In educational research we use standardized terms when discussing students. Using common terminology when we speak about different groups shows that we speak the language of academia.
In education we use standardized terms when discussing students. Using common terminology when we speak about different groups shows that we speak the language of academia. However, these standardized terms often perpetuate inequity and most often “others” certain groups. When we use these terms in work that is intended to disrupt the status quo, we create a contradictory message between our words and our overall intentions. This guide will help us develop an inclusive, shared vocabulary, allowing our words to match the true intentions of our work.
Language is constantly changing. The terms in this guide could soon be out of date. Even though this guide is comprehensive, there are groups, identities, terms, and nuances we’ve most likely missed. We know this language will not resonate with everyone, and that we will make mistakes as we continue to learn.
We realize that not everyone will agree or identify with the terms we’ve used. These are terms we have chosen to create a shared language for our work around diversity, equity, and inclusion.
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Person-First Language – different approaches
According to DC.gov, “person-first language puts the person before the disability, and describes what a person has, not who a person is.” Additionally, some people believe that the terms “disability” and “disabled” are offensive and should be avoided at all costs, but many people believe that avoiding these terms stigmatizes them when they shouldn’t be.
Some people self-identify as “disabled” or a “disabled person” and reject person-first language. Additionally, in discussions on neurodiversity, many in the autism community suggest that using person-first language makes autism seem like an illness, rather than an important part of a person’s identity or natural part of their neurology. Instead, advocates suggest using language like “autistic individual” or “autistic person.” Many people simply want accurate representation.
Allow people to feel safe declaring how they self-identify.
Person-first Language
Student with a disability
Student with an intellectual disability
Student who uses a wheelchair
Student with low-vision
Student with a physical disability
Student who is deaf
Student with a mental illness
Students living with depression
Students with vision impairment
Language to avoid
Do NOT say handicapped
Do NOT say special needs
Do NOT refer to groups in terms of nouns. For example, Do NOT say: the blind, the deaf, the mentally ill, etc.
Washington Post: Why We Should Stop Labeling Students ‘At-Risk’--and the Best Alternative
https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2019/01/23/why-we-should-stop-labeling-students-risk-best-alternative/
Education Week: ‘At-Promise’? Can a New Term for ‘At-Risk’ Change a Student’s Trajectory?
https://www.edweek.org/policy-politics/at-promise-can-a-new-term-for-at-risk-change-a-students-trajectory/2020/01
Eric Digest: Alternatives for At-Risk and Out-of-School Youth
https://www.ericdigests.org/2005-1/risk.htm
Last Updated
September 29, 2023
APA Style: Bias-Free Language–Disability
https://apastyle.apa.org/style-grammar-guidelines/bias-free-language/disability
ADA: Guidelines for Writing about People with Disabilities
https://adata.org/factsheet/ADANN-writing
USA Today: ‘I am not ashamed’: Disability advocates, experts implore you to stop saying ‘special needs’
https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/health-wellness/2021/06/11/disabled-not-special-needs-experts-explain-why-never-use-term/7591024002/
Gernsbacher, M. A., Raimond, A. R., Balinghasay, M. T., & Boston, J. S. (2016). “Special needs” is an ineffective euphemism. Cognitive research: principles and implications, 1(1), 1-13.
Last Updated
August 30, 2023
National Center for Institutional Diversity: Identifying and Disrupting Deficit Thinking
https://medium.com/national-center-for-institutional-diversity/identifying-and-disrupting-deficit-thinking-cbc6da326995
The Education Trust: Questioning the Deficit
https://edtrust.org/the-equity-line/questioning-deficit/
Inside Higher Ed: Beyond a Deficit View
https://www.insidehighered.com/views/2016/04/19/importance-viewing-minority-low-income-and-first-generation-students-assets-essay
Last Updated
August 30, 2023
American Psychological Association (APA) Style Guide
https://apastyle.apa.org/style-grammar-guidelines/bias-free-language/general-principles
Conscious Style Guide
https://consciousstyleguide.com/
The Diversity Style Guide
https://www.diversitystyleguide.com/
GLAAD Media Reference Guide
https://www.glaad.org/reference
Native American Journalist Association
https://najanewsroom.com/reporting-guides/
National Association of Black Journalists
https://www.nabj.org/page/styleguide
National Center on Disability and Journalism
https://ncdj.org/style-guide/
Last Updated
August 30, 2023
There are negative connotations associated with the term “special needs.” This term came into use because of the misconception that the terms “disabled” and “disability” were inappropriate to use. Special needs was adapted as a euphemism. Many people assume the word “special” in this context means “good,” but it has been twisted into an insult by some.
In legal terms, people with disabilities have certain rights under law, but this same distinction does not always apply when utilizing the term special needs. Lisette Torres-Gerald, board secretary for the National Coalition for Latinxs with Disabilities states in a USA Today article on the topic: “My needs are not ‘special;’ they are the same, human needs that everyone else has, and I should be able to fully participate in society just as much as the next person.”
Last Updated
August 30, 2023
Recently, the education field has moved away from the narrative of “serving” students with disabilities toward the language of “teaching” or “educating” students with disabilities. The language of “serving” and “service” had the unwitting effect of making it seem that these students are primarily meant to be “tended to” and not educated and that teachers are accountable for students’ comfort and not their learning.
Last Updated
August 30, 2023
Example to use
Let’s improve the ways teachers educate students with disabilities.
Compare to this example not to use
Let’s improve how teachers serve students with disabilities.
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