IEP Team Decision-Making: Influences on Self-Contained Placement Decisions for Students with Disabilities Transitioning from Preschool to Kindergarten

The purpose of this narrative inquiry was to examine how IEP team members describe the key influences that impacted their decision-making during the preschool to kindergarten transition process for students with disabilities subsequently placed in self-contained special education settings. The study aimed to contribute to the literature by examining IEP team experiences and the decision-making process through the lens of social constructivism and ecological systems theory. Data collection included fifteen individual interviews with special education supervisors, school administrators, regular education teachers, special educators, and parents from three school districts. Analysis of data occurred in four phases: (a) organization of the raw data collected from interviews and documents (b) line-by-line and focused coding; (c) classification of information into categories or themes for pattern analysis; and (d) information was interpreted and summarized. The researcher identified program availability and resource constraints, the role of the special education preschool teacher, perceptions of students’ behavior, adaptive, and prevocational skills, and the lack of policy and guidelines as key themes and influencing factors on IEP team decision-making. This inquiry revealed insights into the transition process and decision-making, with recommendations for practice to advance policy development and equitable opportunities for students with disabilities in light of the principles of least restrictive environment.