I don't know how many schools there are in Illinois, so I don't know what percentage of them are represented by the above chart, but the numbers don't look good, regardless. That's a lot of schools to not have a single student classified as proficient in math.
My current class is small, so it's not a very valid sampling group, but their math skills aren't too impressive. I really think it would behoove the schools to go back to "track" the students like they used to. The students specialize in business, "shop" or college prep or whatever. These tracks would have math classes catered to the individual curricula. Shop math would cover right triangle geometry, measurements, fractions, etc. No need to figure out any of the classic "if train A leaves the station" type of problems. And for those offended by the usage of the word shop to describe the math class or any of the course offerings, get over it. Nothing degrading about going out to the shop to learn valuable skills that will prepare you for a rewarding career.
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