2016 Oklahoma Statutes
Title 70. Schools
§70-18-109.5. Definitions.

70 OK Stat § 70-18-109.5 (2016) What's This?

A. As used in Sections 18-201 and 18-201.1 of this title:

1. "Vision impaired" means a visual impairment which, even with correction, adversely affects a child's educational performance;

2. "Children with learning disabilities" means a disorder in one or more of the basic psychological processes involved in understanding or in using language, written or spoken, which may manifest itself in an imperfect ability to listen, think, speak, read, write, spell or to do mathematical calculations. The term includes such conditions as perceptual handicaps, brain injury, minimal brain dysfunction, dyslexia and developmental aphasia;

3. "Deaf or hard-of-hearing" means a hearing impairment, whether permanent or fluctuating, which adversely affects a child's educational performance;

4. "Economically disadvantaged" means all children who qualify for free or reduced lunches;

5. "Educable mentally handicapped" means significantly subaverage general intellectual functioning existing concurrently with deficits in adaptive behavior and manifested during the development period, which adversely affects a child's educational performance;

6. "Emotionally disturbed" means emotional problems preventing adjustment in regular class including:

a.an inability to learn which cannot be explained by intellectual, sensory or health factors,

b.an inability to build or maintain satisfactory interpersonal relationships with peers and teachers,

c.inappropriate types of behavior or feelings under normal circumstances,

d.a general pervasive mood of unhappiness or depression, or

e.a tendency to develop physical symptoms or fears associated with personal or school problems;

The term includes children who are schizophrenic. The term does not include children who are socially maladjusted, unless it is determined that they are seriously emotionally disturbed;

7. "Gifted" means identified students as outlined in Section 1210.301 of this title;

8. "Multiple handicapped" means concomitant impairments, such as mentally retarded/blind, mentally retarded/orthopedically impaired, and other combinations, the combination of which causes such severe educational problems that they cannot be accommodated in special education programs solely for one of the impairments. The term does not include deaf/blind children;

9. "Physically handicapped" means a severe orthopedic impairment or an autistic condition which is manifested by severe communication and other developmental and educational problems; or having limited strength, vitality or alertness, due to chronic or acute health problems such as a heart condition, tuberculosis, rheumatic fever, nephritis, asthma, sickle cell anemia, hemophilia, epilepsy, lead poisoning, leukemia, or diabetes, which adversely affects a child's educational performance.

The term includes impairments caused by congenital anomaly, and impairments from other causes;

10. "Speech impaired" means a communication disorder, such as stuttering, impaired articulation, language impairment, or voice impairment, which adversely affects a child's educational performance;

11. "Trainable mentally handicapped" means significantly subaverage general intellectual functioning existing concurrently with deficits in adaptive behavior and manifested during the development period, which adversely affects a child's educational performance;

12. "Deaf/Blind" means concomitant hearing and visual impairments, the combination of which causes such severe communication and other developmental and educational problems that they cannot be accommodated in special education programs solely for deaf or blind children;

13. "Bilingual" means those students who have limited English speaking abilities or who come from homes where English is not the dominant language as reported on the current year application for accreditation;

14. "Special Education Summer Program" means those summer school programs which school districts may provide for children who are severely or profoundly multiple-handicapped if their individualized education program states the need for a continuing educational experience to prevent loss of educational achievement or basic life skills. Any school district receiving funds for such special education summer programs shall provide services as provided in Section 13-101 of this title; and

15. "Optional Extended School Year Program" means the program defined in Section 1-109.1 of this title.

B. The State Board of Education is hereby authorized to modify and redefine by rule the definitions set out in this section whenever such modification is required to receive federal assistance therefor.

Added by Laws 1981, c. 347, § 18, emerg. eff. July 1, 1981. Amended by Laws 1982, c. 287, § 10, operative July 1, 1982; Laws 1989, 1st Ex.Sess., c. 2, § 109, emerg. eff. April 25, 1990; Laws 1998, c. 246, § 33, eff. Nov. 1, 1998; Laws 2000, c. 308, § 3, eff. July 1, 2000.

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