Court considers more than academic progress in determination of whether child has received educational benefit

COMPTON UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT v. A.F. (C.D.Cal. 4-26-2010): The appropriateness of a child’s program is determined, at least in part, by whether it is designed for the child to receive educational benefit. There have been a number of recent cases in which the Courts have addressed the boundaries of “educational benefit”. Compton is the most recent of these cases. The child was getting good grades, but was only “accessing” about 50% of his classroom activities and instruction due to interfering behaviors. The child was also suffering with respect to social skills and work habits.The Court held that calculation of educational benefit encompasses more than just academics; the decisionmaker must also look at social and emotional needs that impact academic progress.

"Adversely affects" educational performance

Marshall Joint School Dist. No. 2 v. C.D. ex rel. Brian D., --- F.Supp.2d ----, 2009 WL 59065(W.D.Wis. Jan 08, 2009): In order to be eligible for services under the IDEA, a child must have a qualifying disability that adversely affects educational performance and by reason thereof, has a need for special education. In this case, the Court found “adverse effect to be any negative impact, however slight, reasoning that the term appears in the regulations without a qualifier such as significant or marked.” The Court also found that the MDT(CSE) should have evaluated the child’s needs without the child having the benefit of modifications or accommodations reasoning that to do otherwise would disqualify most students from eligibility.