Students in Illinois are steadily returning to class across Illinois’ 866 school districts and 3,835 schools. The state’s public schools have a lot of room for improvement to prepare students for life beyond the classroom.

The national Educational Choice for Children Act creates a federal tax-credit scholarship program for both public and private school students to help boost them academically. Here are seven reasons why Illinois should opt into the program.

With most property taxes going to local public schools, Illinois parents and taxpayers should know how well third- through eighth-grade students read and perform math at local public school districts compared to the cost per student.