Inclusion in the United States: correlations between key state variables.

The United States (U.S.) Department of Education reports that the range for all students with disabilities included for at least 80% of the day in the general education classroom in different states is between 83.6% and 36.9%. Such a range also exists for individual disability groups. While other studies have noted these differences, none have attempted to determine factors associated with them. In the present study, using the 50 states as subjects, extant data sources were used to determine correlations between the percent of three groups of students included for at least 80% of the day in each state, and key state variables representing states' political leanings, educational levels, financial conditions, and formal complaints as allowed under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, 20 U.S.C. § 1400. 2004). Also analyzed was the relationship between states' educational achievements and levels of inclusion. Findings are reported in terms of correlations between the variables and the variance accounted for in inclusion by different variables. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]