The Illinois General Assembly’s Joint Committee on Administrative Rules will vote Feb. 16 on whether to suspend a rule that would require Illinois teacher training programs to adopt ‘culturally responsive teaching and leading’ standards.
Illinois students are returning to school, but some unions are scaring teachers about their safety in the classroom. The science doesn’t support those fears, and the law may put teachers at odds with union demands.
Illinois educators may face controversial rules encouraging teachers to review their biases and privilege, accept multiple views as correct and encourage student activism.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker should set the expectation that Illinois schools will welcome students back to campus full-time for the 2020-2021 school year.
The Illinois Policy Institute has created Building Better Schools: A pro-student, pro-community guide for Illinois school boards, which provides policies in five key areas to assist school board members ensure the best educational and financial outcomes in their districts.
Illinois’ fiscal year 2021 budget is larger than 2020’s, yet spending on education lost ground without an adjustment for inflation.
COVID-19 has forced classes to close, but children’s educations can continue with some creativity and a wealth of free resources for online learning at home.
Illinois could put $708 million more toward classrooms or property tax relief if it reduced school district bureaucracy to national average.
Illinoisans pay large sums for public education, yet a large portion of the money goes to Illinois’ bloated school district bureaucracy that diverts resources away from the classroom. Through smart, strategic reforms, Illinoisans can better prepare their youth for the future as well as provide property tax relief.
Lowering the compulsory age to attend school from 6 to 5 would tie Illinois for the lowest compulsory attendance age in the nation.
The Illinois House of Representatives passed the Classrooms First Act by a unanimous vote March 28. If it becomes law, students, teachers and taxpayers will benefit.
The Pritzker administration’s first budget proposes phasing out a school choice program for disadvantaged families. Low-income families loved the program. Public teachers’ unions decried it.
NEA and AFT racked up millions of dollars in travel and catering expenses. Their reporting documents don’t always explain the intent, including why a cruise line received union money.
Recent federal filings by Illinois teachers’ unions show as little as 13 cents of every dollar was spent for “representational activities” – which is supposed to be the central purpose of the unions.