Illinois won’t be back in session until February 13.

Thank goodness. 

In the mean time,  Illinois Republican leader and Representative Dan Brady hit the 2008 session running.  I wrote my opinion about the situation on the Illinois Review.  It is not a homeschool issue. It is a typical example of the escalating and constant drumbeat from our legislators to use technology to the detriment of our freedoms.  

What’s the Illinois Republican Conference Chair Doing?

Judy has some more info about that here:

Surveillance Nation

Aside from that, homeschoolers should take note in this ‘brave, new world’ of increasing database sharing and networking within governmental agencies.  Here’s an example that I pointed out recently concerning an Illinois driver’s education act that took away teens’ privacy rights with requirements of personal information being passed along to the Secretary of State’s office.  Including homeschooled teens.  (The fed DoE halted it because of FERPA.) 

Illinois Driver’s Education Act considered unconstitutional

When I’m looking around for nasty legislation, I tend to head straight for the usual suspect anti-homeschool groups.  The Illinois Association of School Boards has legislative reports updated by paid experts.  I like to utilize their services.

A couple more are from the IFT Legislative Updates and the Capitol Report from IEA.  Following that, most instigators of trouble for families leaving the public schools to homeschool are school administrators.  Read Judy’s post about the CT. situation in Fighting Goliath.  I’ve seen the same problems here in IL. 
Public school administrators are hooked up with the Illinois Statewide School Management Alliance (IASB) posted above, which is an interesting story in itself.  From my observations, the paid school administrators run the show while throwing out very refined tidbits of information to the school boards in order to direct the actions.

In other states, legislators have been busy.  Dana of Principled Discovery posted this:

 NE senator introduces legislation detrimental to homeschools

January 23, 2008, Senator Schimek of Lincoln, NE introduced Legislative Bill 1141, which would dramatically interfere with the independence of homeschools. Under current law, Nebraskan homeschools (referred to as unaccredited private schools) are “acknowledged” by the Commissioner of Education when the annual paperwork is received. This paperwork consists of an intent form, a calendar documenting at least 1,032 hours of instruction and a scope and sequence for each of several subject areas. Testing and record keeping are not required.

Under Senator Schimek’s bill, however, we will lose this independence. No longer will homeschools be “acknowledged,” we will be “approved” by the state. An option for visitations and testing has existed within our law for some time, however the state has never opted to enforce it.

And the basis for this bill would be what, you wonder?  Precedent setting problems with adult Nebraska homeschoolers causing huge problems for The State The People?  I don’t think so…..$$

Natalie Criss posted on the HEM Support Group News about Mississippi problems with homeschooling related perceptions blown out from various interests:

Drawing the line in Mississippi

Natalie raises a good point that has been useful in Illinois:

Clarity in language is a tool that must be utilized to combat confusion, educate families and expose opportunists.  Other states have fought to make this distinction clear.  The time has come to draw the line in Mississippi.

It’s hard enough with the media playing into teacher union’s hands with the big S word.  Silly Socialization, that is. Chicago Teacher Union President Marilyn Stewart’s concerns are laughable at best.  Creepy is the word that comes to my social and not quite as emotional mind:

"For them to think they can address the social and emotional issues of a child without being in the same room as that child is ludicrous," Stewart said. "You can only adequately address these issues in a classroom where you have necessary peer support and peer interaction."

Illinois has Social and Emotional Learning Standards that people like Stewart can rally from with one more piece of schoolie verbiage.  Some more of that helps with job creation and expansion of the base.  The School Machine keeps rolling bulldozing.