View the Least Restrictive Environment: Step by Step, reprinted with permission from the New Jersey Developmental Council.

Placement is determined individually for each student. Special education is an individualized combination of supports and services. Discussions about where a student will attend school should take place only after the IEP team has determined the services and supports the student needs, and goals and objectives have been developed. Those needs considered should include the importance of access to socialization opportunities and participation in the school community as well as extra- curricular activities.

An appropriate decision-making sequence begins with the question: "What are the student's special education needs?" The determination of what constitutes an appropriate program for a student comes before the question of where it will be provided.

IDEA requires placement be:

• based on a student's IEP 
• in the least restrictive environment and 
• that a full continuum of alternative placements be available.

Parent Tip!!

Ask for a planning meeting when it is decided that your child will be moving to another school (in or out of district). At that planning meeting, ensure that the receiving case manager and/or teacher is present.

• a list of program modifications and/or supports to be provided to school staff for the student, 
• a statement of the modifications and services needed to enable the student to make progress in the general education curriculum, 
• a statement of the modifications and services needed to enable the student to participate in extracurricular and non-academic activities, 
• an explanation of the extent to which the student will not participate in regular classes, extracurricular and non-academic activities, 
• the projected date for the beginning of the modifications and services, their frequency, location and duration, 
• a description of behavior intervention strategies and supports if the student's behavior restricts his/her learning or other's learning  which includes an ongoing behavior plan that emphasizes positive reinforcement,
• provision for an extended year program, if appropriate.

• the strengths of the child 
• the concerns of the parents for enhancing the education of the child 
• the results of the initial evaluation or the most recent evaluations 
• whether or not the student needs highly specialized assistive technology 
• the communication needs of the child 
• For students who have behavior that impedes learning (theirs or others), the IEP must consider strategies, including positive behavior interventions strategies and supports.
• For students with limited English Proficiency, the team must consider the language needs of the child as they relate to the IEP.
• For students who are blind or visually impaired, the IEP must provide for instruction in Braille and the use of Braille, unless the IEP determines, after evaluation, that the use of Braille is not appropriate for the child.
• For students who are deaf or hard of hearing, the IEP must consider the student's language and communication needs, as well as opportunities for direct communication with peers and professional personnel in the student's own language and communication mode. They must also consider the student's academic level and full range of needs, including opportunity for direct instruction in the student's language and communication mode.

IDEA requires that a full continuum of services be available to meet the needs of students with disabilities that range from the least restrictive environment being considered first to progressively more restrictive environments. If it is decided that the general education class is not appropriate, even with modifications and supports, other options must be considered. The range of options include:

• the regular education classroom, in the student's home school, with a full spectrum of necessary supports and related services, 
• a resource center program in which the student spends part of the day in regular classes and the remainder of the day in pull-out resource program,
• a special education class in the student's home school,
• a special education class in another school in the student's district,
• a special education class in another public school district, 
• a regional or county-based special school (Regional Day School, Educational Services Commission, Jointure Commission), 
• an approved private school for students with disabilities, 
• a non-sectarian, non-public school which is not specifically approved for students with disabilities, 
• a hospital or other medical setting, 
• a residential school, and 
• individual instruction at home or in another appropriate setting.

County Vocational Schools and "Magnet Schools" (such as those for the arts) must admit students with disabilities whom otherwise meet the criteria for admission. Charter Schools are required to provide special education and related services to students with disabilities who are enrolled in their program, and cannot discriminate on the basis of disability.

• School districts may not base placement decisions solely on factors such as category of disability, severity of disability or availability of services.
• Each placement option must be considered not only as it currently exists, but also as it might be modified. 
• The appropriateness of placement in a regular classroom is not dependent on the student's ability to learn the same things that his/her non-disabled peers learn in that classroom.
• The benefit from social interaction with non-disabled peers is a legitimate benefit that can be derived from placement in a regular classroom.
•  Students do not have to fail in one setting in order to be placed in a more restrictive one.
• There are no rules about the maximum length of time or distance a student may travel on a bus in order to get to school.

IDEA requires:
To the maximum extent appropriate, students with disabilities are educated with non-disabled peers. Special classes, separate schooling or other removal of children with disabilities from the regular classroom occurs only when the nature or severity of the disability is such that education in the regular class cannot be achieved satisfactorily with the use of supplemental aids and services. And so IEP teams must consider:

• whether the student can be educated satisfactorily in a regular class with supplementary aids and services, and modifying the regular program to accommodate the student 
• the benefits provided in a regular class as compared with the benefits provided in a special education class 
• the potentially beneficial or harmful effects which placement may have on the student with disabilities and other students in the class.

Bring a detailed copy of the regular education Core Curriculum Standards for your child’s grade to the IEP meeting. This can be obtained through the District’s Curriculum Supervisor whose office is located at the Education Center at  434 Millburn Avenue, Millburn, NJ 07041.

As is the case for students aged 5 and over, the discussion about placement for preschoolers with disabilities must begin with the consideration of an age-appropriate regular classroom program with supplementary aids and services. The district must ensure that the student's IEP can be implemented, and that special education and/or related services are provided by an appropriately certified, licensed professional.

DID YOU KNOW...   The Millburn school district has an integrated pre-school program which enables children with disabilities to be educated with non-disabled peers.

Age appropriate typical settings for preschoolers with disabilities might include:

• public school pre-k program 
• a neighboring district's publicly funded pre-k program 
• public school integrated preschool program
• Head Start
• a private, nonsectarian preschool 
• a day care setting 
• home instruction 
• a combination of these options 

When the IEP team determines that a regular class placement is appropriate for a preschooler with disabilities, all efforts must be made to locate an appropriate regular preschool setting in which the child's IEP can be implemented.

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Push-in services occur when therapies are provided in an integrated setting with regular education peers. Some examples of push-in services are: 

• Occupational Therapy in the regular education classroom, during art, or during computers,
• Physical Therapy during regular education gym class with a physical therapist and the gym teacher, 
• Resource instruction provided by the resource room teacher in the regular education classroom,
• Speech therapy in the classroom or during lunch. 

One of the clear benefits of push-in services is that the student does not need to leave their classroom and miss regular education instruction.

Pull-out services occur when the service is provided outside the regular education setting. Some examples of pull-out services are:

• Resource room instruction
• Therapies in a therapy room

Included in the decision making process is whether the student will benefit best from individual and/or group therapy instruction.  When evaluating group instruction, it is also important to consider the composition of the group.