Chapter 1: Understanding Exceptionalities

Defintion of Terms

Disorder

• Disturbance in normal functioning (mental, physical, or psychological)

• Medical diagnosis

• General abnormality

• ADHD

Impairment

• State of being diminished, weakened, or damaged (especially mentally or physically)

• Deficits in functioning — disorder creating a barrier to typical functioning

• In ADHD, a person’s executive functioning is impaired

Disability

• Condition resulting from a loss of functioning; or difficulties in learning and social adjustment that significantly interfere with normal growth and development

• In ADHD, you have restricted ability in performing something — they are unable to pay attention for long periods of time, control impulsive tendencies, inability to sit still for long periods of time

Handicap

• Limitation imposed on a person by the environment and the person’s capacity to cope with that limitation

• In ADHD, the handicap is the person’s academics if they are not given a specialized education plan. If they are put in mainstream education, they will have a handicap because the environment couldn’t accommodate the impairment