Raven+'s Guide to Special Education: Disabilities

Disabilities - 2

Summary | PDD | ED | HI | MR | MD |
OHI | OI | SLD | ADHD | SLI | TBI | VI

Within each category of special education, the extent to which the disability interferes with normal functioning varies widely depending upon the individual and environmental conditions. A student with a slight deficit can often compensate enough to avoid any significant educational or social difficulty. However, as the severity of a student’s disability increases, so does the need for changes in that student’s educational program. The following summary of special education disabilities includes general characteristics of each condition. For any individual child, however, some or even most of these characteristics may be absent.

Pervasive developmental disorders (PDD)

The pervasive developmental disorders, or autism spectrum disorders, range from a severe form, called autistic disorder, to a milder form, called Asperger syndrome. (PDD is not a special education category under IDEA, but autism is.) The prevalence of these disorders is on the rise. These disorders are four times more common in boys than girls, and many children with autism are also classified as mentally retarded.

Autism statistics

1 in 250 births
1 to 1.5 million Americans
Fastest-growing developmental disability
10 - 17% annual growth
$90 billion annual cost
90% of costs are in adult services
Cost of lifelong care can be reduced by 2/3 with early diagnosis and intervention

Most autistic individuals seem isolated from the world around them. They often appear to be unaware of the people in their environment, including family members. Most autistic students have severe communication problems, very impaired social relationships, and limited cognitive development. An evaluator may make a diagnosis of pervasive developmental disorder for a child who displays such behaviors but with fewer of the diagnostic symptoms associated with autism.

About half of all autistic students are mute, or speak unintelligibly. The rest can produce words and sentences but are unable to communicate normally. They usually do not make more than momentary eye contact. They may show unusual language mannerisms, such as reversing pronouns (saying you for I) and repeating a question to indicate yes. They may echo the end of whatever is said to them, and speak in a parrot-like voice that lacks feeling, rhythm or inflection (echolalia). They may show other unusual traits, such as an exceptional memory, fascination with objects, or insistence on sameness in the environment.

Emotional and behavioral disabilities

Generally, children who are considered to be emotionally disabled have difficulty in being able to give and take in relationships with others, identifying and appropriately expressing feelings and motives, learning new skills, and gaining self-confidence. They may show widely different behaviors that are affected by their environment, the ways they have learned to cope with problems, and the kind of behavioral skills they have developed. Some emotionally disabled students have other disabilities, perhaps the most common of which are communication disorders and learning disabilities.

Withdrawn and anxious students lack self-confidence and often are fearful. They may look worried, become upset easily, and complain of headaches or stomachaches. They tend to spend much of their time watching what others do rather than participating. Although often eager to please, they avoid trying new things because of their fear of making a mistake, being teased, or being rejected. These children often are both emotionally and verbally unexpressive. They typically feel uncomfortable in social situations and lack effective social skills. They may appear to be disinterested and unaware of what is going on around them. They do best in situations in which they understand everything that is going on and exactly what to expect. They do not like changes and unstructured situations. They tend to avoid being with their peers and instead rely upon adults, constantly wanting to be helped and reassured. At other times, however, they may withdraw from almost everyone.

Depressed students often behave similarly to withdrawn students except that they seem especially unhappy most of the time. They may daydream, startle easily or cry. Some depressed students, however, may appear overly active, disruptive, or aggressive.

Aggressive students often are described as angry, argumentative, uncooperative, and negative. They tend to become frustrated easily, and they may hurt others without being provoked. Some respond with anger only to particular situations while others explode whenever they feel too much stress. Still others may use aggression as their primary way of relating with others. They often are suspicious and distrustful of others, demanding, and impatient. Some are destructive. They may disturb others and refuse to cooperate. Many aggressive students have low self esteem and little confidence. They may do their schoolwork with minimal effort or refuse to work altogether. They have much trouble relating with other people, especially authority figures. Their social relationships often are superficial and short-lived.

Hearing impairments

A hearing loss is usually measured by an instrument called an audiometer, which measures the weakest intensity at which a person can hear at most frequencies in the range of human hearing. An audiometric evaluation can determine the amount of hearing loss, whether it is conductive or sensorineural in nature, and how much damage has occurred.

Conductive hearing loss results from impairment in the way sound waves are mechanically transmitted through the ear. The most common cause is otitis media — inflammation or infection of the middle ear. This condition usually can be corrected medically. An impairment in the conversion of sound waves to neural impulses in the inner ear is a sensorineural hearing loss. Most of the children enrolled in hearing impaired programs have this condition. The condition usually cannot be corrected, although amplification sometimes is successful.

Students with hearing impairments have deficits in their language comprehension and production. They frequently have academic problems, especially in reading and writing which are dependent upon language skills. The extent of these deficiencies depends mainly upon the age when the hearing loss developed, the degree of loss, the student’s intelligence, and the amount and quality of instruction the student has received. These students may have social and personality characteristics different from those of children with normal hearing. Because they may not freely communicate, they may become shy or socially isolated. Within a classroom they may appear disoriented, distracted, or at times confused. They try to blend in by imitating their peers. They try to deal with difficult situations by acting as if they understand what is going on in class when they actually misunderstand. They may appear to hear normally, but they may not hear speech sounds clearly enough to distinguish one word from another, especially if the words have similar sounds.

Students with a mild hearing loss may have difficulty hearing distant sounds and may require preferential seating. Students with moderate hearing loss understand conversational speech at close range but may miss some class discussion and need hearing aids and other special education services. Those with marked hearing loss can understand loud conversation with difficulty. They require hearing aids and special education services such as auditory training. Those with severe and profound hearing losses are generally considered to be deaf since they only can hear loud sounds at close distance.

This Web site includes a list of abbreviations used in special education.

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