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- Disability Categories
- Autism
- Deaf-Blindness
- Deafness
- Emotional Behavioral Disorder
- Hearing Impairment or Deafness
- Cognitively Disabled
- Multiple Disabilities
- Orthopedic Impairment
- Other Health Impairment
- Specific Learning Disability
- Speech and Language Disability or Impairment
- Traumatic Brain Injury
- Visual Impairment and Blindness
Characteristics
- The large majority of individuals considered intellectually disabled are in the mild range with an IQ of 50 to 70. For many of these individuals, there is no specific known cause of their developmental delays. The validity and reliability of the IQ tests used with these individuals are often in question. However, if a student is evaluated and scores an IQ of 70 or lower, he or she is considered to have an intellectual disability. The problems with these labels are that the guidelines can be altered, as in the 1970s when eligibility guidelines shifted and thousands that were previously "mentally retarded" were miraculously “cured” by changing federal regulation.
- The two characteristics shared in varying degrees by all individuals with intellectual disabilities are limitations in intellectual functioning and limitations in adaptive behavior. Limitations in intellectual functioning often include difficulties with memory recall, task and skill generalization, and these students may demonstrate a tendency towards low motivation and learned helplessness. Issues in adaptive behavior may include difficulties with conceptual skills, social skills and practical skills. Individuals with intellectual disabilities also often exhibit deficits in self-determination skills as well, including skill areas such as choice making, problem solving, and goal setting.
- Students labeled as mildly intellectually disabled demonstrate delays in cognitive, social, and adaptive behavior skills within typical classroom settings. Often when they are in different settings, these same individuals function quite capably both socially and vocationally. In their adult lives, these individuals can be independent and well-adjusted in the world outside of school settings. It is only in the context of academic demands and intensive intellectual challenges that their abilities appear impaired. This type of school-based diagnosis has been referred to as “six-hour retardation”, reflecting the time the student is actually in the classroom and appears to be academically impaired. The assertion that intellectual disabilities is a school-based diagnosis underlines the often arbitrary nature of eligibility requirements in this disability category for future adult services. A label of intellectual disabilities prior to age 18 is necessary for individuals to receive specialized services beyond high school.