Guiding Principles
By listening to Illinois residents and distilling the best research, we have developed a framework of education policy priorities that, when implemented, will help provide a world-class education to all Illinois youth. Throughout our deliberations, we have been guided by these core principles:
- Improvement begins with clear and high expectations for each student and school.
- Student success is dependent on the well-being of the student and a broad range of educational experiences.
- Students from at-risk communities need increased high-quality support for learning.
- Students and families should have choices in how to meet their educational needs.
- Collaboration between effective teachers and principals is at the core of successful schools.
- Quality schools require adequate resources and the ability to use them wisely and effectively to promote student achievement.
- Schools can act as a central focus for community, business, and other support services for students and families.
- Results matter. We must focus on outcomes and employ quality data to analyze what works and what does not and adjust practice accordingly.
- An education system that gives students real skills that are linked to real-world opportunities anchors a state’s civic and economic well-being.
