SPED Vocabulary

Question 1

Apraxia

Answer 1

A problem in assembling the appropriate sequence of movements for speech production or executing the appropriate serial ordering of sounds for speech. It is a motor disorder in which voluntary movement is impaired without muscle weakness.

Question 2

Basal

Answer 2

The level of mastery of a task below which the student would correctly answer all items on a test.

Question 3

Behavioral play audiometry

Answer 3

A screening test used in infants to observe their behavior in response to certain sounds. The purpose of this test is to assess the hearing acuity in infants and young children.

Question 4

Broca’s aphasia

Answer 4

Broca’s aphasia, also called motor aphasia, results from damage to the front portion or frontal lobe of the language-dominant area of the brain. It is characterized by the loss of the ability to produce language (spoken or written).

Question 5

Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas

Answer 5

The 1954 U.S. Supreme Court case that held it was illegal under the Fourteenth
Amendment of the U.S. Constitution to arbitrarily discriminate against any group of people.

Question 6

Ceiling

Answer 6

During testing, the ceiling is the point at which the student has made a predetermined number of errors (as per the manual), and therefore, all other items stop being administered because it is assumed that the student will continue to get the answers wrong.

Question 7

Cluttering

Answer 7

A speech disorder where the speech is rapid, disordered and lacks fluency. It is a common occurrence in children during their initial speech development when they find difficulty finding the right words to express themselves.

Question 8

Curriculum-based assessment (CBA)

Answer 8

Assessment that is related to both IEP goals and the curriculum. A type of direct evaluation. “Tests” of performance in this case come directly from the curriculum. It is measurement that uses direct observation and recording of a student’s performance in the curriculum as a basis for gathering information to make instructional decision.

Question 9

Curriculum-based measurement (CBM)

Answer 9

Curriculum-based measurement (CBM) uses repeated measures from the student’s curriculum to evaluate the effectiveness of instruction and instructional changes to lead to more effective teaching methods and improved student achievement. It is an assessment method that involves timing tasks and then charting performance.

Question 10

Dynamic assessment (DA)

Answer 10

An assessment focused on student learning and performance over time, and comparisons are made between a student’s current and past performance. Additionally, dynamic assessment is concerned with learning what a student is able to do when provided supports in the form of prompts, cues, or physical supports, some of which naturally exist in the environment.

Question 11

Education for All Handicapped Children Act

Answer 11

Also referred to as P.L. 94-142, the EHA was the federal law that set forth procedural safeguards for children with disabilities and their parents. This federal law required states to provide a free appropriate public education for students with disabilities no matter how serious the disability. P.L. 94-142 was the first law to clearly define the rights of students with disabilities.

Question 12

Education of the Handicapped Act Amendments of 1986

Answer 12

These amendments, which are also known as the Early Intervention Amendments to Public Law 94-142, extended FAPE to all students aged 3 to 5 by October 1991 in all states that wanted to participate
(all 50 wanted to and did, even states that do not have public schooling for students at those ages). Provisions were also included to help states develop early intervention programs for infants and toddlers with disabilities.

Question 13

Eligibility Committee packet

Answer 13

An organized and thorough packet of required forms and information necessary for a presentation to the eligibility committee of a child with a suspected disability.

Question 14

Equity

Answer 14

Refers to whether an assessment accommodates special sensory, motor, cultural, or other needs rather than penalize children who have such needs.

Question 15

Evoked response audiometry

Answer 15

A method of testing hearing ability at the level of the brainstem and auditory cortex. This measure can be used with infants who are suspected of being deaf.

Question 16

Formal assessments

Answer 16

Assessment measures that assume a single set of expectations for all students and come with prescribed criteria for scoring and interpretation. Formal assessments are formal ways of finding out how much a student has learned or improved during the instructional period. These include exams, diagnostic tests, achievement tests, screening and intelligence tests, and others.

Question 17

Fourteenth Amendment

Answer 17

The Equal Protection Clause of the U.S. Constitution, which states that all people must have equal protection under the law (“no state shall . . . deny to any person . . . the equal protection of the laws.”).

Question 18

Functional behavioral assessment (FBA)

Answer 18

The process of determining why a student engages in challenging behavior and how the student’s behavior relates to the environment. It is a problem-solving strategy utilized by educators, parents, and agency personnel to design an effective plan for helping children learn and choose more appropriate behaviors.

Question 19

Global aphasia

Answer 19

Global aphasia results from damage to extensive portions of the language areas of the brain. Individuals with global aphasia have severe communication difficulties and may be extremely limited in their ability to speak or comprehend language.

Question 20

Impedance audiometry

Answer 20

Impedance audiometry is performed by physicians to determine the functioning of the middle ear. It helps detect pressure changes in the middle ear.

Question 21

Independent Educational Evaluation (IEE)

Answer 21

A full and comprehensive individual evaluation conducted by an outside professional or agency not involved in the education of the child.

Question 22

Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP)

Answer 22

The IFSP documents and guides the early intervention process for children with disabilities and their families. This written plan is developed with the family. The information gathered during the evaluation process is used to identify all of the services the child needs and services the family needs to enhance the development of their child. The IFSP identifies and describes the services that are going to be provided and who will provide the services. The IFSP also identifies the service coordinator who will assist families throughout the child’s eligibility.

Question 23

Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act

Answer 23

The federal law that guarantees a “free and appropriate education,” including special education and related service programming, to all children and youth with disabilities who require it. It ensures that the rights of children and youth with disabilities and their parents or guardians are protected (e.g., fairness, appropriateness, and due process in decision making about providing special education and related services to children and youth with disabilities).

Question 24

Itinerant services

Answer 24

Services subcontracted by a school district and provided by outside agencies.

Question 25

Latency recording

Answer 25

A type of observational recording where an observer determines the amount of time between a given stimulus for the child and the response (e.g., the time it takes a student to get out a pencil after the teacher says, “Take out your pencil”).