Under the IDEA legislation (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act), a student with a disability is entitled to Free and Appropriate Public Education under special education law (often referred to as ed-code). In order to qualify for special education and related services, a child must have one of the 14 defined disabilities and his/her educational performance MUST be adversely affected due to the disability.

Now, what are those 14 categories in which a child can qualify for special services, and what types of services could they qualify for?

1. Autism

Autism is a developmental disability that significantly affects both verbal and nonverbal communication and social interaction. Students who qualify under the diagnosis of autism almost always qualify for speech/language services to help social interaction and learn skills such as reading facial cues or gestures, figurative language, and social appropriateness. Generally, a pervasive developmental issue is evident before age three; however, students can be diagnosed later in life. Again, the disability must adversely affect a child’s educational performance. Some students with Asperger’s or high functioning Autism may start school receiving special services and be exited later because their academic performance has improved significantly. Other characteristics often associated with autism are engaging in repetitive activities and stereotyped movements (sometimes referred to as “stim-ming”), resistance to environmental change or change in daily routines, and unusual responses to sensory experiences.

A child who shows the characteristics of autism after age 3 could be diagnosed as having autism if the criteria above are satisfied.

2. Deaf-Blindness

This means simultaneous hearing and visual impairments. The student will not qualify unless combination of deafness and blindness causes such severe communication and other developmental and educational needs that they cannot be accommodated in special education programs solely for children with deafness or children with blindness.

3. Deafness

Deafness means a hearing impairment so severe that a child is impaired in processing linguistic information through hearing, with or without amplification. This must also adversely affect a child’s educational performance. As with any disability, in the best-case scenario, a student will be given accommodations in an inclusive academic setting.

4. Developmental Delay

The term developmental delay is defined differently by each State, however, it generally means a delay in one or more of the following areas: physical development; cognitive development; communication; social or emotional development; or adaptive and behavioral development.

5. Emotional Disturbance

Emotional disturbance means a condition exhibiting one or more of the following characteristics over a long period of time and to a marked degree that adversely affects a child’s educational performance:

(a) Difficulty in learning that cannot be explained by intellectual, sensory, or health factors.

(b) An inability to build or maintain satisfactory interpersonal relationships with peers and teachers.

(c) Inappropriate types of behavior or feelings under normal circumstances.

(d) A general pervasive mood of unhappiness or depression.

(e) A tendency to develop physical symptoms or fears associated with personal or school problems.

This is a difficult category to give to a student as he/she must exhibit these characteristics for a long period of time (generally at least one year) and the criteria are somewhat subjective. It is important however, to give support to these students when truly needed as a behavior or emotional problem can lead to major problems, such as expulsion, suicide, or juvenile detention.

6. Hearing Impairment

Hearing Impairment means deficiency in hearing, whether permanent or fluctuating, that adversely affects a child’s educational performance but is not included under the definition of “deafness.” Commonly these students qualify for services under a 504 plan rather than an IEP and successfully use amplification such as a hearing aide, radio, or other assistive technology.

7. Mental Retardation

Mental Retardation means sub average general intellectual functioning, existing concurrently with deficits in adaptive behavior and manifested during the developmental period. Typically, to qualify under this category, a student must test two standard deviations below the mean (100) in IQ score and be performing significantly below grade level on achievement tests. Testing often includes an adaptive functioning test to show whether or not the student will need life and functional skills curriculum.

Students often qualify for services under this label who have diagnosed medical conditions for which mental retardation is a characteristic. Examples include Down’s syndrome, William’s Syndrome, Prader-Willi Syndrome, Fragile X, Fetal Alcohol Syndrome or Affect, and many others.

(Note: Mental Retardation is the term found in the law since passage of the original legislation in 1975. In 2008, the American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (AAIDD) and other members of the community recommended use of the term Intellectual Disability or Cognitive Impairment. For changes in language to be made in the regulations, Congress must first change it in the legislation. Until such action occurs, this is the existing language from IDEA.)

8. Multiple Disabilities

This means any combination of simultaneous impairments (such as mental retardation-blindness, mental retardation-orthopedic impairment, etc.), the combination of which causes such severe educational needs that they cannot be accommodated in a special education program solely for one of the impairments. The term does not include deaf-blindness.

9. Orthopedic Impairment

This means a severe orthopedic or frame structural problem that adversely affects a child’s educational performance. The term includes impairments caused by a congenital anomaly, impairments caused by disease (e.g., poliomyelitis, bone tuberculosis), and impairments from other causes (e.g.,cerebral palsy,  amputations, and fractures or burns that cause contractures). Students in this category typically see an occupational therapist and use assistive technology such as walkers, wheelchairs, or extremity prosthesis.

10. Other Health Impairment

The technical definition of other health impairment means having limited strength, vitality, or alertness, including a heightened alertness to environmental stimuli, that results in limited alertness with respect to the educational environment. Examples may include chronic or acute health problems such as asthma, attention deficit disorder or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, diabetes, epilepsy, a heart condition, hemophilia, lead poisoning, leukemia, nephritis, rheumatic fever, sickle cell anemia, and Tourette syndrome. Once again, to qualify for special services, the health impairment must adversely affects a child’s educational performance.

Attention deficit disorder (ADD or ADHD) can be listed under this category, but due to the rapid increase in occurrence, some states may have a separate listing for a student with ADD or ADHD.

11. Specific Learning Disability

One of the most common categories, this means a disorder in one or more of the basic psychological processes involved in understanding or in using language, spoken or written, that may manifest itself in the imperfect ability to listen, think, speak, read, write, spell, or to do mathematical calculations. The term includes such conditions as perceptual disabilities, brain injury, minimal brain dysfunction, dyslexia, and developmental aphasia. The term does not include learning problems that are primarily the result of visual, hearing, or motor disabilities; of mental retardation; of emotional disturbance; or of environmental, cultural, or economic disadvantage. To qualify under this category, typically, a student must show two standard deviations of discrepancy between IQ and academic achievement (for example, if a student shows an IQ of 100, their achievement score in reading, math, or writing will need to be 70 or lower to qualify for services).

12. Speech or Language Impairment

Another very common category, this means a communication disorder such as stuttering, impaired articulation, a language impairment, or a voice impairment that adversely affects a child’s educational performance. Students with adaptive behavioral issues often qualify for speech and language to learn social skills.

13. Traumatic Brain Injury

Traumatic Brain Injury, or TBI, means an acquired injury to the brain caused by an external physical force, resulting in total or partial functional disability, psychosocial impairment, or both, that adversely affects a child’s educational performance. The term applies to open or closed head injuries resulting in impairments in one or more areas, such as cognition; language; memory; attention; reasoning; abstract thinking; judgment; problem-solving; sensory, perceptual, and motor abilities; psychosocial behavior; physical functions; information processing; and speech.

The term does not apply to brain injuries that are congenital or degenerative, or to brain injuries induced by birth trauma.

14. Visual Impairment Including Blindness

This means impairment in vision that, even with correction, adversely affects a child’s educational performance. The term includes both partial sight and blindness. Students often qualify for assistive technology in this category, and examples may include enlarged curriculum, Braille text, text reading machines, and other sight enhancing technologies.

(reference: National Dissemination Center for Children with Disabilities)

A wealth of information can be found about each of these separate categories on this website. Whether your child has just been placed in special education or has been receiving services throughout his/her school career, it is crucial that you, as a parent, become educated about services he/she is entitled to and what accommodations or modifications may best serve your child.

Special Thanks to Becca Bateman, Special Eduction Teacher at Righetti High School for compiling this information.