Commonly Used
Acronyms/ Abbreviations
What does that mean?
Special Education has a language of its own.
As you participate in your child’s special education process, you may feel that everyone has started speaking in a foreign language during meetings. While it may seem like a foreign language, it is a language of initials (acronyms). Acronyms are used often and it is assumed that everyone is familiar with the meaning.
A list of special education and disability abbreviations and acronyms is below, in the hopes that it may bring more understanding and clarity.
A
AAC: Alternative Augmentative Communication
ABA: Applied Behavioral Analysis
ADA: Americans with Disabilities Act
ADD/ADHD: Attention Deficit/Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
ADLs: Activities of Daily Living
APE: Adaptive Physical Education
ASD: Autism Spectrum Disorder
ASL: American Sign Language
AT: Assistive Technology
AYP: Adequate Yearly Progress
B
BD: Behavioral Disorder
BIP: Behavioral Intervention Plan
BOE: Board of Education
C
CBA: Curriculum Based Assessment
CCSS: Common Core State Standards
CDA: Child Development Associate
CD: Cognitive Delay
CF: Cystic Fibrosis
COTA: Certified Occupational Therapist Assistant
CP: Cerebral Palsy
CST: Child Study Team
D
DB: Deaf-Blind
DD: Developmental Delay
DOE: Department of Education
DOH: Department of Health
DPH: Due Process Hearing
D: Down Syndrome
DSM: Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders by the American Psychiatric Association
E
ECE: Early Childhood Education
EHDI: Early Hearing Detection and Intervention Program
EI: Early Intervention
ESD: Extended School Day
ESEA: Elementary and Secondary Education Act
ESL: English as a Second Language
ESY: Extended School Year
F
FAPE: Free Appropriate Public Education
FBA: Functional Behavioral Assessment
FERPA: Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act
FM: Focused Monitoring
G
GE: General Education
GT: Gifted and Talented
H
HI: Hearing Impaired
HQT: Highly Qualified Teacher
I
IA: Instructional Assistant
ID: Intellectual Disabilities
IDEA: Individuals with Disabilities Education Act
IEE: Individualized Educational Evaluation
IEP: Individualized Education Program
IFSP: Individualized Family Service Plan
IQ: Intelligence Quotient
ITP: Individualized Transition Plan
L
LD: Learning Disability
LEA: Local Education Agency
LLD: Learning and Language Disability
LRE: Least Restrictive Environment
M
MD: Muscular Dystrophy
MD: Multiple Disabilities
MH: Multiply Handicapped
N
NCLB: No Child Left Behind Act (Elementary and Secondary Education Act)
NEA: National Education Association
NECTAC: National Early Childhood and Technical Assistance Center
O
OCD: Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
ODD: Oppositional Defiant Disorder
OHI: Other Health Impairment
OI: Orthopedic Impairment
O & M: Orientation and Mobility Services
OT: Occupational Therapy
P
PALS: Peer-Assisted Learning System
PARCC: Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers
PASS: Plan for Achieving Self-Support
PBS: Positive Behavioral Supports
PD: Physical Disability
PDD: Pervasive Developmental Disorder
PEI: Spanish acronym for the Individualized Education Program (Plan Educativo Individualizado)
PLEP or PLP: Present Level of Educational Performance or Present Level of Performance
PP: Paraprofessional
PS: Preschool
PT: Physical Therapy
R
RDA: Results-Driven Accountability
RS: Related Services
RTI: Response to Intervention
S
SA: Self-Assessment
SAS: Supplementary Aids and Services
SAT: Student Assistance Team
SB: Spina Bifida
SE: Special Education
Section 504: Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act
SED: Serious Emotional Disturbance
SI: Sensory Integration
SLD: Specific Learning Disability
SLI: Speech/Language Impairment
SLP: Speech/Language Pathologist
SSDI: Social Security Disability Income
SSI: Supplemental Security Income
T
TBI: Traumatic Brain Injury
TDD: Telecommunication Devices for the Deaf
TS: Tourette Syndrome
U
USDOE: United States Department of Education
V
VI: Visual Impairment
Voc Ed: Vocational Education
VR: Vocational Rehabilitation