The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) is a cornerstone of special education in the United States. It ensures that children with disabilities receive a free and appropriate public education (FAPE) tailored to their unique needs. A crucial aspect of IDEA is the classification of disabilities into 13 distinct categories. These categories are not merely labels; they serve as the gateway to accessing essential services and support for students who require them. Understanding these categories is vital for parents, educators, and anyone involved in the education of children with special needs.
To be eligible for an Individualized Education Program (IEP), a student must meet the criteria for at least one of these 13 disability categories, and it must be determined that the disability “adversely affects” their educational performance. Let’s explore each of these categories in detail.
1. Specific Learning Disability (SLD)
Specific Learning Disability (SLD) is the most prevalent category among students receiving special education services. It encompasses a range of disorders that affect the fundamental psychological processes involved in understanding or using language, both spoken and written. These disabilities may manifest as difficulties in listening, thinking, speaking, reading, writing, spelling, or performing mathematical calculations. Common examples of SLDs include:
- Dyslexia: A language-based learning disability that primarily affects reading.
- Dysgraphia: A neuro-based disorder that affects writing abilities.
- Dyscalculia: A learning disability that affects a person’s ability to understand number-based math.
It’s important to note that SLD does not include learning problems that are primarily the result of visual, hearing, or motor disabilities, intellectual disability, emotional disturbance, or environmental, cultural, or economic disadvantage.
2. Speech or Language Impairment
Speech or language impairment is the second most common disability category under IDEA. This category covers communication disorders that adversely affect a child’s ability to talk, understand, and/or use language. These impairments can include:
- Stuttering: A speech disorder characterized by repetition or prolongation of sounds, syllables, or words, or by breaks in speech.
- Articulation disorders: Difficulties in producing speech sounds correctly.
- Language disorders: Impairments in understanding or expressing thoughts, ideas, or information through spoken or written language. This can include difficulties with the form of language (phonology, morphology, syntax), the content of language (semantics), and/or the function of language (pragmatics).
Language disorders can sometimes be categorized under SLD, depending on the specific nature of the challenges.
3. Other Health Impairment (OHI)
Other Health Impairment (OHI) is a broad category that encompasses conditions limiting a child’s strength, vitality, or alertness, including heightened alertness or reduced alertness to environmental stimuli, that results in limited alertness with respect to the educational environment. This category includes a variety of chronic or acute health conditions such as:
- Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD): A neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity.
- Epilepsy: A neurological disorder characterized by recurrent seizures.
- Diabetes: A metabolic disorder in which the body does not produce or properly use insulin.
- Asthma: A chronic respiratory disease that inflames and narrows the airways.
- Heart conditions: Various diseases or abnormalities of the heart.
- Sickle cell anemia: An inherited blood disorder that causes red blood cells to be sickle-shaped.
- Tourette Syndrome: A neurological disorder characterized by repetitive, stereotyped, involuntary movements and vocalizations called tics.
The key criterion for OHI is that the health impairment must adversely affect a child’s educational performance.
4. Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)
Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a developmental disability that affects communication and social interaction, and is typically evident before age three. ASD is characterized by:
- Persistent deficits in social communication and social interaction across multiple contexts.
- Restricted, repetitive patterns of behavior, interests, or activities.
ASD is a spectrum disorder, meaning that the severity of symptoms and the presentation of autism can vary widely from person to person.
5. Intellectual Disability
Intellectual Disability is characterized by significant limitations in both intellectual functioning and in adaptive behavior, which covers many everyday social and practical skills. These limitations must originate before the age of 18. Key characteristics include:
- Significantly subaverage intellectual functioning: An IQ score of approximately 70 or below on an individually administered intelligence test.
- Deficits in adaptive behavior: Limitations in adaptive behavior as expressed in conceptual, social, and practical adaptive skills.
Down syndrome is a common condition that can result in intellectual disability.
6. Emotional Disturbance (ED)
Emotional Disturbance (ED) is 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:
- 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.
- A tendency to develop physical symptoms or fears associated with personal or school problems.
Conditions like anxiety disorder, bipolar disorder, and oppositional defiant disorder can fall under the ED category. It’s worth noting that some emotional or conduct disorders may also be classified under OHI.
7. Developmental Delay (DD)
Developmental Delay (DD) is a category specifically for young children (typically ages 3-9) who are experiencing delays in one or more areas of development, including:
- Physical development (e.g., gross motor, fine motor skills)
- Cognitive development (e.g., thinking, learning, problem-solving)
- Communication development (e.g., speech, language)
- Social or emotional development (e.g., interacting with others, expressing emotions)
- Adaptive development (e.g., self-care skills)
The use of the DD category is determined by individual states and is the only disability category under IDEA with an age limit, generally not applicable after age 9.
8. Multiple Disabilities
Multiple Disabilities refers to concomitant impairments (such as intellectual disability-blindness, intellectual disability-orthopedic impairment, etc.), the combination of which causes such severe educational needs that they cannot be accommodated in special education programs solely for one of the impairments. This category is for students with a combination of disabilities requiring highly specialized educational approaches. For example, a child with both intellectual disability and blindness would likely be categorized under multiple disabilities.
9. Hearing Impairment (HI), Including Deafness
Hearing Impairment (HI), including deafness, refers to an impairment in hearing, whether permanent or fluctuating, that adversely affects a child’s educational performance. This category includes a wide range of hearing loss, from mild to profound. Deafness is defined as a hearing impairment that is so severe that the child is unable to process auditory information, even with amplification. It’s important to distinguish hearing impairment from auditory processing disorder, which is considered a learning disability and falls under the SLD category.
10. Orthopedic Impairment (OI)
Orthopedic Impairment (OI) refers to impairments that involve the skeletal system, such as bones, joints, limbs, and associated muscles. These impairments may be caused by congenital anomaly, disease (e.g., poliomyelitis, bone tuberculosis), and other causes (e.g., cerebral palsy, amputations, and fractures or burns that cause contractures). Cerebral palsy is a common example of an orthopedic impairment.
11. Visual Impairment (VI), Including Blindness
Visual Impairment (VI), including blindness, means an impairment in vision that, even with correction, adversely affects a child’s educational performance. This category includes both partial sight and blindness. Blindness means no vision or very limited vision. It’s crucial to note that if a vision problem can be corrected with eyeglasses or contact lenses, it does not qualify a child for special education under this category.
12. Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)
Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) means an acquired injury to the brain caused by an external physical force, resulting in total or partial functional disability or psychosocial impairment, or both, that adversely affects a child’s educational performance. TBI can result from accidents, falls, or other physical trauma after birth. Examples include injuries from car accidents or being shaken as a baby. TBI does not include brain injuries that are congenital or degenerative, or brain injuries induced by birth trauma.
13. Deaf-Blindness
Deaf-Blindness refers to concomitant hearing and visual impairments, the combination of which 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. Children with deaf-blindness require highly specialized and intensive support due to their unique communication challenges.
What Does “Adversely Affects Educational Performance” Mean?
Meeting the criteria for a disability category is only the first step in qualifying for special education services. IDEA mandates that the disability must “adversely affect” the child’s educational performance. This means there must be a demonstrable negative impact on the student’s academic progress and learning within the school environment. Schools use various assessments and evaluations to determine if a disability is indeed impacting a child’s education.
Primary Disability Category for IEPs
While a child may have multiple disabilities, the IEP team will typically identify a primary disability category. This is mainly for administrative and data-tracking purposes. Listing a primary disability does not limit the services a child receives; the IEP should address all of the child’s needs, regardless of the primary category.
State-Specific Variations
It’s important to be aware that some states may have slightly different interpretations or additional categories beyond the 13 federal categories. For instance, some states might separate hearing impairment and deafness into two distinct categories. Iowa is unique in that it does not list disability categories in IEPs, though it still tracks and reports this data. For specific information about disability categories in your state, reaching out to a Parent Training and Information Center is a valuable resource.
Understanding the 13 disability categories under IDEA is a crucial first step in advocating for children with special needs. By recognizing these categories, parents and educators can work together to ensure that every child receives the appropriate support and services to thrive academically and reach their full potential.
