Educational terms
Specialized services and supports designed to help families with children birth to age five who have developmental delays.
Early Intervention (EI)
The gathering of information by qualified personnel about a child’s development and the needs and priorities of his/her family. This information is used in planning the child’s Individualized Education Program (IEP).
Assessment
This act provides the legal authority for early intervention and special education services for children from birth to age 21. Part B outlines services for children ages three to 21. Part C outlines services for children from birth to age three.
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)
A disability in which a child’s intellectual and adaptive behavior is below average, which impacts upon the child’s education
Cognitive Delay
The loss of critical skills within an extended break in the school year (e.g., summer vacation). Regression is a critical factor in determining the need for extended school year services.
Regression
Support services needed by a child in order to benefit from special education services. These may include transportation; speech/language, physical, occupational therapies; social work; or other services deemed necessary by the IEP team.
Related Services
The primary federal education legislation addressing kindergarten through high school for children at risk.
No Child Left Behind (NCLB)
A substantially limiting physical or mental impairment that affects such basic life activities as hearing, seeing, speaking, walking, learning, working, or caring for oneself
Disability
A comprehensive, multi-tiered, and standards-aligned approach that enables early identification and intervening for children at academic or behavior risk. A School-Based Behavioral Health (SBBH) partnership
Response to Instruction and Intervention (RtII)
A series of tests and observations performed by a multidisciplinary team to find out if a child has a disability and requires special education services. A parent may share with the team any assessment information provided by a qualified individual who is not employed by the local educational agency (LEA). The LEA is required to discuss the results of the evaluation with the child’s parents.
Evaluation
This Act declared that a person cannot be excluded on the basis of disability alone from any program or activity receiving federal funds
Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act
A pattern of persistently slow learning of basic motor and language skills during childhood, along with deficits in adaptive behavior and a significantly below-normal global intellectual capacity during adulthood. Individuals with ID may be described as having developmental delays, global developmental delays, or learning difficulties.
Intellectual Disability (ID)
Benchmark measures that define what students should know and be able to do at specified grade levels beginning in grade three. The standards are state regulations and must be used as the basis for curriculum and instruction in Pennsylvania’s public schools.
Standards
The process of looking at a child’s development to determine if there are any areas of concern. It is used to recommend more in-depth evaluation of the child.
Screening
defines the term disability and prohibits discrimination by employers, by facilities open to the general public, and by state and local public agencies that provide such services as transportation
ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act)
A disorder in one or more of the basic psychological processes involved in understanding or using spoken or written language, which may manifest itself in an imperfect ability to listen, think, speak, read, write, spell, or perform mathematical calculations
Learning Disability (LD)
An IDEA requirement indicating that children with disabilities, including children in public or private institutions or other care facilities, must be educated with children who are not disabled, to the maximum extent possible.
Least Restrictive Environment (LRE)
A series of tests and observations performed by a multidisciplinary team to find out if a child with a disability continues to require special education and related services.
Reevaluation
A six-year plan built around 20 federally-required indicators of compliance and performance. It contains measurable goals, rigorous targets for each year of the plan, and improvement activities to meet the targets, all of which are reported in an annual performance report (APR)
A State Performance Plan (SPP)
A condition in which a child exhibits one or more of the following characteristics over a long period of time and to a marked degree, adversely affecting educational performance: a) an inability to learn 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 behaviors or feelings under normal circumstances; d) a tendency to develop a generally pervasive mood of unhappiness or depression; or e) a tendency to develop physical symptoms or fears associated with personal or school problems.
Emotional Disturbance (ED)