Summary:
The city of Swansea, Illinois is home to three schools - two elementary schools (Wolf Branch Elementary School and High Mount Elementary School) and one middle school (Wolf Branch Middle School). The data shows a significant performance gap between the two elementary schools, with Wolf Branch Elementary consistently ranking in the top 25% of Illinois elementary schools and High Mount Elementary lagging behind in the bottom 30%.
Wolf Branch Elementary boasts impressive test scores, with 75.8% of students proficient or better in ELA and 76.9% in Math, far exceeding the state averages of 53.1% and 38.5% respectively. In contrast, High Mount Elementary struggles, with only 51% proficient or better in ELA and just 14.7% in Math. The schools also differ in their student demographics, with High Mount Elementary having a much higher percentage of students (75.77%) receiving free or reduced-price lunch compared to Wolf Branch Elementary (20.58%).
Despite the performance gap, all three schools in Swansea face the challenge of relatively high chronic absenteeism rates, around 25%, which may require further investigation and targeted interventions. The data also reveals differences in per-student spending, with High Mount Elementary spending more per student ($14,130) than Wolf Branch Elementary ($12,162), suggesting that simply spending more may not be the sole solution to improving performance.
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