Building and Sustaining Inclusive Educational Practices: Aligned with the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA) and Part B of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)

Abstract

Our nation has demonstrated a steadfast commitment to providing every child with an equal opportunity to an education. Two Federal laws that address the education for children with disabilities are the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA) and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), signed into law in 1965 and 1975, respectively. Together, the ESEA and the IDEA provide the system and structure to ensure that children with disabilities have access to learning environments that meet their individual needs. The U.S. Department of Education (Department) is issuing this guidance to provide State educational agencies (SEAs), local educational agencies (LEAs), schools, educators, and members of the public with a better understanding of the ESEA and the IDEA requirements and guiding principles to support the implementation of inclusive educational practices for students with disabilities. The IDEA and the ESEA have the same goal of improving academic achievement through high expectations and high-quality education programs. The ESEA works to achieve that goal by focusing on challenging State academic standards and accountability systems that are designed to measure student performance, providing supports for educators and resources for a well-rounded education, and emphasizing evidence-based instruction; and the IDEA complements those efforts by focusing on how to best support students with disabilities, individually and within ESEA-created systems. With this guidance, the Department furthers its mission of promoting student achievement and preparation for global competitiveness by fostering educational excellence and ensuring equal access for students of all ages. The Department believes that the implementation of inclusive educational practices is critical to meeting this goal. Therefore, this guidance: (1) describes selected requirements in the ESEA and the IDEA that align with inclusive educational practices; and (2) provides guiding principles to support the implementation of inclusive educational practices.