Study Notes on Intellectual Disabilities

Chapter 8: Intellectual Disabilities

Definition of Intellectual Disability

  • According to AAIDD (2010), intellectual disability is characterized by:

    • Significant limitations in intellectual functioning.

    • Significant limitations in adaptive behavior, expressed in:

    • Conceptual adaptive skills

    • Social adaptive skills

    • Practical adaptive skills

    • Condition must originate before the age of 18.

Classification of Intellectual Disability by IQ Level

  • TABLE 8.1: Classification based on IQ Scores

    • Mild Intellectual Disability (MID): IQ 50-55 to 70-75

    • Moderate Intellectual Disability (MOID): IQ 35-40 to 50-55

    • Severe Intellectual Disability (SID): IQ 20-25 to 35-40

    • Profound Intellectual Disability (PID): IQ below 20-25

Intensities of Support

  • Types of support needed based on:

    • Duration and frequency of need

    • Settings in which support is needed

    • Resources required for support (not based on IQ score)

    • Categories include:

    • Intermittent: fluctuating needs

    • Limited: requires support in specific areas

    • Extensive: pervasive support needs across multiple environments

    • Pervasive: constant and high levels of support across all areas of life.

Causes of Intellectual Disabilities

  • There are hundreds of causes of intellectual disabilities.

  • Over 750 genetic disorders are associated with intellectual disabilities.

  • X-linked disorders, specifically Fragile X, are the most prevalent genetic cause leading to intellectual disability.

  • Causes may be categorized as biomedical, social, behavioral, or educational.

Learning Characteristics

  • Intermittent Needs:

    • Limited support needs, learning rates are 40% to 70% of those without intellectual disabilities.

  • Extensive Needs:

    • Pervasive support needs, often incapable of traditional schooling, focus on mastering basic life skills and communication skills.

Social and Emotional Characteristics

  • Individuals display similar ranges of social behavior and emotional responses as typical children, but may show:

    • More frequent inappropriate responses to social and emotional situations.

    • Difficulty generalizing information from one context to another.

    • Challenges in learning from past experiences which hampers preparation for new situations.

    • Often lack full comprehension of expectations, resulting in inappropriate responses.

Physical and Motor Characteristics

  • Relative differences in the physical and motor domain are minimal.

  • Greater intellectual deficits correlate with greater lags in development.

  • Common physical characteristics include:

    • Walking and talking at later stages than peers.

    • Generally shorter stature.

    • Increased susceptibility to physical problems and illnesses.

    • Extensive support needs indicate being 4+ years behind peers on physical and motor assessments.

Down Syndrome

  • Most recognized genetic condition associated with intellectual disability.

  • Incidence: 1 in 700 children born with Down syndrome.

  • Associated with more than 80 clinical characteristics and numerous physical attributes.

  • Increased risk for specific medical problems.

Organizational Methods

  • Learning Stations: Structured areas to facilitate learning.

  • Differentiated Instruction: Tailored teaching strategies to meet individual student needs.

  • Universal Design for Learning (UDL): Framework to improve teaching and learning for all individuals.

  • Peer Instruction and Cross-Age Tutoring: Utilizing older peers to assist learning.

  • Community-Based Instruction: Learning that integrates community settings.

  • Partial Participation: Involvement in activities without full commitment.

Instructional Methods

  • Concrete Experiences: Learning through hands-on activities.

  • Data-Based Teaching: Use of data to inform instructional practices.

  • Ecological Task Analysis: Breaking down tasks to make them manageable for students.

  • Behavior Management: Addressing and guiding student behavior appropriately.

  • Moving from familiar to unfamiliar concepts/practices.

  • Ensuring Consistency and Predictability in teaching.

  • Choice Making: Involving learners in decisions about their education.

  • Activity Modifications: Adapting tasks to suit varying abilities and skills.

Activities

  • Activities should be selected to be:

    • Popular and available in the community.

    • Appropriate to the cognitive developmental stages of students.

    • Chronologically age-appropriate while considering functional abilities.

Special Olympics

  • Mission: Provides year-round sport training and athletic competitions in Olympic-type sports for children and adults with intellectual disabilities.

  • Rules are adapted from international and national federations, with minimal modifications.

  • Offers over 30 events targeting all ability levels.

Special Olympics Events Include

  • Sports List:

    • Alpine skiing

    • Athletics

    • Badminton

    • Basketball

    • Bocce

    • Bowling

    • Competitive cheer

    • Cricket

    • Cross-country skiing

    • Cycling

    • Dancesport

    • Equestrian

    • Figure skating

    • Floorball

    • Floor hockey

    • Football

    • Golf

    • Gymnastics (artistic and rhythmic)

    • Handball

    • Judo

    • Kayaking

    • Motor activity training program

    • Netball

    • Open water swimming

    • Powerlifting

    • Roller skating

    • Sailing

    • Short track speed skating

    • Snowboarding

    • Snowshoeing

    • Softball

    • Swimming

    • Table tennis

    • Tennis

    • Triathlon

    • Volleyball

Why Special Olympics Is Unique

  • No fees are charged to athletes or families.

  • Provides sports opportunities for individuals across all ability levels.

  • Divisions ensure equitable competition.

  • All participants receive awards, promoting inclusivity and recognition.

  • There is a random draw for advancement to higher levels of competition, encouraging fair opportunities.

Special Olympics Young Athletes Program

  • Targets children with intellectual disabilities aged 2 to 7.

  • Aims to develop motor skills and eye-hand coordination.

  • Currently impacting over 50,000 children annually.

Special Olympics Unified Sports

  • Provides inclusive sporting opportunities.

  • Teams comprise equal numbers of athletes with and without intellectual disabilities.

  • Competitions held at local, regional, county, and state levels.

  • Over 1.4 million people participate in Unified Sports worldwide.

Paralympic Games for Athletes with Intellectual Disabilities

  • Equivalent to the Olympic Games, including varied disabilities:

    • Spinal cord injuries

    • Amputations

    • Blindness

    • Deafness

    • Cerebral palsy

    • Intellectual disabilities

    • Les autres (others)

  • Held every four years following the Olympic Games, at the same venues.

Safe Participation

  • Caution required for atlantoaxial instability in individuals with Down syndrome.

  • Other common conditions in individuals with intellectual disabilities include:

    • Hypotonia: reduced muscle tone

    • Cardiopathy: heart conditions.