Preventing Special Education Assignment for Students with Learning or Behavioral Difficulties: A Review of Programs

The number of students assigned to special education has increased in the past decades, in spite of efforts for more inclusion. For students with mild learning or behavioral difficulties, special education assignment might be prevented if appropriate support is provided in general education. In this study, research on programs that could reduce the number of students assigned to special education is reviewed systematically. The review focuses on students in elementary schools. In total, 12 experimental or quasi-experimental studies of nine programs were reviewed. Programs were categorized based on what they were designed to improve: academic achievement, behavior, or both, and the multi-tiered Response to Intervention (RTI) framework was used to describe the intensity of the programs. It was found that several programs did reduce the number of students assigned to special education, while others did not or yielded mixed results. Three common elements of programs deemed effective were identified: an emphasis on tutoring, professional development and parental involvement. Implications for research and practice are discussed.