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Placement decisions for students with severe disabilities have often been based less on the students' unique learning needs but more on beliefs and presumptions about student learning, entrenched school district policies that restrict program delivery options, and other variables unrelated to student needs. In light of the benefits associated with inclusive practices for students with severe disabilities, this article examines the foregoing factors to better understand how they affect placement decisions and to identify barriers to implementing at a national level more inclusive placements. The article also addresses systems change solutions, and several new federally funded initiatives that could contribute to authentic changes in placement practices. [For the grantee submission, see ED598980.]

Parents and teachers have identified the social inclusion of students with complex support needs as one of the most important components of school participation. Previous research has found that the opportunities for, and importance of, social contacts for students with complex support needs vary by educational placement. The purpose of this study was to evaluate a national sample of 92 elementary-aged students with complex support needs to determine whether placement predicts the number and importance of social contacts. We used multilevel regression analysis to measure the extent to which placement predicts the number of social contacts and teachers' ratings of importance. Students in inclusive placements had almost 50% more social contacts than students in a segregated school. Furthermore, teachers' perceptions of the social significance of the contacts experienced by students with complex support needs were notably higher in inclusive settings. Given these findings, we suggest implications for practice and future research.

Research has begun to identify the breadth and complexity of contextual variables that impact the opportunities, services, and supports students with complex support needs receive across different classroom placements. Indeed, as research has suggested, placement in and of itself may determine the schooling experiences of these students in ways that can enhance or constrain the outcomes of the educational process. This study examined an array of contextual variables in relation to four types of placement in which students with complex support needs might be placed for educational services by their Individualized Education Program teams. Placements were defined in terms of percent of the school day students had access to age-level general education classes, ranging between no access (separate school) to 80% or higher ("inclusive"). The investigation used surveys completed by a national sample of special and general educators and administrators. Completed surveys were obtained for 117 students with complex support needs across all four types of placement. The findings revealed potential relationships between a number of contextual variables and placement, suggesting that: (a) student opportunities and experiences vary systematically in relation to the amount of access they have to general education classrooms and (b) the application of the Least Restrictive Environment process, with its tacit endorsement of segregated settings and specialized programs, may in fact negatively impact the education of many of these students. Implications of these findings and future research needs are discussed.

Kauffman, Felder, Ahrbeck, Badar, and Schneiders (this issue) call for a more temperate approach to inclusion, arguing against its use in educating "all" students with disabilities. We argue in response that the issue should not be framed as "inclusion versus non-inclusion," asserting that our field would benefit by examining the alternatives that actually exist across the globe for educating children with and without disabilities. We first provide four concepts that are central to understanding how education is conceptualized and practiced on a global scale: (a) education for all (EFA), interpreted as nations valuing an educated citizenry; (b) primary and secondary education, discussed to make clear real differences in how these two periods of schooling are handled across nations; (c) tracking, the worldwide practice of ability grouping that affects the education of all students; and (d) comprehensive local schools, regionally centralized facilities educating all children, which offer the potential for greater equity. We follow the latter with five schooling "models" that represent the major educational options worldwide: (a) the selective schools model, which controls educational access, often with academic criteria; (b) the separate schools model, which tracks students into different facilities; (c) the tracked schools model, which stratifies students within the same facility; (d) the multi-tiered schools model, which starts with general education settings and curriculum, then provides interventions or programs as needed; and (e) the equity schools model, which uses general education settings and curriculum, providing supports as needed. We conclude with four points: (a) neither resource scarcity nor presumed limitations in general education capacity should preclude inclusive education; (b) the comprehensive local school provides a good base for enhancing equity in educational opportunity for students with and without disabilities; (c) special education is tracking, seriously impacting equity; and (d) inclusive schooling provides the best approach to EFA in the long run.

The least restrictive environment (LRE) mandate has driven classroom placement decisions for the last five decades. It has been measured as the percentage of time students spend in general education contexts (i.e., Placement A: >80%; Placement B: 40-79%; Placement C: <40%). The mandate and its continuum of placements are predicated on the assumption that students can transition to less restrictive contexts, and that each placement will provide students with the skills needed to succeed in less restrictive contexts and, ultimately, in Placement A. Results from this descriptive analysis of survey responses from a sample of teachers and administrators of 98 elementary students with complex support needs indicate that less time in general education (Placements B and C) results in decreased access to single-grade classes, educator expertise, grade-aligned instructional materials, and general education curriculum. Furthermore, for most of the variables analyzed, the data suggest that Placement B is more closely aligned with Placement C than with Placement A, suggesting that it may function as a restrictive placement. We argue that current LRE implementation is resulting in placement and progress stagnation. To allow students with complex support needs to have inclusive and equitable learning opportunities, LRE must shift away from the concept of percentage of time in general education to requirements of student access to instruction on state-adopted grade-level general education standards within general education contexts and curriculum. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examined material adaptations being used with students who have severe disabilities in general education elementary classrooms during language arts, social studies, and science instruction. Data sources included classroom observations, interviews, and artifacts shared by three general and special educator teams. Findings revealed themes that describe how adaptations (a) facilitate access to grade-level content (tangible, student-centered, and blended with classroom materials and instruction) and (b) enable educators to assess progress in student learning (show what students know, blended with peer learning, and ownership of learning). Findings also revealed a set of themes (team collaboration, resources available, rhythm and routine, and build momentum) that help account for the sustained use of adaptations by educator teams across curricula and school days. Implications for practice and future research are discussed.

The Special Education Elementary Longitudinal Study data set was utilised to examine the potential influences on placement decisions for students with multiple disabilities in the US. The sample consisted of 415 students. Specifically, the study investigated whether factors including students' prior special education experiences, parental involvement, parental expectations and educational risk factors explain the placement of students in classrooms. Results indicate significant relations between the explanatory variables and the hours spent daily in general education classrooms. However, only two variables, parents' education and receipt of early childhood special education services, were significantly associated with the dichotomised outcome of whether or not a child received any academic instruction in a general education classroom. Research limitations and implications for future research, policy and practice in the international context are discussed.

Understanding the ecological interactions that underlie marine ecosystem functioning requires sufficient data describing habitat use by mobile species. Hawksbill turtles Eretmochelys imbricata are considered a key species in coral reef-associated communities, owing to their specific foraging preferences, yet new information is still revealing details of the spatial and temporal aspects of habitat use. We used passive acoustic telemetry to monitor the movements of 18 juvenile hawksbills (minimum curved carapace length: 32.0-59.7 cm, mean ± SD = 43.9 ± 6.7 cm) at a developmental foraging site in a Mesoamerican barrier reef, Lighthouse Reef Atoll in Belize (tracking duration 10-1414 d, mean ± SD = 570 ± 484 d). Although specific home ranges were difficult to quantify, several turtles showed high site fidelity over timescales of months to years, with occasional wide-ranging use of the atoll. Diel variation in the number of detections received strongly suggest nocturnal resting. Long-term tracking data reveal 3 degrees of site fidelity across the atoll, based on the number of detection days near individual stations: high residency (n = 4 turtles), sequential residency (n = 5), and transient behavior (n = 4). These variations in movement raise questions about the differentiation of foraging habitats and degree of individual specialization within this population, as well as the influences of microhabitats and human disturbance.

This article used theory, historical records, and empirical research to make a case that inclusive education, in which students experience significant proportions of their day in the age-appropriate contexts and curriculum of general education, is a research-based practice with students who have extensive support needs. We begin by noting that there are regressive trends occurring in educational placements in our country and that these are causing alarm. Next, we establish guidelines for defining a useful, research-based practice. These guidelines include considering what education should be achieving for all students as a standard and using a view of scientific causality that acknowledges complexity. We then show how constructs from ecological theory and group processes theory, which provide accounts for human growth and learning, relate to location of educational services (i.e., context) and curriculum (i.e., content) decisions. Throughout this discussion, we show educating students using an inclusive education approach is supported by these constructs, whereas other widely used special education are not. We then review both historical and empirical data from institutions and schools and show that these data provide empirical support for the primary theoretical position of this article--that context, together with curriculum content, matter crucially when educating students with extensive support needs. We concluded that there is theoretical and empirical support for using general education contexts and curriculum content and for not using other contexts and curriculum content both in educating students with extensive support needs and in conducting related research.

Differentiation of astrocytes from human stem cells has significant potential for analysis of their role in normal brain function and disease, but existing protocols generate only immature astrocytes. Using early neuralization, we generated spinal cord astrocytes from mouse or human embryonic or induced pluripotent stem cells with high efficiency. Remarkably, short exposure to fibroblast growth factor 1 (FGF1) or FGF2 was sufficient to direct these astrocytes selectively toward a mature quiescent phenotype, as judged by both marker expression and functional analysis. In contrast, tumor necrosis factor alpha and interleukin-1β, but not FGFs, induced multiple elements of a reactive inflammatory phenotype but did not affect maturation. These phenotypically defined, scalable populations of spinal cord astrocytes will be important both for studying normal astrocyte function and for modeling human pathological processes in vitro.

Sixty-five experts in the moderate to severe disabilities field were asked their opinions on useful inclusive education practices across nine practice categories. Many of the identified practices require some level of educational service restructuring, including redefining the roles and functions of special and regular education teachers and related services personnel. (Contains references.) (Author/CR)

Questionnaires completed by 47 experts in the inclusion of students with disabilities indicate they defined the term "inclusion" to include placement in natural typical settings, all students together for instruction and learning, supports and modifications within general education, belongingness and acceptance, and collaborative integrated service by education teams. (Contains references.) (Author/CR)