What is “Least Restrictive Environment”?
The Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) requirement is the requirement that special education students be educated with children without disabilities in the regular educational environment to the maximum extent appropriate to serve their needs. The IDEA states that, “To the maximum extent appropriate, children with disabilities, including children in public or private institutions or other care facilities, are (1) educated with children who are not disabled, and (2) special classes, separate schooling, or other removal of children with disabilities from the regular educational environment occurs only when the nature or severity of the disability of a child is such that education in regular classes with the use of supplementary aids and services cannot be achieved satisfactorily.” 20 U.S.C. 1412(a)(5). Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act also requires that children be educated in the LRE. These LRE provisions mean that if children can be educated successfully in the regular classroom
Least restrictive environment is a term used to describe the placement of special education students. Since the 1990s, the movement has been to “mainstream” special education students by moving them from special education classrooms into regular classrooms, considered the least restrictive. Legally, the student has to be placed in the least restrictive environment–that is, the most “normal” classroom the child can function in.
