Disability Law Commons^™

Disability And The Public Schools: The Case Against "Inclusion", Anne Proffitt Dupre

Washington Law Review

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) requires states that wish to qualify for federal assistance to demonstrate that they have a policy ensuring all children with disabilities the right to a "free appropriate public education." IDEA also requires that disabled children be educated with nondisabled children "to the maximum extent appropriate." This Article focuses on the tension between IDEA's mandates for appropriate education and integration to the maximum extent appropriate. Advocates of full inclusion claim that, under IDEA, all disabled children-regardless of characteristics-must be placed in the general education classroom for the entire day. Many courts have tacitly accepted …