The purpose of this data collection is to describe how States and the nation are meeting the LRE mandate as expressed in IDEA and its implementing regulations. During the past several years, the percentage of students with disabilities served in regular classes has increased considerably, while the percentage of students in resource rooms has gradually decreased (see figure 3.1). Other placement percentages have remained stable. During the past 5 years, not only have States and local school districts worked to meet the needs of students with disabilities within the general education classroom, but they have also improved their data collection and reporting procedures. As a result, for 1993-94, States reported serving 43.4 percent of students with disabilities ages 6-21 in regular classroom placements, 29.5 percent in resource rooms, 22.7 percent in separate classes, 3.1 percent in separate schools, 0.7 percent in residential facilities, and 0.6 percent in homebound/hospital placements.
Regular Class Settings ------------------------- Disability 6-11 12-17 18-21 ========== ===== ===== ===== Specific learning disabilities 40.88 37.98 40.29 Speech or language impairments 89.01 77.20 65.35 Mental retardation 10.75 7.35 6.14 Serious emotional disturbance 21.98 19.65 19.42 Multiple disabilities 11.35 7.49 4.06 Hearing impairments 32.56 30.30 19.08 Orthopedic impairments 39.30 37.49 21.94 Other health impairments 42.93 37.84 26.45 Visual impairments 47.00 45.77 28.44 Autism 10.85 9.12 4.18 Deaf-blindness 11.24 7.13 1.98 Traumatic brain injury 23.68 22.51 17.52 ---------------------------------------------------------- Total 48.78 33.29 26.59
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs, Data Analysis System (DANS).
Regular class includes students who receive the majority of their education program in a regular classroom and receive special education and related services outside the regular classroom for less than 21 percent of the school day.
Resource room includes students who receive special education and related services outside of the regular classroom for at least 21 percent but no more than 60 percent of the school day.
Separate class includes students who receive special education and related services outside the regular class for more than 60 percent of the school day.
Separate school includes students who receive special education and related services in a public or private separate day school for students with disabilities, at public expense, for more than 50 percent of the school day.
Residential facility includes students who receive special education in a public or private residential facility, at public expense, for more than 50 percent of the school day.
Homebound/hospital environment includes students placed in and receiving special education in a hospital or homebound program.
SOURCE: OSEP Data Dictionary, Office of Special Education Programs, U.S. Department of Education.
A relatively large percentage of students ages 18-21 are served in separate classes and schools (see table 3.4). Because general education students typically graduate at age 18, students with disabilities ages 18-21 who are still in school do not have same-age peers with whom to interact. Some educators assert that the most natural environments for these students are colleges and universities, work sites, postsecondary vocational training programs, or community-based instructional settings other than secondary schools.
Age Group --------------------- Educational Environments 6-11 12-17 18-21 ======================== ==== ===== ===== Regular class 53.5 33.3 26.6 Resource room 24.8 35.1 28.1 Separate class 19.3 25.9 30.8 Separate school 1.9 3.7 10.3 Residential facility 0.3 1.1 2.9 Homebound/hospital 0.3 0.8 1.3SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs, Data Analysis System (DANS).
Residen- Home- Regular Resource Separate Separate tial bound/ Disability Class Room Class School Facil. Hospital ========== ===== ==== ===== ====== ===== ======== Specific learning disabilities 39.3 41.0 18.8 0.6 0.1 0.1 Speech or language impairments 87.5 7.6 4.5 0.3 0.04 0.05 Mental retardation 8.6 26.1 57.0 7.0 0.7 0.5 Serious emotional disturbance 20.5 25.8 35.3 13.4 3.2 1.8 Multiple disabilities 9.1 19.8 44.1 21.8 3.2 2.0 Hearing impairments 30.6 20.0 30.6 7.0 11.6 0.2 Orthopedic impairments 37.4 20.7 33.3 5.3 0.5 2.9 Other health impairments 40.0 27.0 21.3 1.8 0.4 9.4 Visual impairments 45.2 21.3 18.3 4.1 10.6 0.5 Autism 9.6 8.1 54.5 23.4 3.9 0.5 Deaf-blindness 7.7 8.0 34.6 24.3 23.2 2.2 Traumatic brain injury 22.3 23.5 30.2 18.3 2.6 3.0 --------------------------------------------------------------------- U.S. and Outlying Areas 43.4 29.5 22.7 3.1 0.7 0.6 50 States, D.C., & P.R. 43.4 29.4 22.7 3.1 0.7 0.6SOURCE: Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs, Data Analysis Systems (DANS).
Students with learning disabilities, orthopedic impairments, other health impairments, serious emotional disturbance, and traumatic brain injury are generally placed within the regular school building, but then students are spread across regular classes, resource rooms, and separate classes. It is likely that many of these students spend a portion of their day in classes with peers who do not have disabilities, but are "pulled out" for extended resource room support or alternative academic courses.
Separate classroom placements are most prevalent for students with mental retardation (57.0 percent), autism (54.5 percent), and multiple disabilities (44.1 percent), although resource room placements are also commonly used to serve students with mental retardation and multiple disabilities. By definition, those in separate classroom placements may spend up to 40 percent of the school day in a regular classroom.
This section has presented data on educational placements for students with disabilities. The percentage of students with disabilities served in regular classes has increased considerably over the past 5 years, although, on a national level, regular classroom placements are still primarily used with elementary-aged students and those with speech or language impairments and learning disabilities. The next section of this chapter examines one of OSEP's efforts to promote the placement of students with severe disabilities in inclusive settings.
-###-