Free Appropriate Public Education for Handicapped Children

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Abstract
The precise meaning of the legal term free appropriate public education has become the subject of increasing litigation throughout the United States. An analysis of the Supreme Court decisions in Hendrick Hudson District Board of Education v. Rowley (1982) and Irving Independent School District v. Tatro (1984) reveals that the obligation of the schools to provide free appropriate public education does not require that special education services be sufficient to maximize the potential of a handicapped child. Rather, the law requires only that a basic floor of opportunity be provided which consists of access to specialized instruction and related services which are individually designed to provide educational benefit. Subsequent rulings of the Supreme Court uniformly have adhered to the legal precedents established in these two landmark judicial decisions.

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