Least Restrictive Environment

The concept of Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) is commonly misunderstood as nothing more than a black-and-white distinction between the general education and special education settings. This leads educators to the mistaken assumption that placing a student in a particular setting will automatically provide that student with his or her LRE.

However, LRE is more than a place, it is a package of supports. Regardless of what setting the student is placed in, there are still a range of LRE options available to the IEP team. Supports that IDEA 2004 refers to as "supplementary aids and services" (e.g., accommodations or modifications, assistive technology (AT), paraprofessional support) are key to ensuring that students with disabilities can receive FAPE while maximizing their independence. For example, for a student who needs to read grade-level text, paraprofessional support in an academic class would be considered more restrictive than text-to-speech software. The student's location doesn't change, but the environment is more or less restrictive depending on the supports provided.

Consideration of setting is important to LRE, and removal from the general education setting may occur only if the student's educational needs are such that instruction in a general education classroom—with the support of supplementary aids and services—cannot reasonably provide the student with a meaningful educational benefit. Providing instruction in the general education setting with typically developing students has been shown to improve learning outcomes for students with disabilities.

(1) Where instruction will take place: Specialized instruction can be provided in a variety of formats (e.g., pull-out instruction in a resource room, co-teaching or push-in instruction in a general education classroom, etc.).

(2) What the student will be missing: The specific classes and activities that the student will not participate in so that they may receive their specialized instruction.

(3) Why this is the student’s Least Restrictive Environment: The explanation needs to be more specific than, “Because his skills are discrepant from peers, Johnny will receive…" Thorough rationales explain the features of specialized instruction that (1) are necessary for the student and (2) cannot be reasonably offered in a less restrictive setting.