The purpose of this qualitative descriptive study was to explore how public-school IEP team members describe decision-making influences and thresholds in least restrictive environment (LRE) placement for K-5 students with significant support needs in the Midwest. Decision-Making Ecology served as a framework for two research questions which…

The purpose of this interview-based qualitative study was to explore how individualized education program (IEP) team members determine least restrictive environment and educational placement. The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) requires students with disabilities to be educated in the least restrictive environment and to the…

The least restrictive environment (LRE) is the educational placement determined necessary for obtaining maximum educational benefits. The individualized education program (IEP) team determines the LRE after analyzing the student's academic and behavioral data and assessing the student's unique needs. Specific special educational labels may produce…

The goal of this article is to assist individualized education program (IEP) team personnel to not make errors in the placement of students. To do so the authors: (1) describe what a placement decision is and who makes the decision; (2) review the placement requirements of the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act (IDEA, 2006); (3) examine…

The book describes Pennsylvania's approach for determining placement of handicapped students in the least restrictive environment (LRE), as mandated by P.L. 94-142, the Education for All Handicapped Children Act. Separate sections address the following two topics (subtopics in parentheses): the LRE decision process (content for the decision…

This case study chronicles the use of two educational planning tools, COACH (Choosing Outcomes and Accommodations for Children) and VISTA (Vermont Interdependent Services Team Approach) for a 4-year-old with Down syndrome who attends a general education preschool. The decision-making process and follow-up interviews are described, illustrating the…

With the heightened emphasis of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004 on inclusion in the general curriculum and meeting the associated standards, assistive technology (AT) has become a necessary consideration to ensure a free appropriate public education and to promote education in the least restrictive environment…

The MAD (Making Appropriate Decisions) model for providing educational services to gifted children in the regular classroom is described. The model provides for a planning process which takes into account a definition of giftedness, consideration of common needs, and specific considerations for individual students. (DB)

Intended for local school district personnel, the document suggests a model for assisting decision makers in placing handicapped students in the least restrictive environment (LRE). Basic considerations of a multidisciplinary team in determining the appropriate placement for the handicapped students are listed (including the nature and degree of…

Shows that, for the most part, legislation mandating the development of individual educational programs (IEPs) for children receiving special services is effective, but that parents are less positive about some aspects of the IEPs than about others. (Author/FL)

Questionnaires completed by families and teachers of 1,009 students with severe disabilities were analyzed in terms of 4 conceptual models of integrated student placement: a programs/facilities model, a socioeconomic model, an advocacy model, and a combined model. Teacher advocacy and Individualized Education Program characteristics were most…

This brochure summarizes law, policy, and practice concerning inclusion policies for students with specific learning disabilities (LD). It summarizes requirements of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act concerning the availability of a continuum of placement options and placement in the least…

This guide offers specific recommendations to Texas school districts concerning the implementation of least restrictive environment (LRE) requirements for students with disabilities. Suggestions are grouped according to six issues recommended for consideration in the decision making process: These are: (1) the primacy of the individual student's…

The project manual was a product of the 3-year project, "Functional Mainstreaming for Success," (FMS) designed to develop a model for instructional mainstreaming of 162 handicapped children (3-6 years old) in community settings. The major feature of the project was development of a full reverse mainstreamed preschool program, which…

In the second of a five part study on least restrictive environment (LRE) placement for handicapped students, results from onsite observations of 134 local placement team meetings concerning 96 cases are examined. Sampling procedures used to determine cases in the five states are reviewed, as are the observation form and data collection…