Categories of Disabilities

Disability
1. Autism

characteristics
Impaired social interaction, Repetitive
and restrictive behaviors,
Communication deficits
2. Intellectual
Attention deficits, poor interpersonal
Disabilities
skills, socially inappropriate behaviors,
memory problems
3. Learning Disabilities
Deficits in academic performance,
reading is a common problem, some
exhibit hyperactivity
4. Deaf-blindness
Combination of hearing an visual
impairments, severe communication
and developmental deficits
5. Emotional/Behavioral Typically score low on measures of
Disorders
intelligence, difficulty with building
relationships
6. Speech and Language Limited vocabulary, incorrect
Impairments
grammar or syntax, excessive
repletion of information
7. Hearing Impairments IQs similar to typical peers,
educational achievement delays,
difficulty with speech
8. Visual Impairments
IQs similar to those of sighted peers,
inappropriate social behaviors, lack of
orientation and mobility skills
9. orthopedic
Depend on condition and severity. Can
impairments
include impaired motor skills, physical
limitations, and cognitive deficits
10. Deafness
impaired in processing linguistic
information through hearing, with or
without amplification, low academic
performance
11. Multiple disabilities
Student is diagnosed with a
combination of disabilities that
severely effect educational
performance (does not include deafblindness)
12. Other health
limited strength, vitality, or alertness,
impairments
frequently experience social and
behavioral problems, impulsivity
13. Traumatic brain
Impairments in language, memory,
injury
attention, sensory, and abstract
thinking

Assessment
Behavioral assessments and ratings
scales by a team of professionals when
evaluating students
Cognitive test that are used as a sample
of intellectual skills
Research-based interventions (RTI)

Involves a medical evaluation, cognitive

assessments
Functional behavioral assessment

Involves professional teams that

conduct formal and informal
performance measures
Cognitive assessments, communication
assessments, and social/behavioral
assessments
Acuity chart, determination of most
effective learning media
Medical evaluations, and educational
assessment
Medical evaluation

Cognitive, behavioral assessments and

possibly medical evaluations

Involves a medical evaluation and a

behavioral rating scale done by parents
or teachers
Educational cognitive assessments