25th annual report to congress on the implementation of ... · the 25th annual report to congress...

22 Volume 27, Number 1, Fall, 2004

25th Annual Report to Congress on the Implementation of the Individualswith Disabilities Act, Vol. 1 2003: to ensure the free appropriate publiceducation of all children with disabilitiesPrepared by Westat for the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services, U.S. Departmentof Education

Executive SummaryThe 25th Annual Report to Con-gress has been designed toshowcase the data collectedfrom states and the nationalstudies that make up the Officeof Special Education Programs’(OSEP) National Assessment ofthe Implementation of the Indi-viduals with Disabilities Act. Tothis end, OSEP proposed ques-tions about the characteristicsof children and students receiv-ing services under Parts B andC, the settings in which theyreceive services, their transi-tion from Part C to Part B andfrom school to adult life, andtheir disabilities. Answers tothe questions are shownthrough graphs, charts, andtables complemented by shortexplanatory text. The report isdivided into three sections: anational picture of children andstudents with disabilities servedunder Parts C and B; individualprofiles of states that summarizeselected aspects of special edu-cation in each state; and datatables that show states’ rankingregarding exiting and educa-tional environments for Part Band early childhood interventionand settings for Part C. Somekey findings from the report arepresented below.

Infants and Toddlers ServedUnder IDEA, Part C• Both the number and the per-

centage of infants and tod-dlers served under Part Chave increased steadily from1998 to 2001. In all years, 2-year-olds were the largest pro-portion (53 percent) of childrenserved under Part C (page 22).

• The racial/ethnic composi-tion of these children is quitesimilar to that of the generalinfant and toddler population--the majority are white, fol-lowed by Hispanic, and thenblack children (page 24).

• Most infants and toddlersserved under Part C in 2000received services at home;the percentage of this popula-tion served in programs forchildren with developmentaldelay or other disabilities de-creased substantially be-tween 1996-2000 (page 25).

• The majority of Part C infantsand toddlers (62.6 percent) areeligible to transition to Part Bservices when they turn age3 (page 26).

Children Ages 3 Through 5Served Under IDEA, Part B• Since 1991, the number of

children ages 3 through 5 whoreceive services under Part Bof IDEA has increasedsteadily. As of December 1,2001, 5.2 percent of the totalpopulation of 3- through 5-year-olds living in the 50states and the District of Co-lumbia were estimated to bereceiving services (page 27).

• The majority of children ages3 through 5 receiving specialeducation services are white;white children also make upthe majority of the generalpreschool population (page 28).

• In 2000, 51 percent ofpreschoolers received specialeducation services in eitherearly childhood settings orpart-time early childhood/part-time early childhood specialeducation settings (page 28).

• Special Education teachersserving children ages 3through 5 with disabilities areprimarily white and female.Six and a half percent of thesepreschool special teachers alsoreport having a disability them-selves (page 29).

Students Ages 6 Through 21Served Under IDEA, Part B• On December 1, 2001, 8.9 per-

cent of 6- through 21-year-olds were receiving specialeducation services underIDEA. The number of studentswith disabilities receivingservices has increased slowlysince 1992 (pages 31 and 30).

• In contrast, the number ofstudents receiving servicesfor autism has increasedmarkedly, from a little lessthan 10,000 in 1992 to ap-proximately 65,000 in 2001(page 32).

• According to findings from twoof OSEP’s National Assess-ment studies, the SpecialEducation Elementary Longi-tudinal Study (SEELS) and Na-tional Longitudinal Transi-tion Study-2 (NLTS2), stu-dents with disabilities aremore likely to be poor thanstudents in the general popu-lation (page 34).

• Parent reports as shown inSEELS and NLTS2 data indi-cate that more black studentswith disabilities are sus-pended or expelled from schoolthan are white or Hispanicstudents. Overall, parents re-port that about one-third of stu-dents ages 13 through 17 withdisabilities have been sus-pended or expelled (page 35).

The Journal for Vocational Special Needs Education 23

• Most students with disabilities(around 96 percent) are beingeducated in regular schoolbuildings, and almost half arein regular classrooms formost of the day (page 36).However, 26 percent of stu-dents ages 6 through 12 withdisabilities and 36 percent ofstudents ages 13 through 17with disabilities have beenretained in grade at leastonce. Even so, the proportionof high school students beingeducated at the typical gradelevel for their age has in-creased from 32 percent in1987 to 53 percent in 2001(page 37).

• In 2000-01, 47.6 percent ofstudents age 14 and olderwith disabilities exitedschool with a regular highschool diploma. A total of 41.1percent of students ages 14and older with disabilitiesdropped out (pages 39 and 40).

State ProfilesState profiles include numberof school districts, public schoolenrollment, per-pupil expendi-tures, and percentage of chil-dren living below the povertylevel. For Part B, the profilesinclude number of childrenserved under IDEA, percentageexiting with a diploma, percent-age dropping out, number of spe-cial education teachers, andpercentage of fully certifiedteachers. Race/ethnicity andeducation environments dataare provided in charts. For PartC, the profiles list the leadagency for early interventionservices, number of infants andtoddlers receiving early inter-vention services, percentage ofinfants and toddlers served inthe home, and the percentage ofinfants and toddlers served inprograms for typically developingchildren. Race/ethnicity andreasons for exiting early inter-vention are provided in charts.

IntroductionDuring the two decades that theannual reports to Congresshave been published, thesedocuments have undergone sev-eral minor stylistic changes andone major substantive redesignand refocus. In 1997, OSEPadopted a policy-oriented ap-proach to the annual report toCongress. The results of thisshift were first seen in the 1998annual report, which used afour-section modular format.The 2002 Annual Report to Con-gress was the fifth volume toinclude four sections--Context/Environment, Student Charac-teristics, Programs and Ser-vices, and Results--plus a sepa-rate appendix of data tables.

The 5-year period since theintroduction of the modular for-mat has provided sufficienttime for OSEP to evaluate thecurrent approach and to suggesta redesign of the report. Theimplementation of the No ChildLeft Behind Act (NCLB) in 2001amplified the importance of theannual report to Congress.IDEA focuses on accountabilityand results. As the President’sCommission on Excellence inSpecial Education pointed out,this emphasis means that Con-gress and the public must knowthat IDEA is implemented effec-tively and that federal funds arewell spent.

This annual report focuseson three goals. First, the reportis congruent with NCLB. Thismeans that the annual reportfocuses on results and account-ability throughout the text. Thesecond goal is to make the re-port more useful to Congress,parents, each state, and otherstakeholders. This report con-centrates on a more readableand user-friendly style. It fo-cuses on key state performancedata in accordance with the rec-ommendations of the President’sCommission. OSEP’s third goal

is to make the report more vi-sually appealing.

The 25th Annual Report toCongress has two volumes. Thefirst volume focuses on the chil-dren and students being servedunder IDEA and provides profilesof individual states’ special edu-cation environment. In the na-tional picture reported in thefirst section, the child/student-focused material is presented ina question-and-answer format.It contains three subsections:infants and toddlers served un-der IDEA Part C; children ages3-21 served under IDEA, Part B,and students ages 6-21 servedunder IDEA, Part B. All informa-tion available about each groupof children and students is pre-sented in one section. Each sub-section focuses on available re-sults. All available data relevantto OSEP’s Government Perfor-mance and Results Act (GPRA)indicators are included in thissection. To the extent possible,the data are presented throughgraphics, short tables, andbulleted text.

The second section of vol. 1contains state-level perfor-mance data. These state pro-files, which provide all of the keyinformation about a state on oneor two pages, will be valuable toCongress and other stakehold-ers who are interested in indi-vidual state performance. Thestate profiles are a new featureof the annual report.

The third section of vol. 1contains the rank-order tablesOSEP uses as part of its continu-ous improvement and focusedmonitoring program. Thesetables are also a new feature ofthe annual report.

Vol. 2 contains all of thestate-reported data tables fromDANS. OSEP’s goal in separat-ing the text of the report fromthe extensive tables is to makethe report usable to all readers.The tables are also posted onwww.IDEAdata.org/.


Infants/Toddlers ServedUnder IDEA, Part CThe Education of the Handi-capped Act Amendments of 1986established the Early Interven-tion Programs for Infants andToddlers with Disabilities underPart H (now Part C) of the Indi-viduals with Disabilities Act(IDEA). The program assistsstates in developing and imple-menting a statewide, compre-hensive, coordinated, multi-disciplinary, interagency sys-tem to make early interventionservices available to all childrenwith disabilities from birththrough age 2.

This program is based onthe premise that early interven-tion in the lives of children with

disabilities and their familiesprovides greater opportunitiesfor improving developmentaloutcomes.

Trends in Numbers andPercentages of Infants andToddlers ServedHOW MANY INFANTS AND TODDLERS

RECEIVE EARLY INTERVENTION SER-VICES?• On December 1, 2001, IDEA,

Part C was serving 247,433infants and toddlers.

• The number of childrenserved under IDEA, Part C in-creased 31 percent between1998 and 2001--from 189,462to 247,433.

• The largest single-year in-crease in the number of in-

fants and toddlers served was13 percent. The number ofchildren served increasedfrom 206,111 in 1999 to232,815 in 2000.

• In all years, 2-year-olds werethe largest proportion (53 per-cent in 2001) of childrenserved under Part C. Infantsless than 1 year old comprised15 percent of all infants andtoddlers served in 2001.

• From 1998 to 2001, thegrowth in the number of in-fants and toddlers servedwas slowest for the infantsless than 1 year old (18 per-cent). The growth in thenumber of infants and tod-dlers who were 1 and 2 yearsold was 28 percent and 26percent respectively.

The Journal for Vocational Special Needs Education 25WHAT PERCENTAGE OF THE BIRTH-THROUGH-2-YEAR-OLD IS SERVED BY

PART C?• The percentage of infants and

toddlers served under Part Cincreased from 1.6 percent in1998 to 2.1 percent in 2001.

The Race/Ethnicity ofChildren ServedWHAT IS THE RACE/ETHNICITY OF THE

INFANTS AND TODDLERS RECEIVING

EARLY INTERVENTION SERVICES?• The racial/ethnic composi-

tion of infants and toddlers re-ceiving early interventionservices is similar to the ra-cial/ethnic composition ofthe general population of in-fants and toddlers.

• Most infants and toddlers re-ceiving early interventionservices are white.

• Hispanic children are the nextlargest racial/ethnic group

who are served under Part C,followed by black children.

Trends in Early InterventionService SettingsWHAT IS THE PRIMARY SERVICE SETTING

OF INFANTS AND TODDLERS RECEIVING

EARLY INTERVENTION SERVICES?• In 2000, most (71.8 percent)

infants and toddlers were be-ing served primarily in thehome, followed by 10.9 per-cent being served in a pro-gram for children with devel-opment delays or disabilities,and 10.0 percent in a serviceprovider location.

• Between 1996 and 2000, thepercentage of infants andtoddlers being served prima-rily in a program for chil-dren with developmental de-lays or disabil it ies de-creased by more than 50 per-cent, while the percentageof those being served prima-

rily in the home increasedby more than 15 percent.All other settings differed bya maximum of 3 percent be-tween 1996 and 2000.

DOES THE PRIMARY EARLY INTERVEN-TION SETTING DIFFER BY RACE/ETHNICITY?• Most children in all racial/

ethnic groups receive earlyintervention services prima-rily in the home or in pro-grams for typically developingchildren. American Indian/Alaska Native children aremost often served in thesesettings (83.9 percent), fol-lowed by Asian/Pacific Is-lander (78.9 percent) andwhite children (78.5 percent).Hispanic (71.2 percent) andblack (72.5 percent) infantsand toddlers are somewhatless likely to be served inthese settings.


Infants and Toddlers ExitingPart CWHAT HAPPENS WHEN CHILDREN REACH

AGE 3 AND NO LONGER RECEIVE EARLY

INTERVENTION SERVICES?• The majority (62.6 percent) of

Part C children are eligible forPart B services when theyturn age 3. Some children

exit Part C at age 3 withoutdetermination of their eligi-bility for Part B (17.4 percent).Children specifically deemedineligible for Part B serviceseither exit to another pro-gram (12.0 percent) or leavewith no referral to anotherprogram (8.0 percent)

WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENCES IN

EXITING CATEGORIES FOR CHILDREN INDIFFERENT RACIAL/ETHNIC GROUPS

WHO ARE EXITING PART C AT AGE 3?• American Indian/Alaska

Native (66.8 percent) andwhite infants and toddlers(65.8 percent) were some-what more likely to be deter-

The Journal for Vocational Special Needs Education 29mined Part B eligible thanwere Hispanic (61.6 per-cent), Asian/Pacif ic Is-lander (59.6 percent), andblack (56.4 percent) infantsand toddlers.

• Black infants and toddlerswere more likely than otherracial/ethnic groups to havetheir Part B eligibility unde-termined (21.1 percent), fol-lowed by Native American/Alaska Native (15.9 percent)and Hispanic (15.9 percent).

Children Ages 3Through 21 ServedUnder IDEA, Part BPart B of IDEA provides funds tostates to assist them in provid-ing a free appropriate publiceducation (FAPE) to childrenwith disabilities who are inneed of special education andrelated services. To be eligible

for funding under this program,a state must make FAPE avail-able to all disabled children re-siding in the state, ages 3through 21, except that they arenot required to serve childrenages 3 through 5 and ages 18through 21 if serving such chil-dren is inconsistent with statelaw or practice or the order ofany court. The act has four pri-mary purposes: to ensure thatall children with disabilitieshave FAPE available to themwith special education and re-lated services designed to meettheir individual needs, to en-sure that the rights of childrenwith disabilities and their fami-lies are protected, to assiststates and localities in provid-ing education for all childrenwith disabilities, and to assessand ensure the effectiveness ofefforts to educate children withdisabilities.

In 1997 Congress made sig-nificant changes to IDEA, goingbeyond ensuring educational eq-uity for children with disabilities.With access to public schools al-ready guaranteed for 6.4 millionchildren with disabilities, the1997 reauthorization of IDEA seteducators’ and policymakers’sights on setting higher expec-tations and improving achieve-ment for these students, as wellas on ensuring positive transi-tions to work or postsecondaryeducation after graduation.

Children Ages 3 Through 5Served Under IDEA, Part BIDEA requires states to havepolicies and procedures in effectto ensure the provision of FAPEto all 3- through 5-year-oldswith disabilities in order to beeligible for funds under the Pre-school Grants Program andother IDEA funds targeted to


children ages 3 through 5 withdisabilities. States may also, attheir discretion, serve 2-year-olds who will turn 3 during theschool year.

HOW MANY PRESCHOOLERS ARE SERVED

UNDER IDEA, PART B?• On December 1, 2001, a total

of 620,195 children ages 3through 5 were served under

Part B. Of these, 612,084were served in the 50 statesand the District of Columbia.This number represents 5.2percent of the total populationof 3- through 5-year-olds liv-ing in the states and the Dis-trict of Columbia.

• Of the total number ofpreschoolers receiving spe-

cial education services, 21.9percent were 3 years old, 35.8percent were 4 years old, and42.3 percent were 5 years old.

HOW HAS THE NUMBER OF PRE-SCHOOLERS SERVED UNDER PART BCHANGED OVER THE PAST 10 YEARS?• Since 1991, the number of

preschoolers served underPart B grew from 422,217 to

The Journal for Vocational Special Needs Education 31620,195. This is an increaseof 197,978 preschoolers or a46.9 percent growth in thenumber of children served.

• The number of preschoolersserved under Part B in-creased for each age year.From 1991 to 2001, the num-ber of 3-year-olds served in-creased 93.6 percent, thenumber of 4-year-olds servedincreased 75.9 percent, andthe number of 5-year-oldsserved increased 30.7 percent.

The Race/Ethnicity ofPreschoolers ServedWHAT IS THE LIKELIHOOD OF CHILDREN

AGES 3 THROUGH 5 IN EACH RACIAL/ETHNIC GROUP BEING SERVED UNDER

IDEA, PART B, AS COMPARED TO THAT

OF OTHER CHILDREN AGES 3 THROUGH 5?Risk ratios compared the propor-tion of a particular racial/ethnicgroup served under Part B to theproportion of all other racial/eth-nic groups combined. A risk of1.0 indicates no difference be-tween the racial/ethnic groups.• American Indian/Alaska Na-

tive children ages 3 through 5were 1.3 times more likely tobe served under Part B than allother groups combined.

• White children ages 3 through5 were 1.3 times more likelyto be served under Part B thanall other groups combined.

• Asian/Pacific Islander chil-dren ages 3 through 5 werejust over half as likely to beserved under Part B than allother groups combined.

Trends in Preschool ServiceSettingsWHAT IS THE PRIMARY SERVICE SETTING

FOR PRESCHOOLERS WITH DISABILITIES?• In 2000, 51 percent of

preschoolers received specialeducation services in eitherearly childhood settings orpart-time early childhood/part-time special educationsettings.

• Only 3 percent of preschoolerswere served primarily at home.

• A total of 14.6 percent ofpreschoolers were served in

other settings, includingresidential facilities, sepa-rate schools, itinerant ser-vices outside the home, orreverse mainstream settings.

WorkforceWHAT ARE THE CHARACTERISTICS OF

TEACHERS WHO SERVE PRESCHOOLERS

WITH SPECIAL NEEDS?During the 2000-2001 schoolyear, there were 34,342 specialeducation teachers servingpreschoolers with disabilities inthe United States and outlyingareas. About 88.8 percent ofthem were fully certified fortheir positions. According tothe Study of Personnel Needs inSpecial Education (SPeNSE):• 98.6 percent were female;• 90.0 percent were white;• 6.6 percent were Hispanic; and• 6.5 percent have a disability.The average preschool specialeducation teacher serves 14children, and 72 percent of pre-school special education teach-ers serve children ages birth to5 exclusively.


Students Ages 6Through 21 ServedUnder IDEA, Part BSince the 1975 passage of theEducation for All HandicappedChildren Act (EHA, P.L. 94-142),the Department of Educationhas collected data on the num-

ber of children served under thelaw. Early collections of data onthe number of children with dis-abilities served under Part B ofIDEA used nine disability catego-ries. Through the subsequentyears and multiple reauthoriza-tions of the act, the disability cat-egories have been expanded to13 and revised, and new data col-

lections have been required.In 1997, the law was reau-

thorized with several major re-visions (IDEA Amendments of1997, P.L. 105-17). One revisionwas the requirement that race/ethnicity data be collected onthe number of children served.The reauthorization also al-lowed states the option of report-

The Journal for Vocational Special Needs Education 33ing children ages 6 through 9under the developmental delaycategory.

How many 6- through 21-year-olds are served under IDEA?• On December 1, 2001, a total

of 5,867,234 students with dis-abilities in the 6- through-21age group were served underIDEA. Of these 5,795,334 wereserved in the 50 states and theDistrict of Columbia. Thisnumber represented 8.9 per-cent of the general 6- through21-year-old population livingin the United States.

• Based on public school enroll-ment, 12.1 percent of stu-dents were receiving specialeducation and related ser-vices in 2001.

• Almost equal numbers of 6-through 11- and 12- through17-year-olds received specialeducation services in 2001.

• For the 2001-02 school year, 6-through 11-year-olds with dis-abilities made up 48 percentof the total served under IDEA;

12-through 17-year-oldsmade up 48 percent, and 18-through 21-year-olds madeup the remainder.

How has the number of 6-through 21-year-olds servedunder IDEA, Part B, changedover time?• Since 1992-93, the number of

students ages 18 through 21served under IDEA has re-mained fairly constant.

• The number of 6- through 11-year-olds served under IDEAgrew until 1999-2000 and hassince shown small declines inthe number of children served.The number of 12- through 17-year-olds served under IDEAhas grown each year.

Has the disability distribution ofchildren receiving services forspecific learning disabilities andautism under Part B changedover time?• While the number of students

receiving services for specificlearning disabilities in the

12-through-17 age groups in-creased over the past 10years, the number of 6-through 11-year-olds and 18-through 21-year-olds has re-mained steady.

• Autism was added as an op-tional reporting category in1991 and was a required pro-gram beginning in 1992.

• Although autism makes up asmall percentage of childrenserved under IDEA, the num-ber of students receiving ser-vices for autism in the 6-through-11 and 12-through-17 age groups grew markedlyover the past 10 years.

How many students have co-occurring disabilities?• Nearly 15 percent of students

with disabilities ages 6through 12 have three ormore disabilities; almost 30percent have two disabilities;and more than half have onlyone disability.

• About 28 percent of studentswith disabilities ages 13


through 17 have three dis-abilities; 19 percent have twodisabilities and about 43 per-cent have only one disability.

WHAT DISABILITIES DO STUDENTS AGES

6 THROUGH 21 HAVE WHO RECEIVE

SPECIAL EDUCATION?• For all racial/ethnic groups,

more students with specificlearning disabilities wereserved than students withany other disability in 2001.

• The percentages of whitestudents in most disabilitycategories are very similarto the percentages for theIDEA student population asa whole.

• The order of the five largestdisability categories is thesame for four of the five race/ethnicity groups: specificlearning disabilities, speechor language impairments,mental retardation, emo-tional disturbance, and otherhealth impairments. Forblack students, however,mental retardation is the sec-

ond most frequently reporteddisability category.

• The percentages of AmericanIndian/Alaska Native andHispanic students with dis-abilities who received specialeducation for specific learn-ing disabilities are relativelyhigher when compared withthe percentage for all stu-dents with disabilities (56.0percent and 58.9 percent vs49.2 percent).

• The percentage of black stu-dents with specific learningdisabilities is lower than thepercentage of all studentswith specific learning dis-abilities served under Part B(45.4 percent v. 49.2 percent).

• The percentage of black stu-dents with disabilities whoreceived special educationservices for mental retarda-tion is substantially higherthan the percentage for anyother racial/ethnic group(17.4 percent compared with8.2 percent for American In-dian/Alaska Native students

with disabilities, 9.4 percentfor Asian/Pacific Islanderstudents with disabilities, 8.1percent for Hispanic studentswith disabilities, and 8.6 per-cent for white students withdisabilities).

• The percentage of black stu-dents with disabilities whoreceived special educationservices for emotional distur-bance is considerably higherthan the percentage of anyother racial/ethnic group(11.3 percent compared with7.7 percent for American In-dian/Alaska Native studentswith disabilities, 5.0 forAsian/Pacific Islander stu-dents with disabilities, 5.0percent for Hispanic studentswith disabilities, and 8.0 per-cent for white students withdisabilities).

• The percentage of white stu-dents with disabilities whoreceived special educationservices for other health im-pairments is nearly twice thepercentage for the nearest

The Journal for Vocational Special Needs Education 35racial/ethnic group (7.0 per-cent v. 4.4 percent).

Household IncomeWHAT IS THE HOUSEHOLD INCOME OF

FAMILIES WITH STUDENTS AGES 6THROUGH 17 WHO RECEIVE SPECIAL

EDUCATION?• As reported by parents, stu-

dents with disabilities aremore likely to be poor thanstudents in the general popu-lation. According to SEELSand NLTS2 data, almost one-fourth (24 percent) of elemen-tary and middle school stu-dents and 25 percent of highschool students with dis-abilities live in poverty com-pared with 20 percent of thegeneral population. In 1987,

38 percent of high schoolstudents with disabilitieslived in poverty.

Discipline and SocialProblems at SchoolDO SUSPENSION AND EXPULSION RATES

DIFFER BY RACE/ETHNICITY?• Parents report more sus-

pensions and expulsions forblack students (28 percent)than for Hispanic students(13 percent) of white stu-dents (10 percent).

HOW OFTEN ARE SECONDARY SCHOOL-AGE STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES

SUSPENDED OR EXPELLED?• About one-third of all students

ages 13 through 17 with dis-abilities have been sus-pended or expelled.

• More older students withdisabilities were expelledthan were 13- through 14-year-olds.

WHAT IS THE PERCENTAGE OF 6-THROUGH 12-YEAR-OLD STUDENTS WITH

DISABILITIES WHO HAVE BEEN

SUSPENDED OR EXPELLED?• According to 2000-01 SEELS

data, parents reported that8.7 percent of 6- through 9-year-olds have been sus-pended or expelled. For 10-through 12-year-olds, the per-centage is 18.9 percent.

DO SUSPENSIONS AND EXPULSIONS FOR

SECONDARY SCHOOL-AGE STUDENTS

DIFFER BY RACE/ETHNICITY?• When asked whether their

child had ever been sus-


pended or expelled, 46 per-cent of parents of black stu-dents responded “Yes.” Whiteand Hispanic parents re-sponded to this question inthe affirmative less often; 30percent and 28 percent, re-spectively, indicating thattheir child had never beensuspended or expelled (NLTS2Parent Survey).

Education EnvironmentsTO WHAT EXTENT ARE STUDENTS WITH

DISABILITIES EDUCATED WITH THEIR NON-DISABLED PEERS?• Most students (about 96 per-

cent) with disabilities arebeing educated in regularschool buildings.

• Almost half of all studentswith disabilities (46.5 per-cent) are being educated inthe regular classroom formost of the school day. Thatis, they are outside the regu-lar classroom for less than 21percent of the school day.

WHAT SUPPORTS ARE AVAILABLE TO

STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES SO THEY

CAN ACCESS THE GENERAL EDUCATION

CURRICULUM?• According to principals,

teachers in their school usea variety of teaching strate-gies to support special educa-tion students’ access to thegeneral curriculum. About70 percent of schools use al-

ternative grouping and coop-erative learning strategies,and 57 percent use peer tu-toring strategies to a moder-ate or large extent. Less than25 percent of schools usemultiage classrooms, cur-riculum looping, or cross-grade grouping to facilitateaccess to the general educa-tion curriculum.

Educational Outcomes forStudents with DisabilitiesHOW OFTEN ARE STUDENTS WITH

DISABILITIES RETAINED IN GRADE?• Elementary and middle

school students with disabili-ties often do not move fromgrade level to grade level with

The Journal for Vocational Special Needs Education 39their non-disabled peers; thatis, they are held back a gradeat least once or start schoollater than non-disabled stu-dents. For example, the av-erage 9-year-old is in thefourth grade; however, onlyabout 4 percent of 9-year-oldstudents with disabilities arein the fourth grade.

• Especially in their early el-ementary careers, studentswith disabilities tend to beclassified as “ungraded.”

• Parents report that 26 per-cent of elementary andmiddle school students withdisabilities have been re-tained in grade (SEELS

School Survey).

WHAT ARE THE HOUSEHOLD INCOME AND

RACE/ETHNICITY OF STUDENTS WITH

DISABILITIES RETAINED IN GRADE BY

PERCENTAGE?• According to NLTS2, second-

ary students with disabilitiesare frequently retained ingrade at least once. Whilethe typical 15-year-old is in10th grade, only 14.1 percentof 15-year-old students withdisabilities are in 10th grade.

• Parents of secondary stu-dents with disabilities reportthat 36 percent of these stu-dents have repeated a gradesome time in their school

enrollment (NLTS2 ParentSurvey).

• In 1987, 32 percent of highschool students with disabili-ties were at the typical gradelevel for their age (NLTS),while in 2001 this proportionwas 53 percent (NLTS2 SchoolSurvey).

Expenditures for SpecialEducationWHAT ARE THE TOTAL EXPENDITURES TO

PROVIDE SERVICES TO STUDENTS WITH

DISABILITIES AGES 6 THROUGH 21?• In per pupil terms, the total

spending used to educate theaverage student with a dis-ability is $12,639. This


amount includes $8,080 perpupil on special educationservices, $4,394 per pupil onregular education services,and $165 per pupil on servicesfrom other special needs pro-grams (e.g., Title I, Englishlanguage learners, or giftedand talented education).

• The data derived from SEEPindicate that the base expen-diture on a regular educationstudent is $6,556 per pupil.Comparing this figure to theaverage expenditure of a stu-dent eligible to receive spe-cial education services, theadditional expenditure attrib-utable to special education isto $5,918 per pupil.

Trends in School Exiting andTransitionHOW HAS THE GRADUATION RATE

CHANGED OVER TIME FOR STUDENTS

WITH DIFFERENT DISABILITIES?• In 2000-01, 47.6 percent of the

students ages 14 and older withdisabilities exited school with aregular high school diploma.

• From 1993-94 through 2000-

01, there was very littlechange in the relative stand-ing of graduation for the vari-ous disability categories.

• Students with visual impair-ments or hearing impair-ments consistently had thehighest graduation rates.

• Students with mental retar-dation or emotional distur-bance consistently had thelowest graduation rate.

• From 1993-94 through 2000-01, the graduation rate im-proved for most disabilitycategories.

• The largest gains were madeby students with autism andspeech/language impair-ments. Notable gains werealso made by students withdeaf-blindness and multipledisabilities.

• No meaningful change oc-curred in the graduationrate for students with men-tal retardation, orthopedicimpairments, or otherhealth impairments.

HOW HAS THE DROPOUT RATE CHANGED

OVER TIME FOR STUDENTS WITH

DIFFERENT DISABILITIES?• In 2000-01, 41.1 percent of

the students ages 14 andolder with disabilities exitedschool by dropping out.

• From 1993-94 through 2000-01, the percentage of stu-dents with disabilities drop-ping out decreased from 45.1percent to 41.1 percent.

• Students with visual impair-ments consistently had thelowest dropout rates.

• Students with emotional dis-turbance consistently had thehighest dropout rates.

• In every year, students withemotional disturbance had adropout rate that was sub-stantially higher than thedropout rate for the nexthighest disability category.

• From the 1993-94 through2000-01, the dropout rate de-clined for students in mostcategories.

• The improvement was mostnotable for students with au-

The Journal for Vocational Special Needs Education 41tism and speech/languageimpairments. The dropoutrate also notably declined forstudents with visual impair-ments and specific learningdisabilities.

• No meaningful change oc-curred in the dropout rate forstudents with hearing im-pairments.

WHAT DO WE KNOW ABOUT THE

EMPLOYMENT OF OLDER STUDENTS WITH

DISABILITIES?• According to NLTS2, among

15- to 17-year-olds in 2001, 60percent had worked in 2000,a rate similar to the generalpopulation and up from 51percent (p < .01) in 1987.

• The percentage of employed

youth ages 15 to 17 makingat least minimum wage isequal to the percentage notmaking minimum wage(NLTS2).

• The percentage of employedyouth ages 15 through 17making above minimumwage increased from 41 per-cent in 1987 to 68 percent in2001 (p < .01) (NLTS2).

WHAT TRANSITION SERVICES ARE

AVAILABLE TO HELP STUDENTS WITH

DISABILITIES MOVE FROM SECONDARY

SCHOOL TO ADULT LIFE?• Most districts offer a range of

services to assist the transi-tion of students with disabili-ties to adult life. More than90 percent of all high schoolsoffer a formal assessment of

career skills or interests, ca-reer counseling, job readi-ness or prevocational train-ing, instructions in jobsearching and other similarservices, as well as counsel-ing and support regardingpostsecondary institutions.

• Between 80 and 90 percentof all high schools offer com-munity work experience,community work explora-tion, referrals to potentialemployers, and specific jobskills training.

• Fewer than 80 percent ofhigh schools provide jobcoaches who work with em-ployers, job coaches whomonitor performance, or aself-advocacy curriculum.

a/ the per-centage of students with disabilities who exit school with a regular high school diploma and the percentage who exit school by dropping out areperformance indicators used by OSEP to measure progress in improving results for students with disabilities. The appropriate method forcalculating graduation and dropout rates depends on the question to be answered and is limited by the data available. For reporting underthe Government Perofmance Results Act (GPRA), OSEP calculates the graduation rate by dividing the number of students age 14 andolder who graduated with a regular high school diploma by the number of students in the same age group who are known to have leftschool (i.e., graduated with a regular high school diploma, received a certificate of completion, reached the maximum age for services,died, moved and are not known to be continuing in an education program, or dropped out). These calculations are presented here. Notall states award a certificate of completion. In all years presented, Kansas, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Oklahoma, Texas, and Guam didnot report any students receiving a certificate of completion. Since 1997, Minnesota has not reported any students receiving a certifi-cate of completion. Since 1998, Arizona and Ohio have not reported any students receiving a certificate of completion. Prior to 1999,Pennsylvania did not report any students receiving a certificate of completion.b/ Two large states appear to have underreported dropouts in 1998-99. As a result, the graduation rate is somewhat inflated that year.d/ Percentages are based on fewer than 150 students exiting school.Source: U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs, Data Analysis System (DANS). Table AD1 in vol. 2.These data are for the 50 states, D.C., Puerto Rico, and the outlying areas.


WorkforceWHO PROVIDES SERVICES TO 6-THROUGH 21-YEAR-OLDS WITH

DISABILITIES?• Today’s special educators

must be innovative, adaptive,and prepared to use an arrayof instructional approaches

that suit students with a widevariety of needs.

• Almost 80 percent of specialeducation teachers servestudents with two or moreprimary disabilities, and 32percent teach students withfour or more different pri-mary disabilities.

• On average, almost one-fourth of their students arefrom a cultural or linguisticgroup different from theirown, and 7 percent of theirstudents are English lan-guage learners (SPeNSE Pro-vider Survey).


ReferencesU.S. Bureau of the Census.

Population data for 2000 and2001 retrieved October 2003from http://www.census.gov/popest/data/states/files/STCH-6R.CVS. This file isnow archived as http://census.gov/popest/archives/2000s/vintage_2002/ST-EST2002/STCH-6R.txt/.

U.S. Bureau of the Census.Population data for 1999 re-trieved October 2000 fromhttp://www.census.gov/popest/archives/1990s/stats/st-99-10.txt.

U.S. Bureau of the Census.Population data for 1998 re-trieved October 1999. Thisfile is no longer available onthe Web site.

Shackelford, J. (2002). State andjurisdictional eligibility defini-tions for infants and toddlerswith disabilities under IDEA(NECTAC Notes No. 11). ChapelHill: The University of NorthCarolina, FPG Child Develop-ment Institute, National EarlyChildhood Technical Assis-tance Center.

Subcommittee on Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorderand Committee on Quality Im-provement. (2001). Pediatrics,108(4), 1033.

U.S. Department of Education,National Center for EducationStatistics. National House-hold Education Survey, 1999[Computer file]. ICPSR ver-sion, Washington, DC: US.Department of Education, Of-fice of Educational Researchand Improvement [Producer],2000. Ann Arbor, MI: Inter-university Consortium for Po-litical and Social Research[Distributor], 2003.

Data Sources Used inThis ReportThe text and graphics containedin the 25th Annual Report toCongress were developed prima-

rily from data from the Office ofSpecial Education Programs(OSEP) Data Analysis System(DANS). DANS is a repository forall the data mandated by the In-dividuals with Disabilities Edu-cation Act (IDEA) to be collectedfrom states annually. Thesedata include the number of in-fants and toddlers being servedunder Part C of IDEA and thesettings in which they receiveprogram services, as well astheir transition out of Part C.The states also report early in-tervention services provided tothis population and the person-nel who are providing the ser-vices. For Part B, states reportthe number of children and stu-dents who are served, the edu-cational environments in whichthey receive services, and theirexiting from the program.

In addition to using datafrom DANS, this report presentsinformation from OSEP’s Na-tional Assessment of the Imple-mentation of IDEA, NCES CCD,NCES-sponsored NHES, and theU.S. Census Bureau, PopulationEstimates Program.

Many of the studies thatmake up OSEP’s National As-sessment of the Implementa-tion of IDEA provided data for thereport. These studies include:• National Early Intervention

Longitudinal Study (NEILS);• Pre-Elementary Education

Longitudinal Study (PEELS);• Special Education Elemen-

tary Longitudinal Study(SEELS);

• National Longitudinal Tran-sition Study-2 (NLTS2);

• Special Education Expendi-ture Project (SEEP);

• Study of State and LocalImplementation and Impactof the Individuals with Dis-abilities Education Act(SLIIDEA); and

• Study of Personnel Needs inSpecial Education (SPeNSE).

Each of these studies is sum-marized below. More detailed

information about these studiesand other data reports can be ob-tained from the Web sites pro-vided with each summary. TheURLs provided for the studiesare for general informationonly. The data in this reportfrom these studies representanalyses from database not ac-cessible to the general public.

OSEP’s National Assessmentof the Implementation of IDEA

NEILSThe National Early InterventionLongitudinal Study is being con-ducted for OSEP by SRI Interna-tional, the Frank Porter Gra-ham Child Development Insti-tute at the University of NorthCarolina at Chapel Hill, Re-search Triangle Institute, andAmerican Institutes for Re-search. NEILS is answering thefollowing questions:• Who are the children and

families receiving early in-tervention services?

• What early interventionservices do participatingchildren and familiesreceive, and how are servicesdelivered?

• What are the costs ofservices?

• What outcomes do participat-ing children and families ex-perience?

• How do outcomes relate tovariations in child and familycharacteristics and servicesprovided?

NEILS includes a nationally rep-resentative sample of 3,338children between birth and 31months of age and their fami-lies who began early interven-tion services for the first timebetween September 1997 andNovember 1998. The samplefamilies were recruited in threeto seven counties in each of 20states. Data in this report comefrom the NEILS Initial ProgramData and the NEILS Parent Sur-vey. The NEILS Web site is:www.sri.com/neils/.


PEELSThe Pre-Elementary EducationLongitudinal Study is being con-ducted for OSEP by Westat. Re-searchers will follow over 3,000children with disabilities asthey progress through preschoolinto their early elementaryyears. The children are 3through 5 years old at the startof the study. The initial phaseof this study examineschildren’s preschool experi-ences and outcomes, their tran-sition to kindergarten, and theirearly elementary school experi-ences and outcomes. Five re-search questions focus thestudy:• What are the characteristics

of children receiving pre-school special education?

• What preschool programs andservices do they receive?

• What are their transitionslike between early interven-tion (programs for childrenfrom birth to 3 years old) andpreschool, and between pre-school and elementaryschool?

• What results do childrenachieve in preschool, kinder-garten, and early elementaryschool?

• What factors help to producebetter results?

To answer these questions, re-searchers conducted telephoneinterviews with parents ofpreschoolers with disabilities,one-on-one assessments ofchildren participating in thisstudy, and mail surveys to thechildren’s teachers and otherservice providers, school princi-pals, district administrators,and state education agency ad-ministrators. Data collectionbegan in fall 2003 and will berepeated in fall-winter 2004-5and fall-winter 2005-6. TheirWeb site is: www.PEELS.org/.Data from PEELS will be includedin future reports.

SEELSThe Special Education Elemen-tary Longitudinal Study is astudy of school-age students re-ceiving special education ser-vices and is being conducted forOSEP by SRI International andWestat. From 2000 to 2006,SEELS will document the schoolexperiences of a nationalsample of students as they movefrom elementary to middleschool and from middle to highschool. SEELS is designed toassess changes over time instudents’ educational, social,vocational, and personal devel-opment.

SEELS involves a large, na-tionally representative sampleof students in special educationwho were ages 6 through 12 in1999. Students were selectedrandomly from rosters of stu-dents in special education pro-vided by local education agen-cies and state-operated, specialschools for the deaf and blindthat agreed to participate in thestudy. Statistical summariesgenerated from SEELS will gen-eralize to special education stu-dents nationally as a group, toeach of the 13 federal specialeducation disability categories,and to each single-year age co-hort. Data in this report arefrom the SEELS Parent Survey.Their Web site is: www.seels.net/

NLTS2The National LongitudinalTransition Study-2 is a follow-up of the original NLTS. Thestudy is being conducted forOSEP by SRI International withassistance from Westat and RTIInternational. NLTS2 includes11,276 youth nationwide whowere ages 13 through 16 in2001 and in at least 7th gradeat the start of the study. Thestudy is collecting informationover a 9-year period from par-ents, youth, and schools and willprovide a national picture of theexperiences and achievements

of young people as they transi-tion into early adulthood. Thestudy will:• Describe the characteristics

of secondary school studentsin special education andtheir households;

• Describe the secondary schoolexperiences of students in spe-cial education, including theirschools, school programs, re-lated services, and extracur-ricular activities;

• Describe the experiences ofstudents once they leave sec-ondary school, including adultprograms and services, socialactivities, etc.;

• Measure the secondaryschool and postschool out-comes of students in educa-tion, employment, social, andresidential domains; and

• Identify factors in students’secondary school andpostschool experiences thatcontribute to positive out-comes.

Data in this report are from theNLTS2 Parent Survey and theNLTS2 School Survey. TheirWeb site is: www.nlts2.org/.

SEEPThe Special Education Expendi-ture Project, being conducted forOSEP by the American Insti-tutes for Research in Palo Alto,California, examines resourceallocation to special educationprograms. The study investi-gates the ways in which specialeducation funds are used to en-able special education studentsto meet the expectations oftheir individualized educationprogram.

The study examines how re-sources are allocated amongvarious special education pro-grams and how the use of re-sources varies across schoolsand districts. The study alsoinvestigates total expenditureon special education, averageper pupil expenditures for spe-cial education programs and


services, patterns of resourceallocation, and patterns of ser-vices to different categories ofstudents. The study is designedto provide in-depth informationabout and analysis of:• The detailed costs associated

with the provision of specialeducation services;

• The extent to which expen-ditures vary according to thetype of student, placement,school, district, or state withwhich they are associated;

• Changes in the rates and pat-terns of identification of stu-dents with disabilities andhow these vary by the type ofschool, district, or state withwhich the students is asso-ciated; and

• How movements toward ad-dressing the needs of specialeducation students in theleast restrictive setting, to-ward the blending of fundsfrom different revenuesources, and toward increas-ing services to preschool stu-dents have affected patternsof resource allocation.

Data in this report are from theSEEP District and School Sur-veys. The SEEP Web site is:http://csef.air.org/.

SLIIDEAThe State and Local Implemen-tation and Impact of the Indi-viduals with Disabilities Educa-tion Act (SLIIDEA) is a nationalassessment conducted for OSEPby ABT Associates. SLIIDEA col-lects data from all 50 states, aswell as a nationally representa-tive sample of districts andschools that serve children withdisabilities, through a combina-tion of surveys, interviews,classroom observations, anddocument review. The study isdesigned to measure changeover time by collecting data atseveral points over a 5-year pe-riod, beginning in 2000. Thislongitudinal study answers thefollowing research questions:• How is IDEA implemented?

• What is the status of a num-ber of issues identified inIDEA?

• What contextual factors influ-ence the implementation ofthe legislature?

• What is the relationship be-tween implementation andresults?

• What are the intended andunintended outcomes of thelegislation?

• What are the critical andemerging issues in states,districts, and schools?

Data from SLIIDEA used in thisreport are from the SLIIDEAState, District, and School Sur-veys. The SLIIDEA Web site is:http://www.abt.sliidea.org/.

SPeNSEThe Study of Personnel Needsin Special Education (SPeNSE)is a national assessment con-ducted for OSEP by Westat. Itwas designed to address con-cerns about nationwide short-ages in the number of person-nel serving students with dis-abilities and the need for im-provement in the qualificationsof those employed. Part of theNational Assessment of IDEAmandated by Congress, SPeNSEexamined (a) the extent towhich personnel are adequatelyprepared to serve students withdisabilities, (b) variation in per-sonnel preparation, and (c) fac-tors that explain that variation.

SPeNSE included personnelfrom a nationally representa-tive sample of districts, inter-mediate education agencies,and state schools for studentswith vision and hearing impair-ments. Over 8,000 local admin-istrators, preschool teachers,general and special educationteachers, speech-language pa-thologists, and paraprofession-als participated in telephone in-terviews during the 1999-2000school year.

SPeNSE provides informa-tion on the quality of the

workforce nationally, withineach geographic region, andwithin and across personnelcategories. The SPeNSE Website is: http://ferdig.coe.ufl.edu/spense/ Data in this report arefrom the SPeNSE Service Pro-vider Survey.

NCESThe NCES is the primary federalentity for collecting and analyz-ing data that are related to edu-cation in the United States andother nations. NCES is locatedwithin the U.S. Department ofEducation’s Institute of Educa-tion Sciences.

NCES fulfills a congressionalmandate to collect, collate, ana-lyze, and report complete statis-tics on the condition of Ameri-can education; conduct and pub-lish reports; and review and re-port on education activities in-ternationally. NCES statisticsand publications are used byCongress, other federal agen-cies, state education agencies,educational organizations, thenews media, researchers, andthe public.

NHESThe National House EducationSurveys Program is a data col-lection system of NCES that isdesigned to address a widerange of education-related is-sues. It provides descriptivedata on the educational activi-ties of the U.S. population andoffers policymakers, research-ers, and educators a variety ofstatistics on the condition ofeducation in the United States.

NHES surveys have beenconducted in spring of 1991,1993, 1995, 1996, 1999, 2001,and 2003.

The NHES Web site is: http://nces.ed.gov/nhes/.

CCDThe Common Core Data is theDepartment of Education’s pri-mary database on public el-ementary and secondary educa-

The Journal for Vocational Special Needs Education 47tion in the United States. CCDis a comprehensive, annual,national statistical database ofall public elementary and sec-ondary schools and school dis-tricts that contains data thatare designed to be comparableacross all states.

CCD comprises five surveyssent to state education depart-ments. Most of the data are ob-tained from administrativerecords maintained by the stateeducation agencies. Statisticalinformation is collected annu-ally from public elementary andsecondary schools, public schooldistricts, and the 50 states, theDistrict of Columbia, PuertoRico, Department of Defenseschools, and the outlying areas.This report uses informationfrom the CCD for 1999-2000,2000-01, and 2001-02, as notedin the text.

U.S. Census BureauEach year, the Population Esti-mates Program of the U.S. Cen-sus Bureau publishes estimatesof the resident population foreach state and county Membersof the Armed Forces on activeduty stationed outside theUnited States, military depen-dents living abroad, and otherUnited States citizens livingabroad are not included in theseestimates. These populationestimates are solely the sum ofthe county population esti-mates. The reference data forcounty estimates is July 1.

Estimates are used in fed-eral allocations, as denomina-tors for vital rates and per capitatime series, as survey controls,and in monitoring recent demo-graphic changes. With eachnew issue of July 1 estimates,the estimates for years are re-vised back to the last census.Previously published estimatesare superseded and archived.See the Census Bureau’s docu-ment Estimates and ProjectionsArea Documentation State and

County Total Population Esti-mates for more informationabout how population estimatesare produced.

The Census files used inthis report include the following:• U.S. Bureau of the Census.

Population data for 2000 and2001 retrieved October 2003from http://www.census.gov/popest/data/states/files/STCH-6R.CSV. This fileis now archived as http://census . gov/popes t/a r -c h i v e s / 2 0 0 0 s / v i n -tage_2002/ST-EST2002/STCH-6R.txt/.

• U.S. Bureau of the Census.Population data for 1999 re-trieved October 2000 fromhttp://www.census.gov/popest/archives/1990s/stas/st-99-10.txt/

• U.S. Bureau of the Census.Population data for 1998 re-trieved October 1999. Thisfile is no longer available onthe Web site.

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