Some Common

Disorders/Disabil
ities
• Global Developmental Delay
• Hearing Impairments
• Mental Retardation
• Down Syndrome • Visual Impairments
• Autism • Deaf-blindness
• Specific Learning Disabilities
• Communication Disorder
• Attention Deficit
Hyperactivity Disorder • Multiple Disabilities
• Conduct Disorder
• Orthopedic Impairments
• Oppositional Defiant
Disorder • Serious Emotional
• Traumatic Brain Injury Disturbance
• Cerebral Palsy
• Tourette Syndrome
• Other Health
• Obsessive Compulsive
Impairments
Disorder
Global Developmental Delay
• Implies that the child has delays in all areas of development. A child
with GCD is one who is considered to have significantly lower
intellectual functioning than their peers. To be diagnosed under GCD,
the child must also be significantly limited in at least two
developmental domains, including, gross motor, vision and fine
motor, communication (i.e. speech, hearing, language) and social
skills.
• GCD is normally attributed to the genetic abnormalities including
development of the brain and spinal cord.
• It has been linked to other life events including pre-mature birth,
infections and other environmental factors.
Global Developmental Delay
•Typical symptoms:
•The child is late in sitting up, crawling, walking
•Limited reasoning or conceptual abilities
•Fine/gross motor difficulties
•Poor social skills/judgment
•Aggressive behavior as a coping skill
•Communication problems
Mental Retardation
• “Mental retardation refers to significantly subaverage general
intellectual functioning resulting in or associated with concurrent
impairments in adaptive behavior & manifested during the
developmental period” (American Association on Mental
Deficiency,1983).
• Significant subaverage is defined as an Intelligence Quotient (IQ) of
70 or below on standardized measures of intelligence. The upper limit
is intended as a guideline & could be extended to 75 or more,
depending on the reliability of the intelligence test used.
Down Syndrome
• Is a form of mental retardation resulting from a genetic abnormality –
an extra twenty-first chromosome. Children with this condition have
forty-seven, instead of the normal forty-six chromosomes.
Autism
• Is a very serious lifelong developmental disorder characterized by
severe impairment in the development of verbal and nonverbal
communication skills, marked impairment in reciprocal social
interaction (a lack of responsiveness to or interest in the people), and
almost nonexistent imaginative activity. Also known as infantile
autism or Kanner’s syndrome.
Specific Learning Disability (SLD)
• A severe learning problem due to a disorder in one or more of the
basic psychological processes involved in acquiring, organizing, or
expressing information that manifests itself in schools as an impaired
ability to listen, reason, speak, read, write, spell or do curriculum.
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
(ADHD)
• With a persistent pattern of problems in the areas of inattention,
hyperactivity and impulsivity that is more frequent and severe than is
typically observed in individuals at a comparable level of
development and also significantly inappropriate for their age levels.
Conduct Disorder
• Characterized by persistent patterns of behavior that intrudes and
violates the basic rights of others without concern or fear of
implications.
 Conduct
Disorder
• Conduct disorder is a serious behavioural
and emotional disorder that can occur in
children and teens. A child with this
disorder may display a pattern of
disruptive and violent behavior and have
problems following rules.

19
Types of Conduct Disorder
Conduct disorder are categorized according to
the age at which symptoms of the disorder
first occur:
1. Childhood onset 2. Unspecified onset
occurs when the means the age at
signs of conduct which conduct
disorder appear disorder first
before age 10. occurs is unknown
3. Adolescent onset occurs
when the signs of
conduct disorder
appear during the teenage
years. 20
Symptoms of Conduct
Disorder
Aggressive Conduct
• intimidating or bullying
others
• physically harming people
or animals on purpose
• committing rape
• using a weapon

21
 Symptoms of Conduct
Disorder
Deceitful Behavior
• Deceitful behavior may
include:
• lying
• breaking and entering
• stealing
• forgery

22
 Symptoms of Conduct
Disorder
• Destructive Behavior
• Destructive conduct may include arson
and other intentional destruction of
property

23
Symptoms of Conduct
Disorder
Violation of Rules
• Violation of rules may include:
• skipping school
• running away from home
• drug and alcohol use
• sexual behavior at a very young age

24
 What Causes Conduct
Disorder?
• Genetic Factors • Psychosocial
• Organic factors - Factors
brain damage • child abuse
• Biochemical • a dysfunctional
factors family
• parents who
abuse drugs or
alcohol
• Poverty
• Parental rejection
25
Who Is at Risk for Conduct
Disorder?
• Being male • Drugs abuse or alcohol
• Living in an urban • Dysfunctional home
environment or poverty environment
• Having A family history of • Having a history of
conduct disorder or mental experiencing traumatic
illness events
• Having other psychiatric • Being abused or
disorders neglected

26
 Diagnos
is
• Complete history
• Educational history ( to determine
cognitive deficit , learning disabilities or
problems in intellectual functioning )
• Neurological examination

27
 Treatment
Modalities
Drugs may Social skill
include – training –
• anticonvulsants • Role playing
• Lithium • Modelling
• Antipsychotics
• Shaping
Psychotherapy of
Guidance and behaviou
counseling r

28
Oppositional Defiant Disorder
• Characterized by patterns of negativistic, hostile and defiant
behaviors with peers as well as adults, and with argumentative
behaviors towards adults. It is considered less serious than conduct
disorder because of absence of serious behaviors that violate the
basic rights of others.
Traumatic Brain Injury
• An insult to the brain, not a degenerative or congenital nature but
caused by an external physical force, that may produce a diminished
or altered state of consciousness, which results in impairment of
cognitive abilities or physical functioning. It can also result in the
disturbance of behavioral or emotional functioning. These
impairments may be either temporary or permanent.
Cerebral Palsy
• Cerebral palsy is a group of disorders that affect movement and muscle tone or posture.
It's caused by damage that occurs to the immature, developing brain, most often before
birth.
• Signs and symptoms appear during infancy or preschool years. In general, cerebral palsy
causes impaired movement associated with exaggerated reflexes, floppiness or spasticity
of the limbs and trunk, unusual posture, involuntary movements, unsteady walking, or
some combination of these.
• People with cerebral palsy can have problems swallowing and commonly have eye muscle
imbalance, in which the eyes don't focus on the same object. They also might have
reduced range of motion at various joints of their bodies due to muscle stiffness.
• The cause of cerebral palsy and its effect on function vary greatly. Some people with
cerebral palsy can walk; others need assistance. Some people have intellectual disabilities,
but others do not. Epilepsy, blindness or deafness also might be present. Cerebral palsy is
a lifelong disorder. There is no cure, but treatments can help improve function.
Symptoms
• Signs and symptoms of cerebral palsy can vary greatly from person to person. Cerebral palsy can
affect the whole body, or it might be limited primarily to one or two limbs, or one side of the body.
Generally, signs and symptoms include problems with movement and coordination, speech and
eating, development, and other problems.
Movement and coordination
• Stiff muscles and exaggerated reflexes (spasticity), the most common movement disorder
• Variations in muscle tone, such as being either too stiff or too floppy
• Stiff muscles with normal reflexes (rigidity)
• Lack of balance and muscle coordination (ataxia)
• Tremors or jerky involuntary movements
• Slow, writhing movements
• Favoring one side of the body, such as only reaching with one hand or dragging a leg while crawling
• Difficulty walking, such as walking on toes, a crouched gait, a scissors-like gait with knees crossing, a
wide gait or an asymmetrical gait
• Difficulty with fine motor skills, such as buttoning clothes or picking up utensils
Speech and eating
• Delays in speech development
• Difficulty speaking
• Difficulty with sucking, chewing or eating
• Excessive drooling or problems with swallowing
Development
• Delays in reaching motor skills milestones, such as sitting up or crawling
• Learning difficulties
• Intellectual disabilities
• Delayed growth, resulting in smaller size than would be expected
Other problems
• Damage to the brain can contribute to other neurological problems, such as:
• Seizures (epilepsy)
• Difficulty hearing
• Problems with vision and abnormal eye movements
• Abnormal touch or pain sensations
• Bladder and bowel problems, including constipation and urinary incontinence
• Mental health conditions, such as emotional disorders and behavioral problems
Speech and eating
• Delays in speech development
• Difficulty speaking
• Difficulty with sucking, chewing or eating
• Excessive drooling or problems with swallowing
Development
• Delays in reaching motor skills milestones, such as sitting up or crawling
• Learning difficulties
• Intellectual disabilities
• Delayed growth, resulting in smaller size than would be expected
Other problems
• Damage to the brain can contribute to other neurological problems, such as:
• Seizures (epilepsy)
• Difficulty hearing
• Problems with vision and abnormal eye movements
• Abnormal touch or pain sensations
• Bladder and bowel problems, including constipation and urinary incontinence
• Mental health conditions, such as emotional disorders and behavioral problems
Risk factors
• A number of factors are associated with an increased risk of cerebral palsy.
• Maternal health
• Certain infections or toxic exposures during pregnancy can significantly increase cerebral palsy risk to the
baby. Inflammation triggered by infection or fever can damage the unborn baby's developing brain.
• Cytomegalovirus. This common virus causes flu-like symptoms and can lead to birth defects if a mother has
her first active infection during pregnancy.
• German measles (rubella). This viral infection can be prevented with a vaccine.
• Herpes. This infection can be passed from mother to child during pregnancy, affecting the womb and
placenta.
• Syphilis. This is a sexually transmitted bacterial infection.
• Toxoplasmosis. This infection is caused by a parasite found in contaminated food, soil and the feces of
infected cats.
• Zika virus infection. This infection is spread through mosquito bites and can affect fetal brain development.
• Intrauterine infections. This includes infections of the placenta or fetal membranes.
• Exposure to toxins. One example is exposure to methyl mercury.
• Other conditions. Other conditions affecting the mother that can slightly increase the risk of cerebral palsy
include thyroid problems, preeclampsia or seizures.
Infant Illness
• Illnesses in a newborn baby that can greatly increase the risk of cerebral palsy include:
• Bacterial meningitis. This bacterial infection causes inflammation in the membranes surrounding the brain and
spinal cord.
• Viral encephalitis. This viral infection similarly causes inflammation in the membranes surrounding the brain
and spinal cord.
• Severe or untreated jaundice. Jaundice appears as a yellowing of the skin. The condition occurs when certain
byproducts of "used" blood cells aren't filtered from the bloodstream.
• Bleeding into the brain. This condition is commonly caused by the baby having a stroke in the womb or in early
infancy.
Factors of Pregnancy and Birth
• While the potential contribution from each is limited, additional pregnancy or birth factors associated with
increased cerebral palsy risk include:
• Low birth weight. Babies who weigh less than 5.5 pounds (2.5 kilograms) are at higher risk of developing
cerebral palsy. This risk increases as birth weight drops.
• Multiple babies. Cerebral palsy risk increases with the number of babies sharing the uterus. The risk also can be
related to the likelihood of premature birth and low birth weight. If one or more of the babies die, the survivors'
risk of cerebral palsy increases.
• Premature birth. Babies born prematurely are at higher risk of cerebral palsy. The earlier a baby is born, the
greater the cerebral palsy risk.
• Delivery complications. Problems during labor and delivery may increase the risk of cerebral palsy.
Tourette Syndrome
• An inherited neurological disorder that develops in childhood
characterized by tics – involuntary, rapid, sudden, repetitive muscle
movements or vocalizations and often accompanied by other
disorders (e.g. ADHD and OCD), lack of impulse control and other
behavioral problems.
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
• The main characteristics associated with this disorder are persistent
obsessions (persistent thoughts, impulses or images) or compulsions
(repetitive and intentional acts) that significantly interfere with the
individual’s normal daily social, educational, occupational, or
environmental routines.
Hearing Impairments
• Also referred to as “hard of hearing” or “deaf”
Visual Impairments
• Loss of vision that, even when corrected, affects educational
performance. It may be mild to moderate to severe in nature.
Learners who are blind are unable to read print and usually learn to
read and write using Braille. Individuals with low vision can usually
read when the print is enlarged sufficiently.
Deaf-blindness
• Individuals in this category have moderate to severe impairments in
both vision and hearing. This is included as a separate category
because of the unique learning needs presented, and specialized
services required.
Communication Disorder
• A disorder of articulation, fluency, voice or language that adversely
affects educational performance; or a severe communication deficit
that may require the use of an augmentative or alternative
communication system such as a sign language, communication
boards, or electronic devices.
Multiple Disabilities
• These include any individuals with two or more disabling conditions.
However, this category often includes mental retardation as one of
the categories, and is usually used when disorders are serious and
interrelated to such an extent that it is difficult to identify the primary
area of disability. It does not include deaf-blindness.
Orthopedic Impairments
• Associated with physical conditions that seriously impair mobility or
motor activity. This category includes individuals with cerebral palsy
or disease of the skeleton or muscles, and accident victims.
Serious Emotional Disturbance (SED)
• Includes individuals with a condition in one or more of the following
areas during an extended period of time:
• Inability to learn, not due to intellectual, sensory or health problems;
• Inability to build and maintain social relationships with peers and teachers;
• Inappropriate behavior;
• General pervasive depression or unhappiness;
• Tendency to develop fears or physical symptoms associated with school and
personal problems; and
• schizophrenia
Other Health Impairments
• Have limited strengths, vitality, or alertness because of chronic or
acute health problems. Conditions that fall into this category include
heart conditions, asthma, Tourette Syndrome, ADHD, diabetes and so
on.
Basic Terms in Special Education:
Developmental Disability,
Impairment or Disability,
Handicap, and
at Risk
Developmental Disability
• Refers to a severe chronic disability of a child five years of age or
older that is:
• Attributable to mental or physical impairment or a combination of mental
and physical impairments;
• Manifested before the person attains age 22;
• Likely to continue indefinitely;
• Results in substantial functional limitations in three or more of the areas of
major life activities such as self-care, language, learning……
• Reflects the person’s need for a combination and sequence of special care,
treatment or other services that are lifelong or of extended duration and are
individually planned and coordinated.
Impairment or disability
• Refers to reduced function or loss of a specific part of the body or
organ. A person may have disabilities such as blindness or low vision,
deafness, or hard of hearing condition, mental retardation, learning
disabilities, communication disorders, emotional and behavioral
disorders, physical and health impairments and severe disabilities.
These disabilities or impairments limit or restrict the normal functions
of a particular organ of the body.
Handicap
• Refers to a problem a person with a disability or impairment
encounters when interacting with people, events and physical aspects
of the environment.
At risk
• Refers to children who have greater chances than other children to
develop a disability. The child is in danger of substantial delay
because of medical, biological, or environmental factors if early
intervention services are not provided.
Brief History of SPED in the
Philippines
• The interest to educate Filipino children with
disabilities was expressed more than a century ago in
1902 during the American regime.
• The General Superintendent of Education, Mr. Fred
Atkinson, reported to the Secretary of Public
Instruction that deaf and blind children were found in
a census of school-aged children in Manila and nearby
provinces.
• He proposed that these children be enrolled in school
like the other children.
• However it was not until 1907-1908 when the special
education program formally started in the country.
• SPED in the Philippines started in 1908 where the
School for the Deaf (in Harrison, Pasay City) was
established and marked the official government
recognition of its obligations towards the education
of the handicapped children.
• Republic Act No. 3562 (June 1963) An Act to Promote
the Education of the Blind in the Philippines which
established teacher training course in the Philippine
National School for the Blind.
• Philippine Normal College offered courses in SPED for
teaching the blind in 1964 wherein 14 elementary
school teachers were selected fro training.
• In 1952, a pilot school for the Special Education (at
the Philippine Women’s University) of the mentally
handicapped children was started. All children from
this school were transferred to the Special Child Study
Center in Cubao, Q.C. in 1957.