Oklahoma State Department of Education Special Education Services • 405-521-3351 • www.ok.gov/sde/special-education FACT TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY SHEET

■ Definition of Traumatic • walking and other physical activities Brain Injury under IDEA • seeing and/or hearing Traumatic Brain Injury is an acquired injury to the brain • learning. caused by an external physical force, resulting in total or partial functional disability or psychosocial impairment, INCIDENCE or both, that adversely affects a child’s educational per- Approximately 1.4 million people receive traumatic formance. The term applies to open or closed head brain injuries every year. Of children 0-14 years old, TBI injuries resulting in impairments in one or more areas, results in 435,000 trips to the emergency room annu- such as cognition; language; memory; attention; rea- ally, 37,000 hospitalizations, and nearly 2,700 deaths. soning; abstract thinking; judgment; problem-solving; sensory, perceptual, and motor abilities; psycho-social TEACHING TIPS/INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGIES behavior; physical functions; information processing; • Find out as much as you can about the child’s injury and speech. The term does not apply to brain injuries and his or her present needs. Find out more about TBI. that are congenital or degenerative, or to brain injuries See the list of resources and organizations at the end induced by birth trauma. 34 CFR 300.8(c)(12) of this publication. • Give the student more time to finish schoolwork and TYPES tests. • Give directions one step at a time. For tasks with many • Concussions - the most common type of TBI steps, it helps to give the student written directions. • Penetration injury – from bullets or other objects • Show the student how to perform new tasks. Give entering the skull examples to go with new ideas and concepts. • Contusions - bleeding that results from blows to the head • Have consistent routines. This helps the student know • Diffuse axonal injury – damage from tearing of the what to expect. If the routine is going to change, let the brain tissue (includes shaken baby syndrome and some student know ahead of time. bicycle, car or motorcycle accident injuries) • Check to make sure that the student has actually learned the new skill. Give the student lots of opportu- EVALUATIONS nities to practice the new skill. Evaluation information must establish that total or par- • Show the student how to use an assignment book and tial functional disability psychosocial impairment, or a daily schedule. This helps the student get organized. both, are due to the injury. The resulting impairment(s) • Realize that the student may get tired quickly. Let the adversely affects educational performance. Evaluation student rest as needed. information may include medical, communication/lan- • Reduce distractions. guage, cognitive/intellectual, social/emotional/behav- • Keep in touch with the student’s parents. Share infor- ioral, sensorimotor/perceptual, adaptive behavior, and mation about how the student is doing at home and at academic/achievement/developmental. school. • Be flexible about expectations. Be patient. Maximize POSSIBLE CAUSES the student’s chances for success. A traumatic brain injury (TBI) is an injury to the brain caused by the head being hit by something or shaken This information developed from the following resources: violently. This injury can change how the person acts, • Brain Injury Association of Oklahoma moves, and thinks. A traumatic brain injury can also www.braininjuryoklahoma.org change how a student learns and acts in school. The • Brainline term TBI is used for head injuries that can cause chang- www.brainline.org es in one or more areas, such as: • Head Injury Hotline www.headinjury.com • thinking and reasoning • National Dissemination Center for • understanding words Children with Disabilities (NICHCY) • remembering things www.nichcy.org • paying attention • National Resource Center for Traumatic Brain Injury • solving problems www.neuro.pmr.vcu.edu/ • Oklahoma Support Groups • thinking abstractly www.brainandspinalcord.org • talking • Teachers and Families • behaving www.teachersandfamilies.com • Traumatic Brain Injury & Neurological Disorder Treatment www.traumaticbraininjury.net