re and supervision.
Determination Of LRE For Each Student
Given the just presented continuum, it can be seen that a means is needed of determining which level of services is appropriate for the individual child. According to Drew, Logan and Hardman (1994), there is a set model used by the educational system to determine that setting that is the least restrictive environment for a given student with disabilities; this is the Individualized Educational Program or IEP model.
The IEP model requires the development of an IEP Committee commonly consisting of teachers, parents, experts in the field and relevant others). Working together, the committee develops a written document containing: (1) the child's present levels of educational performance; (2) the annual goals and short-term instructional objectives in each area requiring specially designed instruction; (3) the specific educational services to be provided and the extent to which the child will be able to participate in regular education programs; (4) the projected date for the beginning and the anticipated duration of such services; (5) appropriate objective criteria and evaluation procedures; and (6) schedules for determining, at least on an annual basis, whether the instructional objectives are being met.
The IEP is revised annually. However, if one or more committee members request it, revision can occur more frequently.
Strategies and Techniques Used For Included Students
Depending upon their IEPs, disabled/handicapped students will receive either regular classes only or some mixture of regular and special education classes. There has been a good deal of research investigating the instructional strategies and techniques used by special educators, resource specialists and other relevant professionals to meet the educational needs of these students. These methods can be used either in the regular classroom setting or in special education settings like th...