Please note: The FAME glossary is not intended to be a completely comprehensive index of all disabilities or disability-related terminology. For a more complete listing, please consult the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, Tenth Revision (ICD-10), or the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, Fourth Edition, Text Revised (DSM-IV TR), available in libraries and bookstores nationwide. Alternatively, you may also consult resources from the Center for Disease Control (CDC) or National Institutes of Health (NIH) publications. Please also see our Supplemental Resources pages in the Rights and Responsibilities module for more information.
Scanner
Device to capture an image of any flat material and convert it to computer data. Typical items to scan include text (pages from a book, etc.) photos, maps, film negatives, slides, business forms, or any other graphic or text material desired to be preserved in digital form. Flatbed scanners have a flat glass plate; photos or documents to be scanned are placed against the plate.top
Schizoid Personality Disorder
Grouped under personality disorder. Characterized as detatching oneself from all social relationships and expressing limited emotions.top
Schizophrenia
Psychiatric disorder characterized by distortions in thinking, perception and impaired behavior monitoring that lasts for at least a month. Can include paranoid delusions or hallucinations, disorganized speech or thoughts, or major mood shifts.top
Screen Reader
Text-to-speech system that speaks all text content of a computer display. Automatic conversion of written text words from a computer document (e.g. word processor document, web page) into audible speech spoken either by a synthetic (computer-generated) or digitized (recorded) human voice.top
Scribe
A person provided as an accommodation to assist in transferring verbally expressed communication to a written form. This accommodation is generally used for persons who are unable to write due to their disability, such as students with a learning disability in written expression, students who are blind, or students with upper body limitations. A scribe takes pure dictation from a student with a disability and never edits the material. The student is responsible for proofing the work to ensure the scribe has been accurate.top
Seating Arrangements
An accommodation in which a person with a disability is given preferential seating to access course content (such as sitting near the instructor in order to see the chalkboard or read his/her lips) or seating that reduces classroom distractions and/or that allows minimal class disruption (such as sitting in the back of the class or near an exit) in order to maximize the learning environment. Since students with disabilities may want the same anonymity as other students, it is important that instructors not point out the student or the alternative arrangements to others in the class.top
Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973
The first law to specifically address the needs of students with disabilities. It is a civil rights statute intended to prevent discrimination on the basis of disability. Section 504 requires that institutions of higher education provide students with disabilities the same opportunities as non-disabled students.top
Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973
This 1998 addition to The Rehabilitation Act expands responsibility for providing access to electronic and information technology. It is sometimes described as "electronic curb cuts."top
Seizure Disorder
Epilepsy or recurrent seizures.top
Seizures
A seizure is an electrical misfiring in the brain. Seizures can range in severity from virtually unnoticed to episodes with convulsions or loss of consciousness. Seizures usually come on vary suddenly and can vary in duration. A seizure may occur only once or it may occur repeatedly.top
Self-advocacy
The ability to assertively state wants, needs and rights, determine and pursue needed supports, and conduct one's affairs.top
Self-determination
A combination of skills, knowledge and beliefs that enables a person to engage in goal-directed self-regulated behavior.top
Sensory Impairment
A reduced ability or a lack of ability in using one or more of three senses - vision, touch, and hearing. The effects of a sensory impairment can range from slight to complete loss of ability to use the sense. It may have a mild or severe impact on daily living. Sensory impairments may be present along with other disabilities such as mobility impairments or learning disabilities.top
Service Dogs
Animals that are professionally trained to assist persons with visual impairments in daily functions and activities. Service dogs are working animals and must be allowed in all classes. They are not to be petted or fed by others but rather should be treated as professional attendants.top
Service Providers
The professionals who work with college students who have disabilities. They verify the documentation of the disability, coordinate accommodations, and provide services.top
Sign Language Interpreter/Interpreting Services
An auxiliary aid provided to individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing. The sign language interpreter is a trained professional who facilitates communication and conveys all auditory and signed information so that both hearing and hearing impaired individuals may fully interact.top
Sleeping Disorders
Umbrella term characterizing prolonged bouts of fatigue or restlessness that affects the body's natural cycles of sleep. Includes Insomnia and Narcolepsy.top
Social phobia
Grouped under anxiety disorders. Psychiatric disorder characterized by overwhelming anxiety and self-consciousness in daily social interaction and performance situations. May lead to avoidance behavior.top
Stakeholders
In participatory research, individuals or groups that are invested (have a stake, so to speak) in the research planning process and its outcome. These individuals are often (and ideally should be) representatives from the target audience or populations on which the research is being conducted.top
Study Aids
Aid developed by the instructor to direct or indicate material to be studied in preparation for an exam. Examples are, but not limited to: study questions, study guides, and opportunities for questions and answers to help students review essential course content.top
Supported Reading Software
Software specifically designed to provide text-to-speech (or, in some cases, recorded human voice) support for digital text (text presented on a computer screen). Distinct from screen readers, Supported Reading Software does not typically provide system-wide audio feedback or navigation support in addition to its text reading capabilities.top
