Disability Areas 

Autism- A developmental disability affecting nonverbal as well as verbal communication and social interaction. This normally is apparent before age 3 and adversely affects educational performance.

Deafness- severe hearing impairment. Children are impaired in processing linguistic information through hearing with or without amplification.

Deafness-blindness- hearing and visual impairments that are simultaneous. This combination of impairments causes severe communication and other developmental and education problems. These children cannot be accommodated in special education programs that are for children that are deaf of for children who are blind.

Hearing Impairment- An impairment in hearing that affects a child's educational performance. However, it is not included under "deafness".

Mental retardation- Functioning significantly below the average with deficits in adaptive behavior. This adversely affects a child's educational performance.

Multiple disabilities- Simultaneous impairments that cause severe educational needs. The child cannot be accommodated in a special education program only for one of the impairments.

Orthopedic impairment- Includes impairments caused by a congenital anomaly, disease, and impairments from other causes such as cerebral palsy, amputations, or fractures and burns that cause contractures.  These can adversely affect a child's educational performance.

Other health impairment- Having limited strength, vitality, or alertness due to chronic or acute health problems. A few examples are heart conditions, tuberculosis, and diabetes.

Tourette syndrome- A neurological disorder than includes repetitive, stereotyped involuntary movements or tics. These movements become worse when there is a high degree of excitement.

Emotional disturbance- When a person displays one or more of the following characteristics over a long period of time that affects their educational performance. The characteristics are an inability to learn that cannot be explained by intellectual, sensory or health factors; an inability to build or maintain satisfactory interpersonal relationships with peers and teachers; inappropriate types of behavior or feelings under normal circumstances; a general pervasive mood of unhappiness or depression; or a tendency to develop physical symptoms or fears associated with personal or school problems. This includes schizophrenia.

Specific learning disabilities- Disorder where one or more of the basic psychological processes such as listening, speaking, writing, reading, thinking, spelling, or mathematical calculations is imperfect. This includes conditions such as brain injury, minimal brain dysfunction, and dyslexia. This does not include children who have 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.

Speech or language impairment- Communication disorder that adversely affects a child's educational performance. Examples include stuttering, impaired articulation, a language impairment, or a voice impairment.

Traumatic brain injury- Acquired injury to the brain caused by an external physical force. This can result in a total or partial functional disability or psychosocial impairment, or both.

Visual impairment including blindness-  An impairment in vision, even with correction that affects a child's educational performance. This includes partial sight and blindness.

Pervasive developmental disorders (PDD) - Delay in social/language/motor and or cognitive development. This is a category of delays in different magnitudes and domains.

Source: Parents as Partners in Education, Families and Schools Working Together 7th Edition by Eugenia Hepworth Berger