Copyright 2000 St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Inc.
St.
Louis Post-Dispatch
April 12, 2000, Wednesday, FIVE STAR LIFT
EDITION
SECTION: NEWS, Pg. A8
LENGTH: 267 words
HEADLINE:
"MAINSTREAMING" IS ON THE RISE, REPORT SAYS
BYLINE:
Holly K. Hacker; Of The Post-Dispatch
BODY:
Nearly half of children with disabilities learn in mainstream
classrooms alongside their nondisabled peers, a federal report released Tuesday
shows.
That continues a trend that started 25 years ago. In 1996-97, the
most recent school year for which there is available data, a record 46 percent
of children with disabilities spent 80 percent or more of their time in regular
classrooms.
In Missouri, 41 percent of children with disabilities
learned in regular classes. In Illinois, the rate was 37 percent.
A 1975
federal law guarantees students with disabilities a free public education. They
must be taught with their nondisabled classmates as much as possible. The law,
called the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, is
meant to give students with disabilities the same education that other children
receive.
The report on special education, presented annually to
Congress, also says:
The number of children in special education
continues to grow faster than the overall student population. In the 1997-98
school year, 9.5 percent of Missouri children and 9.2 percent of Illinois
children ages 6-21 were in special education. The national average was 8.8
percent.
Most children in special education have learning disabilities,
followed by speech or language impairments.
In 1996-97, nearly 25
percent of students ages 17 and up with disabilities graduated with a high
school diploma. That rate has inched up steadily from 21 percent in 1992-93.
The 251-page report is available online at
http://www.ed.gov/offices/OSERS/OSEP/OSEP99AnlRpt/ or by calling 877-4-ED-PUBS.
LOAD-DATE: April 12, 2000 
