[GA] Enabling The Disabled In Academia [Complete]

Sil Dorsett

Sil Dorsett

The Belt Collector
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Deputy Speaker
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TNP Nation
sil_dorsett
Discord
sildorsett
Category: Education and Creativity
Area of Effect: Educational
Proposed by: THE UNITED FEDERATION OF ALGORENIA
Onsite Topic
Preemptive Repeal

The World Assembly,

Applauding its members' continued efforts on the promotion of human rights and social justice throughout the globe,

Concerned that the non accommodation and subsequent marginalization of disabled students could undermine global human rights efforts,

Concerned students with disabilities continue to encounter physical barriers to educational services, such as a lack of ramps and/or elevators in multi-level school buildings, inaccessible facilities, and/or inaccessible transportation to and from school.

Troubled that accommodations for students with disabilities are often made based on budgetary considerations rather than on an assessment of the actual needs of students with disabilities.

Concerned that students with disabilities continue to face negative attitudes and stereotypes in the education system.

Concerned by the lack of knowledge about and sensitivity to disability issues on the part of some educators, staff and students and how this can make it difficult for students with disabilities to access educational services equally.

DEFINES disabled, for the purposes of this resolution, as having a physical or mental condition that limits movements, senses, or activities,
DEFINES a disabled student, for the purposes of this resolution, as an individual who suffers from the above series of limitations and attends any academic setting where the disbursement of knowledge takes place in a class setting,

Noting the disenfranchisement of disabled students has the potential to cause extreme social and economic harm to member nations populations through the deterioration or degradation of social equity, for example: inhibiting the rights and socioeconomic mobility of citizens, hindering social stability by destroying or causing a decline in the image of a common national bond, and nullifying the possible economic progression by under utilizing the cultural, industrial, and scientific capital these citizens could contribute,

Hereby, subject to any limitations set by earlier resolutions that are still in effect, including the fact that the discrimination involving certain groups of students and other protected populations may already be covered separately by such legislation:

1. Instructs the Educational systems of all WA member nations to incorporate adequate disabled student training into their administrator and teacher training process;

2. Requires WA member nations to create necessary transportation, ramp and/ or elevator accessibility, and instructional requirements for disabled students attending academic settings and seek the proper assistance if necessary in making these accommodations;

3. Requires WA member nations to earnestly enforce measures designed to stop the overt and covert discrimination and non accommodation of disabled students within their domains;

4. Urges member nations to pass legislation promoting greater accountability in the transportation, education, and sustainment of disabled students within their own borders.
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Voting Instructions:
  • Vote For if you want the Delegate to vote For the resolution.
  • Vote Against if you want the Delegate to vote Against the resolution.
  • Vote Abstain if you want the Delegate to abstain from voting on this resolution.
  • Vote Present if you are personally abstaining from this vote.

Detailed opinions with your vote are appreciated and encouraged!

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Original IFV:
The current resolution at vote would require all schools to be able to accommodate all the various disabilities, which would be a huge cost to education budgets. As those budgets are not unlimited, and there exist limited resources, specialisation would be a far more practical alternative that would achieve the same goals at far less cost. This issue would have been something that could have easily been caught in drafting, which this proposal did not undergo. As passage would cause significant problems in member nation education systems, it would be best to return this proposal for rectifications.

For these reasons, the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs recommends a vote against this resolution.

Written by: Imperium Anglorum
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Abbey's IFV:
You should have received a telegram from The Northern Lights advising you to vote against this resolution because it is too expensive to implement. I am here to persuade you that to do so is to buy in to the principles that result in institutional discrimination against disabled people. I also believe that this resolution should not pass, however I believe this is the case because it is poorly worded, open to repeal and misinterpretation and is not the best way to ensure equal rights for disabled students.

I believe that the cost of training teachers adequately and adapting schools is a price that all WA member nations should pay, for the benefit of all disabled people within WA member nations. The WA has stood in the past for disabled people's rights, and in some ways I believe the proposal at vote does not go far enough in encouraging disabled people to be educated in as mainstream an environment as possible, while accepting that some people will not be able to cope in a fully mainstream school.

I challenge the argument that it is too costly as the proposal does not say that all schools should provide all things for all people, instead requiring adequate training and necessary adaptations.

I intend to draft a proposal that will be less vulnerable to repeal and will more strongly encourage full integration of disabled people into WA nations. They have a great deal to offer nations and the WA should encourage that.

Written by: BouncyAbbeyKitty
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Against. As stated in the WALL Discord, specialization is better than accommodation, and this resolution proposes accommodation. For example, it would be better if there was a school/class/whatever specifically for deaf students (obviously with equal capabilities to regular schools/classes/whatever, which I believe is required by earlier resolutions), rather than requiring every teacher to learn sign language. If schools were to focus on specialization, they would be able to specifically focus on the needs of the students, rather than having to train teachers to be able to manage every disability.
 
Mystery Player:
Against. As stated in the WALL Discord, specialization is better than accommodation, and this resolution proposes accommodation. For example, it would be better if there was a school/class/whatever specifically for deaf students (obviously with equal capabilities to regular schools/classes/whatever, which I believe is required by earlier resolutions), rather than requiring every teacher to learn sign language. If schools were to focus on specialization, they would be able to specifically focus on the needs of the students, rather than having to train teachers to be able to manage every disability.
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Agreed – so much so that I've already written up a repeal on that basis.

EDIT 1: Also, the 'drafting', rather debate thread, is here: https://forum.nationstates.net/viewtopic.php?ns=1&f=9&t=419100

EDIT 2: I see, Sil, you've linked my repeal already! :P

EDIT 3: I've written a draft IFV in the WALL #ifv-drafting Discord, as follows:
The current resolution at vote would reuqire all schools to be able to accommodate all the various disabilities, which would be a huge cost to education budgets. As those budgets are not unlimited, and there exist limited resources, specialisation would be a far more practical alternative that would achieve the same goals at far less cost.

This issue would have been something that could have easily been caught in drafting, which this proposal did not undergo. As passage would cause significant problems in member nation education systems, it would be best to return this proposal for rectifications.

Thus, the Ministry recommends a vote AGAINST this resolution.
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AGAINST.

I agree with both of you. Specilization would be both far more cost effective and efficient for WA member nations than requiring all to learn sign language or what not.

I suggest that if this doesn't pass a new resolution should be drafted to fix the obvious issues in this one and if it does pass a repeal should be drafted and of course a replacement as well.
 
Darcania:
Against. Don't feel like going through another insta-repeal. :P
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Lol, but true. It takes so much time to draft a repeal, then get support, then get it to vote...
 
abc:
Darcania:
Against. Don't feel like going through another insta-repeal. :P
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Lol, but true. It takes so much time to draft a repeal, then get support, then get it to vote...
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It took IA 3 minutes to draft a repeal. It's in the OP if you click the "Preemptive Repeal" link.

btw, I'm also Against this. Having volunteered time with special-needs students in high school, I'm somewhat familiar with the wide range of conditions that warrant unique attention and requiring all teachers to be familiar with all possible situations is incredibly demanding if not impossible. Specialization is an absolute must in this area.
 
The Commonwealth of New Lakemba is an equal opportunity country. Citizens who are disabled, and wish to attend a public school and not a specialised school, should be able to do so. Cost should not be a barrier towards opportunity, especially for those that cannot help but be born in this situation. For this reason I advocate voting for this resolution.
 
I absolutely agree with the fact that specialization is the way to proceed in this case; The resolution must have been revised and refined in that sense. For this and other notable reasons, economically speaking, I vote AGAINST.
 
As everyone has said above, specialisation is the way to go for this issue.
Against.
 
Generally in favour. The following is the controversial 'costly' mandates:
2. Requires WA member nations to create necessary transportation, ramp and/ or elevator accessibility, and instructional requirements for disabled students attending academic settings and seek the proper assistance if necessary in making these accommodations;
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I don't think it's as open-ended as claimed. It doesn't require every possible student to be accommodated in every possible school.

I'm fairly uncomfortable with the title. The suggestion that people with disabilities require 'enabling' is at best a stupid-sounding joke, and at worst quite offensive. Indeed, the term 'disabilities' itself is not free of controversy.
 
Secretary to The Committee:
The Commonwealth of New Lakemba is an equal opportunity country. Citizens who are disabled, and wish to attend a public school and not a specialised school, should be able to do so. Cost should not be a barrier towards opportunity, especially for those that cannot help but be born in this situation. For this reason I advocate voting for this resolution.
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What opportunity? An opportunity with teachers that learned the bare minimum about their problem, and are unable to help? Or would they rather have an opportunity with teachers who know more about what their problem is?
 
Has the possibility of specialised units within standard schools for only the most disabled of children occurred to anyone? This would allow for more integration, more opportunities for disabled children and none of this nonsense about it being too expensive. Frankly, I don't *care* if it's expensive, it's a goal that all schools should aim to achieve in order to achieve better life chances for disabled students. This system allows for better gradation of support - especially for those children who would be able to cope with limited standard classes but otherwise need more support.

The disability activist in me is frankly appalled by our recommendation on this resolution. I agree with guy that I don't like the title but I *do* like the aim and general implementation of this resolution.
 
The problem is that Clause 1 requires that training be incorporated into the teacher training process though. Not just for specialized teacher training, but for all teachers. Regardless of if there is a specialist or not, you are still gonna have a massive budget drain in training those teachers.
 
Incorporating into the process doesn't mean incorporating anything imaginable into the standard training.

I'm not sure where you'd be able to get a teaching degree IRL at least without some training wrt students with disabilities.
 
Abstain.

I will say,the argument on cost does not seem to me to be well made out: adequate provision need not mean the highest level and most specialist training for all, nor need it mean the same level of training for all. It may be adequate, say, for all to be trained in recognising a learning disability, for instance, but far more than adequate for all to be fluent in sign language. It may, instead, be adequate for there to exist specialised schools in which the teachers are fluent in sign language. To require adequacy is not to require perfection, as those making the cost argument seem to be suggesting.
 
Seems like the resolution will be implemented (and instantly repealed?). Or am I getting ahead of the facts? Apparently, delegates from the most influential regions - according to the number of endorsements - have already voted; the "individual" nations that have voted in favor outnumber those who vote against. I do not know, but with about 3 days left for the vote, efforts could be made to improve the resolution. Darnit...
 
Imperium Anglorum:
Sir Fawkes:
I do not know, but with about 3 days left for the vote, efforts could be made to improve the resolution.
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How? The resolution is already set in stone. Proposals are immutable after submission.
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Ikr, just worried about the way to go. It's gonna be a PASS > REPEAL > REDRAFT (hopefully).
That, if delegates and/or nations voting for it don'te change their minds... :mad:
 
@Mystery Player,

The Committee spends a vast proportion of our budget to ensure a very high quality of education. This ought to include very high levels of training for our teachers.

The implementation of these reforms for each WA member is relatively open, which means the impact to other WA nations need not be as large as suggested by some members here.
 
Greetings, fellow North Pacificans and other members. I have contacted the nation promoting the proposal mentioned in my previous post (which has resolved to delete it, since it was declared illegal by GenSec, anyway). In this way I let you know that this nation wishes to participate in the debate to elaborate a better proposal (and I have seen that Imperium Anglorum already has a preemptive repeal in case the current resolution is approved).

The question is: Is it prudent to start making a better proposal now? Or is it better to wait for the resolution to pass and be repealed?

If there is already a forum/site where debates are being organized to improve the resolution at vote, could you tell me what they are? I certainly hope that Abbey's idea can materialize. Thanks in advance for further info! :rum:
 
Voting on this resolution has ended.

Thanks to those nations who cast their votes. Your participation is a great help to the region.

This topic has been locked and sent to the Archives for safekeeping. If you would like this topic to be re-opened for further discussion, please contact the WA Delegate, a Global Moderator, or an Administrator for assistance. Thank you.
 
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