When Close Enough Doesn't Cut It: Why Courts Should Want to Steer Clear of Determining What Is - And What is Not - Material in a Child's Individual Education Program
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WHEN CLOSE ENOUGH DOESN'T CUT IT: WHY
COURTS SHOULD WANT TO STEER CLEAR OF
DETERMINING WHAT IS-AND WHAT IS NOT-
MATERIAL IN A CHILD'S INDIVIDUAL EDUCATION
PROGRAM
Jeffrey A. Knight*
In these days, it is doubtful that any child may reasonably be expected to succeed
in life if he is denied the opportunity of an education. Such an opportunity, where
the state has undertaken to provide it, is a right which must be made available to all
on equal terms.I
I. INTRODUCTION
AS a relatively new field, special-education law is terrain not yet fully
t explored.2 Many of the most contentious issues arising in this area
exist because of the interconnectedness of a developing body of law, overlapping
legal statutes, and an alphabet soup's worth of acronyms.3 Of the many special-
education statutes that have been developed, amended, and refurbished, the
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) has been, and will likely
. J.D. Candidate, University of Toledo College of Law, 2010. Senior Articles & Symposium
Editor, University of Toledo, Board 41. I would like to thank Professor Robin Kennedy for his
invaluable assistance in getting this idea off the ground, as well as the editors of Board 40 for their
timely and insightful feedback throughout this process. I am particularly grateful for the dedication
and patience of my colleagues, and friends, on Board 41.
1. Brown v. Bd. of Educ., 347 U.S. 483, 493 (1954).
2. Jim Geri, Special Education Law Blog, New Hot Button Issue: IEP Inplementation [sic]
Part I, http://specialeducationlawblog.blogspot.com/search?=new+hot+button+issue+IEP+
inplementation ([S]pecial education law is 'new' law.) (last visited Jan. 28, 2010).
3. See, e.g., National Education Association: Tools and Ideas-Special-Education Acronyms
and Terms, http://www.nea.org/tools/30325.htm (last visited Jan. 28, 2010); Wrightslaw: Glossary
of Special Education and Legal Terms, http://www.fetaweb.com/06/glossary.sped.legal.htm (last
visited Feb. 28, 2010).
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When Close Enough Doesn't Cut It: Why Courts Should Want to Steer Clear of Determining What Is - And What is Not - Material in a Child's Individual Education Program