More Students With Disabilities Join General Education Classes

Federal data show that inclusive classrooms are becoming more common, but successful inclusion requires trained educators, adequate staffing and services tailored to each child.

More students with disabilities are learning in inclusive classrooms alongside their peers, marking a major change in American public education. A new federal report says the number of students with disabilities spending at least 40% of their school day in general education classes increased by about 25% between the 2012-13 and 2023-24 school years.

That increase may represent meaningful progress. However, educators, parents and disability advocates warn that placing a child in a general education classroom is only the first step. Without trained teachers, classroom aides, appropriate instruction and related services, inclusion can become little more than a statistic.

The central question is not simply where students sit during the school day. It is whether they are learning, participating and feeling that they belong.

Federal Report Finds a Major Shift Toward Inclusion

The U.S. Government Accountability Office, or GAO, examined national and state data on where students receiving special education services spend their school day.

During the 2023-24 school year, approximately 7 million children received special education services under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, commonly known as IDEA.

The GAO found that:

• The number of students with disabilities spending at least 40% of their day in general education increased 25%.
• The overall number of students with disabilities increased 21% during the same period.
• The largest growth occurred among students who spent at least 80% of their school day in general education.
• The share of students in general education for much of the day increased in 42 states and the District of Columbia.
• Statewide rates varied, while differences between individual school districts were often much wider.

Across states, the percentage of students with disabilities spending at least 40% of the day in general education ranged from 71% to 93% during the 2023-24 school year. New Mexico did not have comparable data available for that year.

These numbers suggest that inclusion is becoming a more common part of American education. They do not, however, tell the full story of what happens inside the classroom.

What Are Inclusive Classrooms?

Inclusive classrooms educate students with and without disabilities together while providing the instruction, accommodations and services each student needs to participate and make progress.

This approach is connected to IDEA’s requirement that students with disabilities be taught with students without disabilities to the maximum extent appropriate.

Federal rules describe this principle as the least restrictive environment. The law strongly favors regular classroom placement when a child can succeed there with appropriate aids and services.

That does not mean every student must spend the entire day in a general education classroom.

A student’s placement should be decided individually by an individualized education program, or IEP, team. The team may include parents, teachers, specialists, administrators and others familiar with the child’s needs.

Depending on the student, appropriate services may include:

• A special education teacher working inside the classroom
• Small-group reading or mathematics instruction
• A trained paraprofessional
• Speech, physical or occupational therapy
• Assistive technology
• Additional testing time
• Sensory or behavioral supports
• Modified instructional materials

The proper setting is the one that gives the student access to learning while meeting the child’s academic, emotional, physical and behavioral needs.

Inclusion Works Best When Support Follows the Student

Education Week asked readers to respond to the GAO findings. Many parents and educators supported inclusion but said that simply assigning students to general education classes does not guarantee meaningful participation.

One commenter summarized the concern clearly: “Spending more time in classrooms” does not automatically create genuine inclusion or belonging.

Another educator said inclusion can work when a teacher trained in special education is available, but noted the challenge of serving more than 20 students with a wide range of academic, behavioral and developmental needs.

Jacqueline Nowicki, the GAO’s director of K-12 education research, said the national increase is positive but cautioned that schools must have resources in place to help students succeed.

“It’s important also to not forget that being able to do that means you need to have the resources in place to make those kids successful in those environments,” Nowicki told Education Week.

That warning is important. Inclusion may fail when a district uses general education placement primarily to reduce costs or address shortages rather than to follow a carefully developed educational plan.

A teacher may support inclusion in principle and still struggle to provide individualized attention without enough planning time, training or classroom assistance.

Every Student’s Needs Are Different

Students with disabilities are not a single group. Their strengths and needs vary widely.

National Center for Education Statistics data from fall 2022 illustrate those differences. Among students receiving IDEA services, 89% of students with speech or language impairments spent at least 80% of the school day in general classes. The rate was 76% for students with specific learning disabilities and 71% for students classified as having other health impairments.

By comparison, 21% of students with intellectual disabilities and 16% of students with multiple disabilities spent at least 80% of their day in general classes.

Those figures should not be used to set automatic placement rules based on disability labels. They show why schools must make decisions student by student.

Two children with the same diagnosis may need very different services. One may thrive in a general classroom with limited accommodations. Another may need intensive instruction in a smaller setting for part of the day.

A strong special education system should offer a range of services rather than treating full inclusion or separate instruction as the only acceptable choice.

Funding and Staffing Remain Major Obstacles

The GAO reported that school districts identified limited funding as a barrier to hiring paraeducators and developing effective inclusive programs.

The federal analysis also produced a finding that deserves careful attention: districts with lower per-pupil revenue were associated with slightly higher rates of general education placement.

A 30% reduction in district per-pupil revenue was associated with a 1.6 percentage-point increase in the share of students with disabilities spending at least 40% of the day in general education. This was an association, not proof that lower funding caused the placement decisions.

Still, the finding raises a difficult question. Are some districts expanding inclusion because it is educationally appropriate, or because they lack the resources to provide other services?

The answer may differ from one community to another.

Effective inclusion can require more resources, not fewer. Schools may need co-teachers, specialists, accessible materials, assistive technology and professional development.

Without those investments, teachers may be asked to meet complex needs with little more than goodwill.

What Families Should Look for

Parents and guardians should receive more than a placement percentage on an IEP.

They can ask:

1. What instruction will my child receive in the general education classroom?
2. Who will provide special education services?
3. How often will those services be delivered?
4. What accommodations will be available?
5. How will the school measure academic and social progress?
6. What happens if the current placement is not working?
7. How will teachers communicate with the family?

Families should also ask whether their child is truly participating.

A student may be physically present in the classroom but still be isolated from instruction, classmates or activities. Meaningful inclusion requires access, engagement and dignity.

The Goal Must Be Progress, Not Placement

The rise of inclusive classrooms is an encouraging sign that more schools recognize the right of students with disabilities to learn alongside their peers.

Students without disabilities may also benefit. Well-designed inclusive classrooms can encourage cooperation, patience and respect for different ways of learning.

However, inclusion should not become a one-size-fits-all policy. Nor should schools celebrate increased general education placement without examining academic outcomes, student experiences and the quality of services being delivered.

The most successful schools will move beyond counting minutes in a classroom. They will ask whether students are receiving appropriate instruction, building relationships and making measurable progress.

Parents, educators and community leaders should press school districts to explain how inclusion is being staffed, funded and evaluated. Every student deserves more than a seat in the room. Every student deserves a genuine opportunity to learn and thrive.

Sources

• U.S. Government Accountability Office, Special Education: More Students with Disabilities Were Educated in General Education Settings, but State Trends Varied Widely, July 2, 2026.
• U.S. Department of Education, Individuals with Disabilities Education Act resources.
• National Center for Education Statistics, Students With Disabilities.
• Education Week, “More Students With Disabilities Are in General Education Classes. How’s That Working?” July 14, 2026.

Image Prompts

Cartoon and Illustration Style

1. Inclusive classroom collaboration

A warm editorial illustration of a diverse public school classroom where students with and without disabilities work together at shared tables, including a student using a wheelchair, a student using a communication tablet and classmates completing a group project, a general education teacher and special education co-teacher providing support, bright welcoming atmosphere, realistic school setting, respectful representation, no text, 16:9.

2. Placement versus meaningful inclusion

A thoughtful newspaper-style editorial illustration showing two sides of one classroom: on one side, a student with a disability sits isolated despite being physically present; on the other, the student actively participates with classmates, a trained aide and accessible learning materials, visual metaphor showing that placement alone is not true inclusion, balanced and compassionate tone, no text, 16:9.

3. Building the support system

An editorial cartoon showing an inclusive classroom supported by strong pillars labeled visually through symbols rather than words: trained teachers, classroom aides, assistive technology, family participation and adequate school funding, students learning successfully above the foundation, professional education-news illustration, diverse children and educators, no readable text, 16:9.

Photorealistic Style

1. Co-teaching in an inclusive classroom

A photorealistic image of a general education teacher and special education teacher working together in a diverse middle-school classroom, helping students with different learning needs during a small-group lesson, one student using assistive technology and another using accessible printed materials, natural daylight, authentic public school environment, professional news photography, no logos, 16:9.

2. Student using classroom support

A photorealistic image of a student with a disability participating in a science activity alongside classmates in an inclusive classroom, a trained paraprofessional offering discreet support, accessible equipment on the table, positive student engagement, realistic school lighting, respectful documentary photography, no identifying school logos, 16:9.

3. Parent and IEP team meeting

A photorealistic image of a diverse group of parents, teachers, a school psychologist and a special education professional meeting around a conference table to review an individualized education program, documents and a laptop visible without readable private information, collaborative and serious atmosphere, modern public school meeting room, professional education news photography, 16:9.

Featured Image Alt Text: inclusive classrooms for students with disabilities