The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) requires schools to place students in the least restrictive environment (LRE). LRE means that, to the maximum extent appropriate, schools must educate students with disabilities in the regular classroom with appropriate aids and supports, referred to as “supplementary aids and services,” along with their nondisabled peers; the placement should be in the school they would attend if not disabled, unless a student’s individualized education program (IEP) requires some other arrangement. This requires an individualized inquiry into the unique educational needs of each student with a disability in determining the possible range of aids and supports that are needed to facilitate the student’s placement in the regular educational environment before considering a more restrictive placement. [U.S. Department of Education, OSEP Memorandum 95-9 (November 23, 1994)]

Although there is a strong preference for educating a child in the regular classroom, this may not always be the LRE. For example, a student with a hearing impairment who communicates only with sign language may be unable to communicate easily or directly with hearing peers in the general education classroom/environment. In this case, a more restrictive environment on the continuum of possible placements, say a placement at a special school for the deaf, may actually be the LRE for this child.

LRE Time 

Extent Not in General Education

The extent to which the student will not participate with nondisabled peers:  We need to document why is the student not in the general education classroom for special education instruction, what is the reason the student has to be removed to be taught by the special education teacher

These examples are directly from the ESS Monitoring Guide Steps:

• Given the student’s high level of distractibility and the need to minimize external stimuli, the team determined that the instruction should be provided in the special education setting, where he will not be participating with nondisabled peers during math services. 

• Student is in a special education classroom four hours a day because of the student’s aggressive behaviors and a need for lower staff-to-student ratio; the student will not participate with nondisabled peers during that time. 

Explain WHY the student is not in the general education classroom to receive their services.

What specific to the student does the student need that can not be met in the general education classroom.