ABSTRACT
In many respects the US is a country of large numbers. This certainly holds for the size of most schools in the US. Because of the large pupil population within elementary schools it is possible to work with two to three parallel classes per grade. Many schools make these parallel groups as homogeneous as possible by separating slow and fast learners. As a result, teachers in the US have been accustomed to working in fairly homogeneous classes as far as level is concerned (Jenkins, personal communication, 1989; Zig
Table 5.1 United States: percentage of children and youth, age 6-21, served in different educational environments, by handicapping condition: school year 1987-8
Source: Department of Education, 1990 Notes: Totals include data from the fifty states, District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. Educational placements for children age 3-5 are not reported by handicapping condition.
