Navigating Educational Acronyms

How to better understand the complex language of education.

Educators, especially special educators, argue that we likely navigate more acronyms than any other professional field. A close friend of mine used to keep a notebook list of all of the acronyms we encountered, and the list eventually became pages long! I can only imagine being a parent, who wants nothing more to be included and support their child’s education - yet encounters so many unknown terms that they feel lost and discouraged - especially when the educators on the IEP team use the edu-jargon assuming everyone else knows what’s what.  A full list of federally adopted acronyms in education (all five pages!) can be found on the US Department of Education’s website. 

Let’s crack the code, and lay out some of the most commonly used terms and acronyms in education jargon today. 

LEA (Local Education Agency): Typically refers to the public school district that operates schools within a specific geographic area.

SEA (State Education Agency): The state-level department or agency responsible for overseeing and administering public education within a particular state.

ESSA (Every Student Succeeds Act): The current main United States federal law that governs K-12 public education, replacing No Child Left Behind (NCLB) and providing states with more flexibility in their accountability systems.

SEL (Social and Emotional Learning): The process through which children and adults acquire and effectively apply the knowledge, attitudes, and skills necessary to understand and manage emotions, set and achieve positive goals, feel and show empathy for others, establish and maintain positive relationships, and make responsible decisions.  

PBIS (Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports): A proactive, school-wide framework used to create a positive and safe school climate and improve student behavior.

CCR (College and Career Ready): Refers to the skills, knowledge, and dispositions that students need to be successful in post-secondary education and the workforce.

CTE (Career and Technical Education): Programs that provide students with the academic and technical skills required for specific careers and industries.

Additional, and more specific terms and acronyms exist when students may require additional support in school. Here are some specific to special education and/or interventions:

IEP (Individualized Education Program): As mentioned before, this is a cornerstone of special education. It's a legally binding document outlining a student with a disability's unique educational needs, measurable goals, and the specific services and supports they will receive to achieve those goals.

FAPE (Free Appropriate Public Education): This is a fundamental right under IDEA, ensuring that students with disabilities receive special education and related services tailored to their needs, at no cost to their parents.

IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act): The primary U.S. federal law governing special education. It ensures that children with disabilities have access to a free appropriate public education and outlines the rights of these students and their parents.

LRE (Least Restrictive Environment): A principle within IDEA that students with disabilities should be educated alongside their non-disabled peers to the maximum extent appropriate. Special classes, separate schooling, or other removal from the regular educational environment should only occur when the nature or severity of the disability is such that education in regular classes with the use of supplementary aids and services cannot be achieved satisfactorily.  

OT (Occupational Therapy): A related service that focuses on helping students develop the skills they need for daily living and academic tasks, such as fine motor skills, sensory processing, and self-care.

PT (Physical Therapy): Another related service that addresses gross motor skills, mobility, balance, and coordination.

SLP (Speech-Language Pathologist): A professional who works with students who have communication disorders, including articulation, fluency, voice, and language.

AT (Assistive Technology): Any item, piece of equipment, or product system, whether acquired commercially off the shelf, modified, or customized, that is used to increase, maintain, or improve the functional capabilities of a child with a disability.  

OHI (Other Health Impairment): A disability category under IDEA that includes conditions such as ADHD, epilepsy, diabetes, and others that limit strength, vitality, or alertness.

SLD (Specific Learning Disability): A disability category under IDEA that refers to a disorder in one or more of the basic psychological processes involved in understanding or in using language, spoken or written, which may manifest itself in the imperfect ability to listen, think, speak, read, write, spell, or to do mathematical calculations. This includes conditions such as dyslexia, dysgraphia, and dyscalculia.  

ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder): A neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by persistent deficits in social communication and social interaction and restricted, repetitive patterns of behavior, interests, or activities.  

PBIS (Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports): While used school-wide, it's a critical framework in special education for creating positive and supportive learning environments and addressing challenging behaviors.

RTI (Response to Intervention): Also used in general education, but particularly important in special education for identifying students who may have learning disabilities and providing tiered interventions.

UDL (Universal Design for Learning): A framework for designing instruction and materials to be flexible and accessible to all learners, including those with disabilities.

Many of these are universally used, but some change by state or district - and many are evolving! When I first started working in Special Education, I taught a class for students in a SED (Severely Emotionally Disturbed) program. This acronym has evolved to ED (Emotionally Disturbed) and is now often referred to as ED (Emotionally Disabled). 

You don’t need to feel intimidated by edu-speak! If reading a document or participating in a meeting, you have the right to ask for clarification. Assessment reports are often the most intimidating for families - filled with complex quantitative and qualitative measures which take years of training to understand. Parents frequently nod their heads in meetings as if they fully understand what’s presented to them, but how can they? Of course…your advocate can help you understand and contextualize these acronyms and terms - yet another reason to make sure you work with someone who has experience in the field.  

U.S. Department of Education acronym list:

https://www.ed.gov/sites/ed/files/about/inits/ed/edfacts/eden/ess/acronym-list.pdf