There are several categories of disabilities ranging from a mild learning disability to a severe intellectual disability. Describing the exact nature of students’ disabilities can be difficult. Part of the reason for this is because disabilities are essentially ambiguous.
Naming and describing ‘types’ of them implies that disabilities are relatively fixed, stable and distinct, like different kinds of fruit or vegetables.
As many teachers discover, though, the reality is somewhat different. The behaviour and qualities of a particular student with a disability can be hard to categorise. The student may be challenged not only by the disability, but also by experiences common to all students, disabled or not.
Any particular disability, furthermore, poses problems more in some situations than in others.
Examples:
1. A student with a reading difficulty may have trouble in a language arts class but not in a physical education class.
2. A student with a hearing impairment may have more trouble ‘hearing’ a topic that he dislikes compared to one that he likes.
As official descriptions of types or categories of disabilities overlook these complexities, they risk stereotyping the real, live people to whom they are applied (Green, et al., 2005). The simplifications might not be a serious problem if the resulting stereotypes are complimentary, e.g. most people would not mind being called a ‘genius’ even if the description is not always true.
Stereotypes about disabilities, however, are usually stigmatising, not complimentary.
Categories of disabilities do serve useful purposes by giving teachers, parents and other professionals a language or frame of reference for talking about disabilities. They can also help educators when arranging special support services for students, since a student has to ‘have’ an identifiable, nameable need if professionals are to provide help.
Educational authorities have therefore continued to use categories (or ‘labels’) to classify disabilities in spite of expressing continuing concern about whether the practice hurts students’ self-esteem or standing in the eyes of peers (Biklen & Kliewer, 2006).
For classroom teachers, the best strategy may be simply to understand how categories of disabilities are defined, while also keeping their limitations in mind and being ready to explain their limitations to parents or others who use the labels inappropriately.
The disabilities encountered by teachers most frequently are:
• Learning Disabilities
• Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
• Intellectual Disabilities
• Behavioural Disorders
• Physical Disabilities and Sensory Impairments
English
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Francese
Portoghese brasiliano
Is there a sub-divided list for disabilities categories?
The categorisation of student disabilities should focus not on the disability but define and exploit the abilities.
The need to "label" or categorise a students disability is surely wrong as there will be students who are not a perfect fit into any single category.
Is important has in mind that the people with disabilities have other abilities and potentials too and not difficulties only! In the classroom is important the teachers make good use of these too and not leave the disabilities label to be more important than disabilities student. But, is important too the teachers know which the correct name of the disability of the student for haven´t difficulties for understands his limitations and possibilities and can inform his parents about it and help them with his education.
I strongly believe that with the help of IEP the student/child will overcome and advance which is the goal of the plan.
What are the main disabilities? How the categories of disabilities are define? I would like to know that, as nowadays we have a great number os students being diagnosed with some type of disability.