we do now? [isbe](isbe.net/ilreportcard)[.net/ilreportcard](isbe.net/ilreportcard) Consider these scenarios to help communicate your Annual Summative Designation. | Potential Scenario | Suggested Messaging | | --- | --- | | Targeted to Comprehensive | Our school improvement efforts did not produce the results we were hoping for in the prescribed timeline, but we have so much to be proud of. The new designation gives us more funding and learning opportunities and expandsour ability to take a more holistic approach. | | Comprehensive to Intensive | Our school improvement efforts did not produce the results we were hoping for in the prescribed timeline, but we have so much to be proud of. The new designation does not instigate any radical changes. It allows us to build on our successes and build momentum toward what’s working with some additional supports from the state. Your partnership, feedback, and ideas are more important than ever. | | Exiting School
Improvement Status | Our designation this year is cause for celebration. We are proud to have sustained learning gains and to exit School Improvement Status. Your partnership was invaluable every step of the way. | | Early Exit from School Improvement Status | Our designation this year tells us that our 2022 designation was a result of data anomalies due to the pandemic and not a reflection of school performance. Thanks to an accommodation from the state, we are no longer identified in School Improvement Status, but of course will continue working every day to continuously improve. | | Exemplary to Commendable | The change in our designation is not cause for concern. We have so much to proud of. A new visual on the Illinois Report Card helps to explain the data behind the summative designation and shows just how close we were to the Exemplary category. | | Commendable or Exemplary with Low Proficiency Rates | The designation recognizes more than just proficiency rates. We exceled in [low chronic absenteeism/supporting student growth /high graduation rates/other indicator(s)] . A new visual on the Illinois Report Card helps to explain the data b

FAQs

Who are the target audiences for communicating the Annual Summative Designation?

The guide identifies teachers, principals, school board members, media, parents and families, students, and community partners as key audiences that influence school improvement efforts.

What should schools do to prepare their key messages?

Schools should consider questions their audiences will ask about the data and designation, confirm understanding of what the designation means, and compare 2023 data with 2022 and 2019 to highlight strengths, growth areas, and progress in learning recovery.

How should schools share information and when should communication begin?

The guide recommends choosing effective channels such as talking points, visuals, meetings, translations, press releases, social media, videos, surveys, presentations, and blogs. It also advises preparing messages and materials throughout October using MyIRC Educator Preview, noting the designation is preliminary until Oct. 30.

Oct 10, 2026

Uploaded by Noah