Illinois Priority Standards

Introduction

In light of the many ways students have been, and continue to be, impacted by the global pandemic, remote learning, and racial and social injustices that are being revealed during this moment in history, it is evident schools, teachers, and students will need to maximize learning during the 2020-2021 school year and beyond. Educators will need to contend with unfinished learning and learning loss compounded by trauma as they begin instructional planning for the future. While school districts in Illinois are strongly encouraged to engage students in-person to the greatest extent possible, implementing the necessary safety precautions and distancing protocols may limit instructional time when students need it more than ever and some students may not be able to return to school physically due to high risk or recent COVID-19 exposure. Every community, school, and classroom in Illinois is unique and will look different, but what we must all have in common is a commitment to delivering the highest quality instruction possible to each and every student as we work collectively toward recovery.

To maximize learning and help students recover, we need to engage in deep and meaningful learning, not shallow remediation. To support efforts which accelerate learning in classrooms across the state, the Illinois State Board of Education assembled a diverse and skilled team of Illinois educators to identify the most Priority Illinois Learning Standards. The educators who drafted the Priority Standards that comprise this document carefully considered the full set of Illinois Learning Standards and selected standards which most effectively engage students deeply and maximize learning. They specifically considered which learning standards:

• are the most foundational/essential knowledge, skills, and competencies for all students

• are the most critical for continued learning success at subsequent grade levels

• are best suited for interdisciplinary and/or project-based learning

• depict the knowledge, skills, and dispositions we want all students to possess to successfully complete in given grade level or stage of their education