Least Restrictive Environment

IDEA requires students with disabilities, including students in public or private institutions or other care facilities, to be educated with students without disabilities to the maximum extent appropriate. Additionally, schools must ensure that a student with a disability is not removed from the general education environment (including removal to separate schools or special classes) unless the nature or severity of the student’s disability is such that he or she cannot be educated in general education classes, even with the use of supplementary aids and services. A student’s educational placement is determined at least annually.

General education should be the first consideration when deciding placement. A group of persons knowledgeable about the child, the meaning of the evaluation data, and placement options (the ARD committee) is responsible for identifying the student’s needs and the appropriate placement in which these needs can be met.

Placement decisions must be based on the student’s IEP. When making the placement decision, the first consideration should be whether the student can be educated in the general education classroom with or without supplementary aids and services. A student can only be placed in a more restrictive environment when the placement committee (the ARD committee) concludes that education in a lesser restrictive setting, even with appropriate supports and services, cannot be achieved satisfactorily.

For students who have met graduation requirements and are eligible to continue receiving special education services, placement decisions will be based on the student’s postsecondary goals and other information related to their transition to adulthood. Typically, community and other settings to prepare the student for postsecondary education/training, competitive integrated employment, and/or independent living are the starting point for ARD committee discussions about LRE.

Illustration of a classroom with a teacher providing instruction to students. Students participate in different ways, including writing, using a tablet, raising a hand, and receiving individual assistance. Text reads: "General education should always be the first consideration.

Best Practice Tip:

IEP goals must be developed based on a student’s PLAAFP. Because well-written goals support the attainment of academic and functional skills specific to the student’s needs, ARD committees develop annual measurable goals before determination of student placement.

Instructional Arrangements and Placement

IDEA requires that each LEA ensures that a CONTINUUM OF ALTERNATIVE PLACEMENTS is available to meet the needs of students with disabilities in the least restrictive environment (LRE) whereas, general education is the least restrictive (blue on the image) and hospital or home placement are the most restrictive placements (yellow to red on the image). This continuum must include instruction in regular classes, special classes, special schools, home instruction, and instruction in hospitals and institutions. Additionally, each LEA must make provisions for SUPPLEMENTARY SERVICES, such as resource room or itinerant instruction, to be provided in conjunction with regular class placement.

Graphic showing a continuum of educational placements from least restrictive to most restrictive. Options include: 1) general education with no supplementary aids or services, 2) general education with supplementary aids and/or services, 3) resource placement in a special education classroom for less than 40% of the day, 4) self-contained special education placement for more than 40% of the day, 5) separate school, 6) residential placement, and 7) hospital or home placement. A vertical arrow illustrates the progression from least restrictive to most restrictive educational settings.

In Texas, available INSTRUCTIONAL ARRANGEMENTS AND SETTINGS (page1) include:

Mainstream;
Homebound;
Hospital class;
Speech therapy;
Resource room or services;
Self-contained (mild, moderate or severe)
Regular campus;
Off-home campus;
Nonpublic day school;
Vocational adjustment class/program;
Residential care and treatment facility; and
State supported living center for persons with intellectual disabilities.

IEP Development

While LEAs do not always have to have all placements available, the placements must be made available when an ARD committee determines it is appropriate to the individual needs of a student. This placement must be specified in the student’s IEP. Additionally, the IEP must document the necessary supplementary aids and services the student needs in the setting.

If the ARD committee determines the student will not participate in the general education classroom and/ or curriculum, an explanation as to why that decision was made must be documented in the IEP. More information about Public Education Management System (PEIMS) coding for the above instructional arrangements can be found in the Student Attendance and Accounting Handbook (SAAH).

Removal from Home Campus

Illustration of a student carrying a backpack and walking along a path between a school building and another location, representing school attendance, transportation, transition planning, or movement between educational settings.

ARD committees are required to review data to determine placement and must ensure that students with disabilities are educated with their nondisabled peers to the maximum extent appropriate, regardless of campus. If the ARD committee is considering placement other than on the student’s home campus, the committee should consider:

The specific supplementary aids and services provided or tried to support the student on the home campus;
Why the supplementary aids and services were not educationally beneficial; and
Why the supplementary aids and services did not provide access to or progress in the general curriculum.

Length of School Day

The length of the school day for a student with a disability must be commensurate with that of students without disabilities unless the ARD committee determines that the student needs a modified instructional day. This requirement applies equally to public school students in charter, public, or private institutions or other care facilities. The length of day must be specified in the student’s IEP.

Consideration of Harmful Effects

Consideration should be given to any potentially HARMFUL EFFECTS on the student or quality of services that he/she needs when placement is determined. Consideration must be given to both of the following criteria:

Any potentially harmful effects on the student with disabilities if the student is removed from general education classes; and
Any potentially harmful effects on the quality of services provided to the student with disabilities if the student is removed from general education classes.

Note:

Consideration of potentially harmful effects could be documented in a variety of ways, including a checklist, narrative, or other evidence that describes one of the situations above. A statement that “the ARD committee reviewed potential harmful effects” is NOT sufficient documentation unless the ARD committee has described the specific potential harmful effects that were discussed.

Opportunities to Participate in Extracurricular and Nonacademic Activities

A student with disabilities must be provided an equal opportunity to participate in NONACADEMIC AND EXTRACURRICULAR SERVICES and activities to the fullest extent appropriate to the student’s individual needs. These activities may include, but are not limited to, the following:

Graphic listing opportunities for participation in extracurricular and nonacademic activities, including athletics, counseling services, health services, recreational activities, special interest groups or school-sponsored clubs, lunch, recess, field trips and assemblies, and transportation.

Although this list is not exhaustive, it provides examples of the services and activities that may give students with disabilities an opportunity for participation in services and activities offered to students without disabilities. The student’s IEP must include a statement of the special education and related services, supplementary aids and services, and program modifications or supports for school personnel that will be provided to enable the student to participate in extracurricular and other nonacademic activities.

Early Childhood Special Education

LRE and Early Childhood Special Education (ECSE)

The requirements of placement decisions in the LRE apply to preschool children with disabilities ages 3 to 5 (not in kindergarten) who qualify for special education services under IDEA.

The Early Childhood Education Division at the Texas Education Agency is responsible for key early learning investments. More information about Early Childhood Education is available as described in the Frequently Asked Questions document.

It is very important for LEAs to include eligible students with disabilities in high quality inclusive programs (see Dear Colleague Letter on Preschool LRE in the Resources section on the next page). Public schools that do not operate programs for nondisabled preschool children are not required to develop programs solely to satisfy the IDEA requirements regarding placement in the LRE.

Some alternative methods for meeting the requirements include:

providing opportunities for the participation of preschool children with disabilities in other preschool programs operated by public agencies (such as Head Start);
placing children with disabilities in private school programs for nondisabled preschool children or private school preschool programs that integrate children with disabilities and non-disabilities; and
locating classes for preschool children with disabilities in regular elementary schools.

Behavior

When a student’s behavior impedes the student’s learning or that of others, the ARD committee must consider the use of positive behavioral interventions and supports, and other strategies, to address the behavior, such as, but not limited to:

Initiation of a functional behavior assessment
Implementation of a behavioral intervention plan
Participation in social skills training
Provision of counseling and/or social skills training
Modification of classroom or school environment to reduce stimuli known to trigger challenging behavior
Explicit teaching and reinforcement of replacement behaviors
Implementation of visual schedules and/or scheduled reminders
Provision of structured break time
Development and usage of behavior contracts
Use of reinforcement strategies
Progress monitoring of behavior

If the child’s behavior in the general education classroom, even with the provision of appropriate behavioral supports, strategies, or interventions as described above, would significantly impair the learning and/or threaten the safety of others, that placement may not be appropriate for that child.

The ARD committee must:

Determine whether the student’s behavior is so disruptive or threatening that the education of other students is significantly impaired;
Consider the use of supplementary aids and services to address both issues (such as the use of a paraprofessional).

If the ARD committee determines that the student’s behavior is so disruptive or threatening that the education of other students is significantly impaired, and the district has considered or implemented supplementary aids and services without achieving satisfactory results, then the ARD committee could determine that the general education classroom is not the appropriate setting for the student with a disability.

Please see TEA’s Behavior Supports and Guidance for Students with Disabilities document on the Texas SPED Support webpage for more information about behavior supports in Texas.