The 5Essentials Survey identifies five indicators that lead to improved outcomes for all students, including improved attendance and larger test score gains.
The five indicators that positively affect school success are:
- Effective Leaders
- Collaborative Teachers
- Involved Families
- Supportive Environments
- Ambitious Instruction
Research derived from the Five Essentials for School Success has proven that schools strong on at least three of the 5Essentials are 10 times more likely to improve student outcomes.
Schools across Illinois participated in the Tenth annual 5Essentials Survey of Learning Conditions: Organizing Schools for Improvement this past academic year. This survey generates valuable data that districts can use to guide their ongoing efforts to improve schools and to offer students an excellent education. The survey is another improvement tool that allows districts and the state to share data as a means to inform parents and community members about the school’s learning environment. The Illinois 5Essentials Survey is administered online by
UChicago Impact at the University of Chicago on behalf of the Illinois State Board of Education. Data and indicators are a result from an anonymous administration of the survey instrument.
The 2025–26 5Essentials Survey administration window is scheduled for February 3 through March 10, 2026, for all districts and schools except Chicago Public Schools (CPS) District 299. The CPS survey window is expected to open one week later, on February 10, 2026.
Participation and Rostering Requirements:
- Eligible Schools: All public school districts and schools, including those with RCDTS codes beginning with 3 (e.g., 3XXX), are automatically rostered unless they have been approved for an alternate survey.
- Administrator rosters are generated from the Administrator of Record identified via the Entity Profile System (EPS).
- Teacher rosters are generated using data from the Employment Information System (EIS). For teachers with multiple school assignments, their "Primary Working Location" in EIS will determine the school to which they are rostered. Valid teacher and staff emails are required for participation.
- Student Rosters: Student rosters for grades 4 through 12 are generated from enrollments in the Student Information System (SIS). Student exclusions are limited to those correctly coded in I-Star with an IEP or those with an English Learner (EL) record (other than Spanish) in SIS.
Next Steps:
- UChicago Impact will provide supplemental information and detailed administration instructions shortly.
For questions regarding the survey, please call Department of Wellness at (217) 782-5270 or email
5Essentials@isbe.net.
Reports can be accessed by visiting the
5Essentials website and searching by school name or district name. Please note: Some schools opt to participate in an approved alternate survey; those reports cannot be accessed using the link included above.
