Mission and Definitions

• Tier I refers to school-wide intervention through quality core instruction. The instructional approaches within the general education setting should result in academic and/or behavioral progress for 80-90% of students.

• Tier II refers to targeted group intervention. In addition to Tier I core instruction, 5-20% of students may require focused, researched-based strategies or programs delivered by the classroom teacher and/or an interventionist or specialist.

• Tier III refers to intensified individual or small group instruction which typically involves 1-5% of students who do not respond adequately to Tier I and Tier II interventions.

The principal is responsible for the MTSS process and serves as or appoints a campus MTSS Coordinator. 

The MTSS team is multi-disciplinary and includes but is not limited to an administrator/counselor, the general education teacher, other professionals whose expertise/knowledge contribute to the problem-solving process, the student’s parent/legal guardian, and the student, as appropriate. 

MTSS is…

• A process targeted to assist a student who is struggling in reading, mathematics, and/or behavior.

• A collaborative team of school-based educators and professionals who share responsibility for the student.

• A pro-active, problem-solving process that ensures fidelity to the core curriculum and recommended interventions.

MTSS is not…

• A one-person committee.

• An automatic referral to special education or a collaboration of signatures to complete referral paperwork.

• A process that excludes parents.

MTSS should…

• Meet on a regularly scheduled basis.

• Provide support to teachers who request assistance.

• Define, clarify, and prioritize concerns.

• Provide strategies or interventions for both academic and behavioral issues.

• Use progress monitoring data to evaluate the recommended intervention.

• Include the parent in the process with discussions and providing them a copy of the student intervention plan. 

MTSS should not… 

• Make decisions without documentation or conduct a cursory review of data.

• Excludes parents from the process.

MTSS can result in:

• more effective instruction;

• increased student achievement;

• positive impacts on behavior;

• increased professional collaboration;

• more appropriate Special Education identification; and

• overall school improvement.