Six Major Principles of IDEA: 2. Least Restrictive Environment
Least Restrictive Environment
In the U.S. Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), least restrictive environment (LRE) means that a student who has a disability should have the opportunity to be educated with non-disabled peers, to the greatest extent appropriate.
The IDEA statute and implementing regulations emphasize the requirement to educate children with disabilities in regular classes with their nondisabled peers:
"While the Act and regulations recognize that IEP teams must make individualized decisions about the special education ... IDEA’s strong preference that, to the maximum extent appropriate, children with disabilities be educated in regular classes with their nondisabled peers with appropriate supplementary aids and services."
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Florence County v. Carter: Mainstreaming Policy
In 1991, the U. S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit described the purpose of the mainstreaming policy in Florence County v. Shannon Carter:
"Under the Act, mainstreaming is a policy to be pursued so long as it is consistent with the Act’s primary goal of providing disabled students with an appropriate education. Where necessary for educational reasons, mainstreaming assumes a subordinate role in formulating an educational program. See Rowley . . . In any event, the Act’s preference for mainstreaming was aimed at preventing schools from segregating handicapped students from the general student body . . ."
Hartmann v. Loudon County: Educational Benefit v. Mainstreaming Preference
In 1997, the U. S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit overturned a favorable decision in an inclusion case, Mark Hartmann v. Loudon County. The Court found that mainstreaming or inclusion is secondary to the need to provide a free appropriate education from which the child receives educational benefit:
"The mainstreaming provision represents recognition of the value of having disabled children interact with non-handicapped students. The fact that the provision only creates a presumption, however, reflects a congressional judgment that receipt of such social benefits is ultimately a goal subordinate to the requirement that disabled children receive educational benefit."
"... the IDEA’s mainstreaming provision establishes a presumption, not an inflexible federal mandate. Under its terms, disabled children are to be educated with children who are not handicapped only "to the maximum extent appropriate." 20 U.S.C. § 1412(5)(B). Section 1412(5)(B) explicitly states that mainstreaming is not appropriate "when the nature or severity of the disability is such that education in regular classes with the use of supplementary aids and services cannot be achieved satisfactorily."
20 U.S.C. § 1412(5)(B); see also Rowley, 458 U.S. at 181 n.4."
In Hartmann, the Court held that:
" . . . we specifically held that mainstreaming is inappropriate when "the handicapped child is a disruptive force in the non-segregated setting." 882 F.2d at 879 (quoting Roncker v. Walter, 700 F.2d 1058, 1063 (6th Cir. 1983)). In this case, disruptive behavior was clearly an issue."
N.R. v. Kingwood Township: Continuum of Placements
In N.R. v. Kingwood Township (NJ), U. S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit clarified "meaningful benefit" as the requirement to offer a "continuum of placements," and the requirement to provide a "free appropriate education (FAPE)" in the "least restrictive environment."
The case involved N.R., a child who was found eligible for special education services at age 3. The district developed an IEP that placed him in a "hybrid" preschool program, described as "a single, half-day preschool class composed of half disabled children and half non-disabled children." His parents rejected the district's IEP and placed their child in a private preschool program.
Full Continuum of Services
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEIA) requires states to establish procedures to ensure, "that to the maximum extent appropriate," students with disabilities are educated with children who are not disabled. Programs serving children with learning challenges as well as those with speech/language and other related services needs are available in all schools.
A. Regular Education Classes/Inclusion
Collaboration/consultation/co-teaching services focus on special educators (Intervention Specialists) and general educators working together to best meet the needs of students with disabilities as well as children who may be "at risk". Each school operates Response to Intervention Teams to promote data driven instruction, to individualize learning experiences and to effectively integrate resources which would positively impact the child's educational program.
B. Individual/Small Group Setting (Tutoring)
The Individual/Small Group Instruction program provides students with disabilities support that helps to increase their opportunity to benefit from regular class placement. This is supplemental instruction which focuses on targeted IEP goals and objectives. Depending upon each student’s individual needs, this instruction could include academic support , as well as assisting students in becoming independent in the "process" of learning through the use of compensatory strategies, and study/organizational techniques.
C. Resource Room
The Resource Room serves children whose disabilities require intensive programming. Continued participation in the child's regular class activities is encouraged. The Resource Rooms offer an alternative/modified curriculum in a small group setting, which provides personalized options that are not offered in the general education program. These placements are considered cross-categorical, meaning students with a variety of disabilities are served in the same special class.
D. Separate Facility
Separate facilities are, typically, schools outside of the district that are designed specifically for students with disabilities.
E. Home Instruction
Home instruction is an individualized education program provided at home to a child with a disability which prevents the child from attending a regular or special program even with the aid of special transportation.
F. Institutions and Hospitals.
Related Services
Related Services are support services needed to allow children with disabilities to benefit from special education. These include:
• Adapted Physical Education Services
• Aide Services
• Audiological Services
• Behavior Consultant
• Braillist
• Interpreter Services
• Occupational Therapy Services
• Orientation & Mobility Services
• Physical Therapy Services
• School Psychological Services
• Speech and Language Services
• Transportation
• Vision Specialist
• Work-Study/Transition Services
Other Support Personnel/Programs
• Counseling Services
• Nursing Services
Students with Disabilities Served
A. Preschool Age Children (ages 3-5)
B. School Age (ages 6-21) students with identified disability conditions
• Autism
• Cognitive Disabilities
• Multiple Disabilities
• Specific Learning Disabilities
• Other Health Impairment
• Orthopedically Handicapped
• Severe Emotional Disturbance
• Hearing Impairment
• Visual Impairment
• Traumatic Brain Injury
• Speech / Language Disability
• Deaf-Blindness
• Deafness
Important Concepts of LRE
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Mainstreaming
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It is the practice of educating students with special needs in regular classes during specific time periods based on their skills. This means regular education classes are combined with special education classes. Schools that practice mainstreaming believe that students with special needs who cannot function in a regular classroom to a certain extent "belong" to the special education environment.
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Inclusion
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Inclusive education happens when children with and without disabilities participate and learn together in the same classes. Research shows that when a child with disabilities attends classes alongside peers who do not have disabilities, good things happen.
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Neighborhood School
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A public school students are assigned to attend because they live in the school's attendance area or attendance zone. Students who live in a school's attendance area may also choose to attend a private school, parochial school, home school, or open enroll into a charter school, option school, magnet school, focus school, online school, or another neighborhood public school.
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Placement in a Private School
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Placing in a school founded, conducted, and maintained by a private group ratherthan by the government, usually charging tuition and often following aparticular philosophy or viewpoint.
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Parental Reimbursemnt
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A district may require parents/guardians to furnish transportation for their children who are entitled to transportation (and must provide reimbursement to the parent/guardian) in the following circumstances:
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Where transportation by school bus is impractical.
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Where necessary to implement a whole grade sharing agreement, or
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Where school bus service is not available.
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