SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – Illinois legislators are proposing bills to change how certain subjects are taught, and to add new courses.
One goal for this year is to improve reading and writing skills among Illinois school children.
Representatives Amy Elik (R-Alton) and Mary Flowers (D-Chicago) are behind a bill that is aimed to achieve that goal. The bill would require public schools in the state to use phonics to teach reading.
“In education, when you look back over a number of decades, there’s things that work and then suddenly they change,” Elik said. “And I think there’s always these new methods of instruction out there. And while they’re usually worth trying, we also need to know when it’s time to go back to what was working before.”
Two other bill proposals would add new classes for students in the state.
One bill would require high school juniors and seniors to take a course on personal finance.
The other would add a course aimed at teaching signs of mental illness, such as anxiety and depression.
