Special Education Terms
Academic Support
The Academic Support program provides students with the opportunity for additional instruction in their area of identified need as documented in their Individual Education Plan or 504 plan. Individual instruction is designed around the general curriculum and helps students organize work and manage their time by increasing their skills in areas such as listening, note taking and preparing for tests and quizzes.
Appropriate Education
Appropriate education means an education designed to provide educational benefit and must be comparable to that provided to students without disabilities. This may be defined as regular or special education services.
Approved Program
"Approved program" (Ed 1102.03) means a program of special education that has been approved by the State Board of Education and that is maintained by a school district, regional special education center, private organization, or state institution for the benefit of children with disabilities and includes home instruction.
Child with a Disability
A child with a disability is one who was evaluated and determined to be disabled under one or more of the categories of disability and who, as a result, requires special education and related services.
Consent
Consent means that the parent/guardian has been fully informed of all information relevant to the activity for which consent is sought, in his or her native language, and agrees in writing to the carrying out of the activity for which his/her consent is sought. The parent/guardian understands that the granting of consent is voluntary and may be revoked at any time.
Determination of Eligibility
Determination of eligibility for special education and related services is conducted by a multidisciplinary committee of persons who are familiar with the child. The committee considers the evaluation data, the placement options, and all other significant factors relating to the student's learning process.
Eligible Children
Eligible children are those between the ages of 3 and 21 who are determined by a multidisciplinary team to be eligible within one or more of the 13 specific categories of disability requiring special education and related services.
Free and Appropriate Public Education
Free appropriate public education (FAPE) means special education and related services that are provided at public expense, under public supervision and direction, and without charge in conformity with an Individualized Education Plan (IEP). This includes preschool, elementary school, and secondary school.
How to Refer a Child
If you feel your child is in need of special education and related services, contact your child's teacher or the Director of Special Education, preferably in writing. Be specific about your concerns, and be sure to include information about how/where you can be reached with any questions.
Independent Educational Evaluation
Independent Educational Evaluation (Ed 1102.26) means an evaluation conducted by a qualified examiner who is not employed by the public agency responsible for the education of the child in question.
Individual Education Plan
An Individual Education Plan (IEP) is a written document that describes the intended education of an educationally disabled child that has been developed by a school district in accordance with rules adopted by the State Board of Education and that provides necessary special education and educationally related services within an approved program.
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act is an act which provides financial assistance to State and local education agencies to guarantee special education and related services to eligible children with disabilities. (Public Law 105-17)
Local Education Agency (LEA)
The term "local education agency" means a public board of education or other public authority legally constituted within a State for either administrative control or direction of, or to perform a service function for, public elementary or secondary schools in a city, county, township, school district, or other political subdivision of a State, or for a combination of school districts or counties as are recognized in a State as an administrative agency for its public or secondary schools. (Ed 1102.31)
Other Health Impairment
Other health impairment means having limited strength, vitality, or alertness, including a heightened alertness to environmental stimuli, that results in limited alertness with respect to the educational environment, that is due to chronic or acute health problems such as asthma, attention deficit disorder/attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, diabetes, epilepsy, a heart condition, hemophilia, lead poisoning, leukemia, nephritis, rheumatic fever, or sickle cell anemia, and adversely affects a child's educational performance.
Placement
Placement refers to a child's educational plan. Under IDEA, a student's placement may be any combination of special and general educational settings, as long as it is in the least restrictive environment possible.
Referral
Referral is the process by which a student with possible educational needs is brought to the attention of the special education staff for consideration of testing/evaluation to determine if the child needs special education to be successful. A referral can be made by any person who knows the child and feels that s/he is having academic difficulty that could be addressed by special education and related services.
Related Services
Related services (Ed 1102.44) refer to transportation and such developmental, corrective, and other support services as are required to assist a child with a disability to benefit from special education, and includes speech-language pathology and audiology services, psychological services, physical and occupational therapy, recreation, early identification and assessment of disabilities in children, counseling services, including rehabilitation counseling, orientation and mobility services, and medical services for diagnostic or evaluation purposes. Also included are school health services, social work services in schools, and parent counseling and training.
Specific Learning Disability
A specific learning disability is a disorder in one or more of the basic psychological processes involved in understanding or in using language, spoken or written, that may manifest itself in an imperfect ability to listen, think, speak, read, write, spell, or do mathematical calculations, including conditions such as perceptual disabilities, brain injury, minimal brain dysfunction, dyslexia, and developmental aphasia.
NHSEIS
The New Hampshire Special Education Information System (NHSEIS) is a computer-based special education data bank and retrieval system that confidentially maintains personally identifiable data used for program development, monitoring, compliance, and reporting to the State Board of Education, the New Hampshire legislative bodies, and the federal Department of Education.
Transition Services
Transition services are a coordinated set of activities for a student with a disability that are outcome-oriented and promote movement from school to post-school activities, including post-secondary education, vocational training, integrated employment (including supported employment), continuing and adult education, adult services, independent living, or community participation. Services are based on the student's individual needs, taking into account the student's preferences and interests, and include instruction, related services, community experiences, the development of employment and other post-school adult living objectives, and (if appropriate) acquisition of daily living skills and functional vocational evaluation.