Over the past forty years, schools across the United States have become more inclusive for students with disabilities. However, in many high-poverty urban school districts, a disproportionate number of minority children with disabilities are segregated from their non-disabled peers. This article presents findings from a qualitative case study of…

Disabled children placed in regular classrooms are supposed to get special services so that they can participate academically and socially without disrupting other students' learning. Since most states and school districts are adopting full inclusion to save money, such services are unlikely. Requiring all disabled children to be included in…

Explores the history of the "least restrictive environment" concept, particularly in relation to designing and providing educational programs for disabled youth; discusses political and economic issues, curriculum-related arguments, and societal attitudes concerning mainstreaming; and identifies factors that can promote or impede…

During 1992-93, an upstate New York district saved a million dollars while improving services for special needs students. The district saved tuition costs by reclaiming 80 disabled children formerly placed in outside programs. By carefully reviewing students' learning difficulties, staff lowered the number of students classified as educationally…

The University of Hawaii Department of Special Education conducted the Preschool Preparation and Transition Project, a federally funded demonstration program, to support families and their children with special needs in the transition from infant programs to least restrictive preschool placements. The program addressed this goal through three…

Full inclusion is a confusing topic. Many people misunderstand the "least restrictive environment" provision of the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. Districts need not educate every disabled child in a regular classroom for the entire day, but have numerous options, so long as each child is carefully evaluated. Recent…

During inclusion discussions, board members must remember their goal--ensuring that schools meet the needs of all students, including those with disabilities. Boards should ask themselves how they decide where to educate disabled students, how other diverse populations are taught, what training is provided to help teachers address diverse needs,…

The paper focuses on policy issues for handicapped students whose parents (primarily military) are employed by the federal government overseas. Chapter I describes three types of federally funded programs: overseas dependents schools, tuition free schooling (where low student populations do not justify the operation of federally funded schools),…

The Preparation for American Secondary Schools (PASS) program, added to the federal Overseas Refugee Training Program in 1985, was evaluated for its effectiveness in preparing Southeast Asian refugees for American education. The study compared the school performance of students with PASS training to that of students who did not receive PASS…

Six position papers address issues and identify relevant processes and policies relating to the least restrictive environment (LRE). The first paper highlights research findings concerning local policies relative to identification, assessment, and placement of handicapped, disadvantaged, and limited English-proficient students in vocational…