Criteria for Defining the Regular Classroom as the Least Restrictive Environment for LD Students

Members of placement teams expend considerable time and effort on determining least restrictive environments for learning disabled children and youth. Unfortunately, the placement team must use criteria which are vague and subject to interpretation. The purpose of this paper is to delineate three observable and measurable variables in the regular classroom—response opportunity, teacher-student interaction, and social acceptance—which the team can use to make the initial placement decision and to evaluate educational progress in the future.