6 Types Of Special Education
Making school decisions feel very weighty— typical child or disabled, it’s a big part of developing years.
You may not realize there are so many choices for your child!
There are 6 types of special education environments. Which to choose is guided by LRE— Least Restrictive Environment: The environment in which students with disabilities must be educated that is as close to the general education setting as possible. This is mandated by IDEA (individuals with disabilities education act) which is a law that guarantees educational rights to all students with disabilities and makes it illegal for school districts to refuse to educate a student based on his or her disability.
That’s a lot of “official talk” lol but I think it’s helpful to see what options are available.
Let’s break these different learning environments down!
1. Push In Services-
Students with needs who require minimal intervention often benefit from this option. A therapist or specialist will come into the classroom to assist the teacher during regular lesson plans for the day. This collaborative effort is great for students who can tolerate a mainstream class setting. It allows them to remain in their classroom environment without disrupting their daily schedule. This option also allows a therapist to see what a student practically needs assistance with so they can direct focus there rather than broad work. This may even be an accommodation that is needed temporarily and will be phased out as a student improves skills/coping.
2. Pull-out Services-
Students who need more focused help from a therapist or other specialist may be pulled out of the classroom for work in a one-on-one or group setting. This service is especially beneficial for students to receive direct, tailored instruction that meet their unique needs. By providing 1:1 attention, students can also develop a deeper sense of trust which is an overall help with emotional support. Something to consider with this service is how students may feel about being removed from their mainstream classroom. Some kids love the special attention they get while others may feel vulnerable in front of their peers.
3. Inclusive classrooms-
This class setting has a mix of children of varying abilities and co-teachers within the room that allows those who have special needs to get the additional help they require while remaining in a traditional classroom setting.
Push in and Pull Out services may overlap within the inclusive classroom. Each child has an IEP or 504 with individual goals and plans to meet them. A sense of community is present amongst students and teachers in this environment which can further improve emotional condition and socialization. The culmination of push in, pull out, and standard class all in one!!
I love how each kiddo can have their needs met right where they are.
This is the class setting Kaylee has thrived in for several years.
4. Exclusive Education-
Some students benefit from being placed in a smaller group of students who have similar educational needs. They receive the benefit of remaining within a traditional school setting, but with the lower student-to-teacher ratio. This can help them to grasp educational concepts and overcome challenges that would hold them back in other classroom formats. Similar to inclusive education services, this option provides students with the opportunity to receive individualized attention & has overlap with therapists “pushing in” to provide services or “pulling out” to provide services.
This version in my experience has a slower pace and lots of caregiving throughout the day with loads of sweet fun.
5. Specialty Schools -
We actually looked into this option for Kaylee but it was rather expensive (think private school on steroids) so we elected to go with traditional public school. Students who have severe cognitive challenges and certain physical disabilities may choose a specialty school where individual needs can be met by a very low student-to-staff ratio. This version has physical, occupational, speech, and cognitive services but goes even further with therapies to help improve their quality of life and prepare them for adulthood— literally life skills. Other specialties include art therapy, aquatic therapy, job training, life skills, and other services as offered by the school. Sounds exciting right? These locations are also not very prevalent so finding one near you may be difficult.
If this seems like a good fit, there may be grants your state offers so ask!
6. Residential Programs-
Admittedly I am not very familiar with this option so I researched the details. Special education programs of this variety are best for students who require around-the-clock care that is beyond what that can be offered in a more standard school setting. These kiddos need medical professionals in a capacity larger than a school nurse + These students often have medical needs beyond what can be managed even at home or in a specialty school. Those health needs obviously come before academics.
While in the rehab center at CHOA Kaylee was offered school classes but because it was summer we elected not to dive into those. I imagine this could possibly be similar to the type of offerings available in a program described— she had nursing care 24/7, heavy therapy load and school options.
Students who thrive in these types of programs will often be transitioned into adult assisted living or residential care facilities as they mature out of the program. When medical fragility is too advanced, there is an option for families in this program. I appreciate that care is a priority over math.
There may be varying aspects by state or even county.
The best thing you can do is learn, research, ask questions.
And always remember— we make decisions, not contracts so try the option you think is best and change as needed.