Implementation of RtI

How does RtI look?

Response to Intervention is a relatively new concept for the field of education. Its implementation will look very different from district to district, and also school to school within districts. While the federal government and education policy makers have mandated that all schools move towards an RtI model, they did not mandate how this process will function everywhere—therefore, there is no uniform model that all schools adopted. Instead, each district and school has incorporated RtI in their own way while maintaining the basic tenets of RtI, including: universal screening, multi-tiered approach of intervention, evidence based interventions, progress monitoring, data based decisions, fidelity of the process and intervention, and problem solving.

Due to the lack of standardization of implementation, as well as the uniqueness of resources and capabilities of each district and school, RtI has rolled out at different paces everywhere. Generally speaking most schools and districts began their process focusing solely on academic RtI. However, it is important to make apparent that RtI/SRBI is not solely a process for academic struggles. It is also a model of prevention and early intervention for behavior as well. Schools are mandated to implement the RtI process for students struggling socially, behaviorally, and emotionally. The philosophical underpinnings of academic RtI remain consistent in behavioral RtI; however, its process may appear different. Due to the complexity of behavior, schools and education professionals often must provide highly individualized and creative interventions to meet the demands of RtI as well ensuring the student is being supported. As with academic RtI, the behavioral RtI process moves from first attempting least restrictive interventions to progressively more intensive interventions—that is, classroom level interventions for behavior will occur prior to services that may require small group or individualized interventions such as school-based counseling (please read a prior blog post on school based counseling for more information).

Regardless of whether it is academic or behavioral, RtI is a paradigm shift away from viewing students’ difficulties as something internal to them, to first acknowledging the roles of environment and other extrinsic factors that may account for variance in student performance. In essence, RtI hypothesizes that a student’s struggles may be for other reasons than innate learning or emotional disabilities (lack of strong tier 1 instruction, gaps in education, narrow skill deficits, learning difficulties but not disabilities). Moreover, it is a proactive model in that students receive support prior to failing and continue to receive intervention as long as required or until a potential special education identification is deemed appropriate. It seeks to help students achieve at higher levels prior to being labeled as having a learning or emotional disability.

Examples of Tier 2/3 Interventions at AMSB

Below are some examples of Tier 2 and Tier 3 available at AMSB. This is not an exhaustive list of interventions. Supports may be individualized a particular student.

• Reading Lab
• Math Lab
• 8th Period Guided Study
• After School Guided Study
• Lunch Group
• Classroom Behavior Plans
• Counseling Support