Question:
What percentage of students with disabilities are educated in regular classrooms?
Response:
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), enacted in 1975, mandates that children and youth ages 3-21 with disabilities be provided a free and appropriate public school education. Data collection activities to monitor compliance with IDEA began in 1976.
In 2006, 95 percent of students 6 to 21 years old served under IDEA were enrolled in regular school, 3 percent were served in a separate school for students with disabilities, 1 percent were placed in regular private schools by their parents, and 0.4 percent were served in each of the following environments: separate residential facility; homebound or hospital; a correctional facility.
| Percentage distribution of students 6 to 21 years old served under Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, Part B, by educational environment and type of disability: Fall 2006 | |||||||||
| Type of disability | All environments | Regular school, time outside regular classroom | Separate school for students with disabilities | Separate residential facility | Parentally placed in regular private schools1 | Homebound/ hospital placement | Correctional facility | ||
| Less than 21 percent | 21–60 percent | More than 60 percent | |||||||
| All students with disabilities | 100.0 | 53.7 | 23.7 | 17.6 | 2.9 | 0.4 | 1.0 | 0.4 | 0.4 |
| Specific learning disabilities | 100.0 | 54.8 | 31.4 | 11.8 | 0.7 | 0.1 | 0.7 | 0.2 | 0.4 |
| Speech or language impairments | 100.0 | 84.2 | 6.1 | 6.8 | 0.3 | # | 2.5 | 0.1 | # |
| Mental retardation | 100.0 | 16.0 | 28.7 | 48.4 | 5.6 | 0.4 | 0.2 | 0.5 | 0.3 |
| Emotional disturbance | 100.0 | 35.1 | 20.8 | 26.6 | 12.3 | 2.1 | 0.2 | 1.2 | 1.7 | Multiple disabilities | 100.0 | 13.4 | 16.7 | 44.4 | 20.5 | 2.0 | 0.4 | 2.3 | 0.3 | Hearing impairments | 100.0 | 48.8 | 17.8 | 19.8 | 8.2 | 4.2 | 1.0 | 0.2 | 0.1 | Orthopedic impairment | 100.0 | 47.0 | 19.0 | 26.3 | 5.3 | 0.2 | 0.7 | 1.4 | # | Other health impairments2 | 100.0 | 54.8 | 26.5 | 14.9 | 1.6 | 0.2 | 0.8 | 1.0 | 0.2 | Visual impairments | 100.0 | 57.2 | 14.7 | 15.9 | 6.4 | 4.4 | 0.9 | 0.5 | 0.1 | Autism | 100.0 | 32.3 | 18.4 | 38.7 | 9.0 | 0.7 | 0.5 | 0.3 | # | Deaf-blindness | 100.0 | 21.0 | 13.5 | 34.8 | 20.7 | 7.6 | 0.6 | 1.8 | # | Traumatic brain injury | 100.0 | 41.7 | 26.1 | 23.7 | 5.7 | 0.6 | 0.6 | 1.4 | 0.2 | Developmental delay | 100.0 | 58.8 | 21.3 | 18.4 | 0.8 | 0.1 | 0.4 | 0.2 | # |
# Rounds to zero.
1 Students who are enrolled by their parents or guardians in regular private schools and have their basic education paid through private resources, but receive special education services at public expense. These students are not included under "Regular school, time outside general class".
2 Other health impairments include having limited strength, vitality, or alertness due to chronic or acute health problems such as a heart condition, tuberculosis, rheumatic fever, nephritis, asthma, sickle cell anemia, hemophilia, epilepsy, lead poisoning, leukemia, or diabetes.
NOTE: Data are for the 50 United States, the District of Columbia, and the Bureau of Indian Education schools. Detail may not sum to totals because of rounding.
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics. (2009). The Digest of Education Statistics 2008 (NCES 2009-020), Table 51.
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