Document ID: ./input/supremecourt_opinions/opinions/16pdf/15-827_0pm1.pdf
Page Number: 16.0

12  ENDREW F. v. DOUGLAS COUNTY SCHOOL DIST. RE–1 

Opinion of the Court 

“[i]ndividualized 

appropriate  in  light  of  the  child’s  circumstances  should 
come as no surprise.  A focus on the particular child is at
the  core  of  the  IDEA.    The  instruction  offered  must  be 
“specially  designed”  to  meet  a  child’s  “unique  needs” 
through  an 
education  program.” 
§§1401(29),  (14)  (emphasis  added).    An  IEP  is  not  a  form 
document.  It  is  constructed  only  after  careful  considera-
tion of the child’s present levels of achievement, disability, 
and  potential 
§§1414(d)(1)(A)(i)(I)–(IV),
(d)(3)(A)(i)–(iv).    As  we  observed  in  Rowley,  the  IDEA 
“requires participating States to educate a wide spectrum
of  handicapped  children,”  and  “the  benefits  obtainable  by
children at one end of the spectrum will differ dramatically
from  those  obtainable  by  children  at  the  other  end,  with
infinite variations in between.”  458 U. S., at 202. 

for  growth. 

Rowley  sheds  light  on  what  appropriate  progress  will 
look like in many cases.  There, the Court recognized that 
the  IDEA  requires  that  children  with  disabilities  receive 
education  in  the  regular  classroom  “whenever  possible.” 
Ibid.  (citing  §1412(a)(5)).  When  this  preference  is  met,
“the system itself monitors the educational progress of the 
child.”  Id., at 202–203.  “Regular examinations are admin-
istered,  grades  are  awarded,  and  yearly  advancement  to 
higher  grade  levels  is  permitted  for  those  children  who 
attain an adequate knowledge of the course material.”  Id., 
at 203.  Progress through this system is what our society
generally  means  by  an  “education.”  And  access  to  an 
“education” is what the IDEA promises.  Ibid.  Accordingly,
for  a  child  fully  integrated  in  the  regular  classroom,  an
IEP  typically  should,  as  Rowley  put  it,  be  “reasonably 
calculated  to  enable  the  child  to  achieve  passing  marks
and advance from grade to grade.”  Id., at 203–204. 

This guidance is grounded in the statutory definition of
a  FAPE.  One  of  the  components  of  a  FAPE  is  “special
education,”  defined  as  “specially  designed  instruction  . . .
to  meet  the  unique  needs  of  a  child  with  a  disability.”