The LRE Provision of IDEA's Impact on Deaf Students' Socio-Emotional Satisfaction in K-12th Grade Education

Author

Shealyn Junge

Date of Award

5-17-2025

Document Type

Thesis

First Advisor

Jessica Kuehne

Second Advisor

Julie Rems-Smario

Abstract

The education of Deaf and Hard of Hearing (DHH) students represents a unique challenge in implementing inclusive practices that balance physical integration with meaningful language and communication access. The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act’s Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) provision reflects a federal commitment to educating students with disabilities alongside their non-disabled peers whenever possible. This mixed-methods study examined how mainstream, co-enrollment settings, and Deaf schools shape the socio-emotional development of DHH students, including those transitioning between settings. While participants across placements reported increasing DHH identity pride, their social experiences diverged markedly: mainstream-educated participants universally reported loneliness by high school. Deaf school attendees experienced stronger communication access despite moderate social challenges. The shift in education placement —with Deaf school attendance increasing from 42.86% to 57.14% across grades—suggests a growing recognition that language and communication access, rather than physical integration, determines educational restrictiveness for DHH students. This finding challenges conventional interpretations of the LRE provision for DHH students by revealing that physically integrated settings often create more restrictive experiences when lacking meaningful language and communication access. This comparative analysis reveals patterns in language and communication accessibility, social integration, and identity development across placement types. For DHH students, "restrictiveness" appears rooted more in communication barriers than physical segregation. Though limited by sample size, these findings suggest the need to reconceptualize educational restrictiveness not as physical placement but as the extent to which students can genuinely engage with peers and educators through accessible language and communication.

Recommended Citation

Junge, Shealyn, "The LRE Provision of IDEA's Impact on Deaf Students' Socio-Emotional Satisfaction in K-12th Grade Education" (2025). Undergraduate University Honors Capstones. 127.
https://ida.gallaudet.edu/honors_capstones/127