Special Education Terms & Acronyms
Changes in how test is administered that do not substantially alter what the test measures; includes changes in presentation format, response format, test setting or test timing. Appropriate accommodations are made to level the playing field, i.e., to provide equal opportunity to demonstrate knowledge.
Achievement Test
Changes in how test is administered that do not substantially alter what the test measures; includes changes in presentation format, response format, test setting or test timing. Appropriate accommodations are made to level the playing field, i.e., to provide equal opportunity to demonstrate knowledge.
Affective
A term which refers to emotions and attitudes.
Americans With Disabilities Act
Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA). Legislation enacted to prohibit discrimination based on disability.
Annual Goals
A required component of IEP. Goals are written for the individual student and can be for a maximum of one year.
ADD/ADHD
Attention Deficit Disorder/Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADD/ADHD). Child with ADD or ADHD may be eligible for special education under other health impairment, specific learning disability, and/or emotional disturbance categories if ADD/ADHD condition adversely affects educational performance.
Assessment
Systematic method of obtaining information form tests or other sources; procedures used to determine child’s eligibility, identify the child’s strengths and needs, and services child needs to meet these needs.
Assistive Technology
Equipment used to maintain or improve the capabilities of a child with a disability.
Audiology
Related service; includes identification, determination of hearing loss, and referral for habilitation of hearing.
Autism
Developmental disability that affects communication and social interaction, adversely affects educational performance, is generally evident before age 3. Children with autism often engage in repetitive activities and stereotyped movements, resist environmental change or change in daily routines, and have unusual responses to sensory experiences.
Basic Skill
Skills in subjects like reading, writing, spelling, and mathematics.
Behavior Disorder
See Emotional Disturbance.
Behavior Intervention Plan
A plan of positive behavioral interventions in the IEP of a child whose behaviors interfere with his/her learning or that of others.
Chronologically Age Appropriate
A standard by which children’s activities may be evaluated. Instruction and material should be directed at the student’s actual age rather than to the interests and tastes of younger children.
Cognitive
A term which refers to reasoning or intellectual capacity.
Continuum of Services
The range of services which must be available to the students of a school district so that they may be served in the least restrictive environment.
Deaf Blindness
IDEA disability category; includes hearing and visual impairments that cause severe communication, developmental and educational problems that adversely affects educational performance.
Deafness
IDEA disability category; impairment in processing information through hearing that adversely affects educational performance.
Disability
In Section 504 and ADA, defined as impairment that substantially affects one or more major life activities; an individual who has a record of having such impairment, or is regarded as having such an impairment.
Emotional Disturbance
Disability category under IDEA; includes depression, fears, schizophrenia; adversely affects educational performance.
EMR
Educable mentally retarded.
Extended School Day
A provision for special education student to receive instruction for a period longer than the standard school day. This sometimes includes “double kindergarten”, later afternoons or earlier start times.
Extended School Year
A provision for a special education student to receive instruction during ordinary school “vacation” periods.
FAPE
“Free Appropriate Public Education.” Provision as required under IDEA.
Handicap
Pejorative term no longer in accepted use.
IDEA
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Acts of 1997.
IEP
Individualized Education Plan. The document developed at an IEP meeting which sets the standard by which subsequent special education services are usually determined appropriate.
Inclusion
Practice of educating children with special needs in regular education classrooms in neighborhood schools. See also “mainstreaming” and “least restrictive environment.”
Learning Disability
See “Specific Learning Disability”
Mainstreaming
Practice of placing special needs children in regular classrooms for at least a part of the children’s educational program. See also least restrictive environment and inclusion.
Manifestation Determination Review
If child with disability engages in behavior or breaks a rule or code of conduct that applies to nondisabled children and school proposes to remove the child, the school must hold a hearing to determine if the child’s behavior was caused by the disability.
Mediation
A voluntary dispute resolution process for which a mediator will be provided on request.
Mental Retardation
Disability category under IDEA; refers to significantly sub-average general intellectual functioning with deficits in adaptive behavior that adversely affects educational performance.
Modifications
Substantial changes in what the student is expected to demonstrate; includes changes in instructional level, content, and performance criteria, may include changes in test form or format; includes alternative assessments.
Multiple Disabilities
Disability category under IDEA; concomitant impairments (such as mental retardation-blindness, mental retardation-orthopedic impairment, etc.) that cause such severe educational problems that problems cannot be accommodated in special education programs solely for one of the impairments; does not include deaf-blindness.
OCR
Office of Civil Rights.
Occupational Therapy
Related service; includes therapy to remediate fine motor skills
Orthopedic Impairment
Disability category under IDEA; orthopedic impairment that adversely affects child’s educational performance.
Other Health Impaired
Disability category under IDEA; refers to limited strength, vitality or alertness due to chronic or acute healthy problems that adversely affects educational performance.
Physical Therapy
Related service; includes therapy to remediate gross motor skills.
Placement
The setting in which the special education service is delivered to the student. It must be derived form the IEP.
Present Levels of Educational Performance
A required IEP component that examines how the student is currently achieving.
Related Services
IDEA requires that school districts provide whatever related services (other than medical care which is not for diagnostic purposes) a child needs in order to benefit from his or her special education program.
Remediation
Process by which an individual receives instruction and practice in skills that are weak or nonexistent in an effort to develop/strengthen these skills.
Section 504
Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act protects individuals with disabilities from discrimination due to disability by recipients of federal financial assistance.
Special Education
Specially designed instruction, at no cost to the parents, to meet the unique needs of a child with a disability.
Specific Learning Disability
Disability category under IDEA; includes disorders that affect the ability to understand or use spoken or written language; may manifest in difficulties with listening, thinking, speaking, reading, writing, spelling, and doing mathematical calculations; includes minimal brain dysfunction, dyslexia, and developmental aphasia.
Speech-Language Pathology Services
Related service; includes identification and diagnosis of speech or language impairments, speech or language therapy, counseling and guidance.
Speech or Language Impairment
Disability category under IDEA; includes communication disorders, language impairments, voice impairments that adversely affect educational performance.
Standardized Testing
Norm-referenced test that compares child’s performance with the performance of a large group of similar children (usually children who are the same age).
Transition Services
IEP requirements; designed to facilitate movement from school to the workplace or to higher education.
Traumatic Brain Injury
Disability category under IDEA; includes acquired injury caused by external physical force and open or closed head injuries that result in impairments; does not include congenital or degenerative brain injuries or brain injuries caused by birth trauma.
Visual Impairment including Blindness
Disability category under IDEA; impaired vision that adversely affects educational performance.
SPECIAL EDUCATION ACRONYMS
ACSA | Association of California School Administration |
ADHD | Attention Deficit-Hyperactivity Disorder |
ADR | Alternative Dispute Resolution |
AH | Aurally Handicapped |
APE | Adapted Physical Education |
ARC | Association for Retarded Citizens |
AU | Administrative Unit (Same as RLA) |
AUT | Autism |
BIP | Behavioral Intervention Plan |
CAC | Community Advisory Committee |
CANHC | California Association of Neurologically Handicapped Children |
CAPS | California Association of Program Specialists |
CARS | California Association of Resource Specialists |
CASP | California Association of School Psychologists |
CATS | Career and Transition Services |
CBI | Community-Based Instruction |
CCS | California Children’s Center (An agency that provides physical and occupational therapy for eligible students.) |
CEC | Council of Exceptional Children (A professional organization for parents, teachers, administrators, and others who deal with handicapped children.) |
CH | Communicatively Handicapped |
MH | County Mental Health |
CSB | California School for the Blind |
CSCD | Community Service Center for the Disabled |
D/B | Deaf/Blind |
DHH | Deaf and Hard of Hearing |
DIS | Designated Instruction and Services (Educational programs and services not normally provided in a regular classroom, special class, or resource specialist program.) |
DR | Department of Rehabilitation |
EC | California Education Code |
ECATS | Early Childhood Assessment & Team Services |
ELL | English Language Learner |
ESL | English as a Second Language |
HH | Hard of Hearing |
HI | Hearing Impaired |
IP | Instructional Paraprofessional |
IDEA | Individuals with Disabilities Education Act |
IEP | Individualized Education Program |
IFSP | Individualized Family Service Plan |
IST | Intervention Support Team |
ITP | Individual Transition Program |
LCI | Licensed Children’s Institute |
LEA | Local Education Agency |
LH | Learning Handicapped |
LRE | Least Restrictive Environment (an appropriate educational placement which permits a pupil to participate as fully as possible with normal peers providing both he/she and they can still be successful. |
LSH | Language, Speech and Hearing (specialists) |
MH | Multi-handicapped |
MIS | Management Information System |
NPS/NPA | Nonpublic School/Nonpublic Agency |
O&M | Orientation and Mobility |
OCR | Office of Civil Rights |
OH | Orthopedically Handicapped |
OHI | Other Health Impaired |
OSEP | Office of Special Education Programs |
OT | Occupational Therapy/Therapist |
PH | Physically Handicapped |
PS | Program Specialist |
PT | Physical Therapy/Therapist |
Region C | Regional Coordinating Council |
RTI | Response to Intervention |
ROP | Regional Occupational Program |
RS | Resource Specialist |
RSP | Resource Specialist Program |
SDC | Special Day Class (Instructional settings in which the student receives special instruction more than 50% of the day.) |
SDL | Severe Disorders of Language |
SED | Seriously Emotionally Disturbed |
SEEC | Special Education Early Childhood |
SELPA | Special Education Local Plan Area |
SH | Severely Handicapped |
SLD | Specific Learning Disability |
SLI | Speech and Language Impaired |
TASH | The association for Persons with Severe Handicaps |
TBI | Traumatic Brain Injury |
TDD | Telecommunications Device for the Deaf |
TEACCH | Treatment & Education of Autistic and Related Communicatively Handicapped Children |
TPP | Transition Partnership Project |
VH | Visually Handicapped |
VI | Visually Impaired |
WAI | Work Ability I |