Special Education Terms
Explanations of commonly used words and phrases in the special education program.
ADA |
Americans with Disabilities Act – Civil rights law that protects people with disabilities from discrimination. |
ASL |
American Sign Language |
AUT |
Autism |
BIP |
Behavior Intervention Plan |
DB |
Deaf Blindness |
DD |
Developmental Delay |
DDA |
Developmental Disabilities Administration – Public agency that offers various services to qualified individuals with disabilities. |
DHH |
Deaf/Hard of Hearing |
DK |
Developmental Kindergarten |
EBD |
Emotional Behavioral Disabilities |
ESD |
Edmonds School District #15 |
ESY |
Extended School Year Services – ESY is the special education and related services provided to students beyond the regular 180 day school year to maintain a student’s learned skills/behavior, not the teaching of new skills/behaviors. The IEP team decides whether or not the student requires ESY services and the location of these services. |
FAPE |
Free Appropriate Public Education – Legal requirement for school districts to provide free appropriate public education to qualified students with disabilities, regardless of disability. |
IDEA |
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act – Federal law ensuring services to children with disabilities. Governs how states and public agencies provide education to youth with disabilities. |
IEP |
Individual Education Program – Personalized education program for students with disabilities. |
IFSP |
Individual Family Service Plan (0-3 yrs) |
IS |
Intensive Academic Support |
ISES |
Intensive Social Emotional Support |
LRE |
Least Restrictive Environment – Requirement to educate special needs children with children who are not disabled, to the extent appropriate. |
LS |
Learning Support |
OHI |
Other Health Impaired |
OSPI |
Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction – Oversees public education in Washington state. |
OT |
Occupational Therapy |
PT |
Physical Therapy |
SDI |
Specially Designed Instruction – Appropriate instructional adaptations that meet the needs of eligible students. |
SE PTSA |
Special Education Parent Teacher Student Association – Advocacy organization that promotes the improvement of health, welfare, and education of children. |
SLD |
Specific Learning Disability |
SLH |
Speech, Language, and Hearing |
SLI |
Speech Language Impairment |
SLP |
Speech Language Pathologist |
SPED |
Special Education |
TBI |
Traumatic Brain Injury |
VI |
Visually Impaired |
VOICE |
Vocational Opportunities in Community Experiences (18-21 yrs) |