ALTON CUSD 11

The Equity Journey Continuum is an informational tool for districts to track their progress toward closing gaps in student achievement, opportunities, and supports. Through the lens of equity, the tool analyzes a continuum of district-level data points to make that data more useful for improving outcomes for all students. All of the data used in the Equity Journey Continuum is already collected and reported by school districts; the tool does not collect or report any new data.

ISBE developed the tool using national research and examples from other states and refined the tool through a pilot with districts across Illinois. The equity elements included in the continuum are consistent statewide, measurable, and within each district’s control. These data points illustrate a district’s current progress in its equity journey — from Step 1 (large gaps) to Step 4 (minimal gaps) — in the three areas of ISBE’s strategic plan: student learning, learning conditions, and elevating educators. The steps along the continuum represent the measurement of equity in students’ access to opportunities, practices, policies, and programming, as represented by the district-level data.

The 2023 Equity Journey Continuum uses data from the 2021-22 school year. The 2022 Equity Journey Continuum uses data from the 2018-19 school year (2020-21 school year data for site-based expenditures) as there were disruptions in data due to the COVID-19 pandemic during the 2019-20 and 2020-21 school years. This data is used to place districts along the steps of the continuum.

The Equity Journey Continuum assists districts and their communities to make informed decisions about their district’s equity strengths, opportunities for growth, access and supports, and to speak effectively about where to invest their equity efforts and resources to ensure students from all backgrounds can achieve high standards as districts move forward in their unique equity journey. There are no mandates or requirements associated with the Equity Journey Continuum; it is informational only.

^*National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine 2020. Building Educational Equity Indicator Systems: A Guidebook for States and School Districts. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.