Speech or Language Impairments, Second Most Prevalent Disability Category
"According to the recently released, "37th Annual Report to Congress on the Implementation of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, 2015," speech or language impairments (17.9%) was the 2nd most prevalent disability category in 2013 for students ages 6 through 21 served under IDEA, Part B. The most prevalent category continues to be specific learning disabilities at 39.5%. Other highlights of the report, data from reporting periods associated with fall 2013; include:
- The most prevalent disability category of children ages 3 through 5 served under IDEA, Part B, was speech or language impairments (44.2%). The next most common disability category was developmental delay (37.1%), followed by autism (8.4%).
- Hispanic or Latino students ages 6 through 21 were 1.34, 1.21, 1.29, and 1.06 times more likely to be served under IDEA, Part B, for hearing impairments, orthopedic impairments, specific learning disabilities, and speech and language impairments, respectively, than were students ages 6 through 21 in all other racial/ethnic groups combined.
- Speech or language impairments were the second or third most prevalent category for students ages 6 through 21 in every racial/ethnic group.
- More than 8 in 10 students reported under the category of speech or language impairments (87.1%) were educated inside the regular class 80% or more of the day."
