Bill Text: IL SJR0021 | 2019-2020 | 101st General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Encourages the Illinois State Board of Education, special education cooperatives, and each school district in this State to consider the potential benefits of inclusive education for children with and without disabilities in Illinois.
Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Democrat 10-6)
Status: (Passed) 2019-06-01 - Added Alternate Co-Sponsor Rep. Frances Ann Hurley [SJR0021 Detail]
Download: Illinois-2019-SJR0021-Introduced.html
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1 | SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION
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2 | WHEREAS, Disability is a natural part of the human | ||||||
3 | experience and in no way diminishes the right of individuals to | ||||||
4 | participate in or contribute to society; improving educational | ||||||
5 | results for children with disabilities is an essential element | ||||||
6 | of ensuring equality of opportunity, full participation, | ||||||
7 | independent living, and economic self-sufficiency for | ||||||
8 | individuals with disabilities; and
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9 | WHEREAS, Research shows that the best outcomes for all | ||||||
10 | young children are realized when high-quality specialized | ||||||
11 | services such as special education, early intervention, and | ||||||
12 | related services are delivered in the same setting the child | ||||||
13 | would attend if they did not have a disability; and
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14 | WHEREAS, Inclusive education brings all children together | ||||||
15 | in one classroom, setting, and community, regardless of their | ||||||
16 | ability or disability in any domain of development, and seeks | ||||||
17 | to maximize the potential of all preschool-aged children; and
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18 | WHEREAS, Preschool may be the child and family's first | ||||||
19 | experience with school; and
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20 | WHEREAS, The commonality between all preschool-aged | ||||||
21 | children is the need to be amongst their peers; and
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1 | WHEREAS, Preschool-aged children with disabilities can be | ||||||
2 | included socially with their peers; this allows them to create | ||||||
3 | long-lasting friendships that would not be otherwise possible, | ||||||
4 | and these friendships can give them the skills to navigate | ||||||
5 | social relationships later in life; and
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6 | WHEREAS, In a well-designed, high-quality inclusive early | ||||||
7 | childhood environment, the teacher uses inclusion strategies | ||||||
8 | to help children succeed developmentally and socially; | ||||||
9 | therefore, children encounter higher expectations; and
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10 | WHEREAS, Preschool-aged children with disabilities who are | ||||||
11 | educated in an inclusive classroom have been found to score | ||||||
12 | higher on literacy measures than children educated in | ||||||
13 | segregated settings; and
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14 | WHEREAS, Research has shown that most children without | ||||||
15 | disabilities in inclusive classrooms have scored higher on | ||||||
16 | state standardized tests over a period of 4 years; and
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17 | WHEREAS, Research also indicates that inclusive education | ||||||
18 | promotes and enhances the social growth of all children within | ||||||
19 | inclusive classrooms and does not negatively affect the | ||||||
20 | academic growth of typically developing children; and
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1 | WHEREAS, In an inclusion setting, children with and without | ||||||
2 | disabilities learn how to work with each other, regardless of | ||||||
3 | individual skills and abilities, which helps improve academic | ||||||
4 | performance and the ability to succeed later in life; and
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5 | WHEREAS, All families want their children to be accepted by | ||||||
6 | their peers and have friends, and inclusive settings can make | ||||||
7 | this vision a reality for children with disabilities; and
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8 | WHEREAS, Families can be positively affected by having | ||||||
9 | their children educated in inclusive early childhood | ||||||
10 | classrooms through potential friendship and relationship | ||||||
11 | opportunities; and
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12 | WHEREAS, When preschool-aged children attend inclusive | ||||||
13 | early childhood classes that reflect the similarities and | ||||||
14 | differences of people in the real world, they learn to | ||||||
15 | appreciate diversity; and
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16 | WHEREAS, Respect and understanding grow when children of | ||||||
17 | differing abilities and cultures communicate and learn | ||||||
18 | together, which may be the first step in creating a more | ||||||
19 | diverse workforce and world; therefore, be it
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20 | RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED FIRST GENERAL | ||||||
21 | ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES |
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1 | CONCURRING HEREIN, that we encourage the Illinois State Board | ||||||
2 | of Education, special education cooperatives, and each school | ||||||
3 | district in this State to consider the potential benefits of | ||||||
4 | inclusive education for children with and without disabilities | ||||||
5 | in Illinois; and be it further
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6 | RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be | ||||||
7 | delivered to the Illinois State Board of Education and the | ||||||
8 | Regional Offices of Education.
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