Question & Answer

Listed below are some general questions schools have asked about MTSS followed by a response based on what is in the MTSS manual. If you have additional questions not adequately addressed in the manual, on this site, or in this Q&A section, please feel free to consult your academic coach, school psychologist, or administration.

Does the MTSS team have to meet every four weeks? The details regarding follow-up and support for an individual student are determined by the Student Support Team (SST). How frequently a student requires a meeting to review progress is determined at the outset of the SST process as a guide to the team, but there is no prescriptive time frame that must be followed in every case.

When is the background information form sent to parents and who is responsible for sending it? The background information form is typically completed by the parent as a team begins to look at moving a child to Tier 3 and / or toward a referral for special education. However, it may be appropriate and beneficial for a team to request a parent complete the background information form at any point in the SST process. Anyone on the team may provide the parent with the Background Information form, but the completed form should be shared with team members so that all are informed of critical information that supports decision making in regard to the students plan.

What if my student was provided interventions in a prior year that are not listed on the new MTSS website? Should those be continued or changed to be in line with the interventions featured on the MTSS website? After data for a child have been reviewed and it is discovered that the previously used intervention is not on the site, teams should first consider whether the student is making progress. If a child is making adequate progress, complete the "Intervention Request Form" on this site under "Helpful Documents." If that intervention is indeed a research or evidence based intervention, continue using it. If it is determined that the previously used intervention is not an evidenced- or research-based intervention, the team should then select an alternative intervention to address the student's needs.

Does the full SST have to meet to change an intervention? No. If a student is not progressing after a sufficient time of implementing an intervention with fidelity, the team may decide to change to an alternate intervention. This should be done in collaboration with other team members, but it would not necessarily require a full team meeting.

What is the relationship between the intervention and assessment? Are both required to be evidence- or research-based? The requirement for an evidence or research base pertains to the intervention. The assessment does not have to be considered evidence- or research-based. The assessment simply needs to be consistently constructed (e.g. same number of questions related directly to the goal and given in the same manner at each administration).

How do I define the criterion of mastery for my student's goal? The criterion of mastery is determined by the team at the time a goal is written and is based on the nature of the skill addressed in the goal. The criterion of mastery guides the team in developing the assessment used to determine progress toward meeting the goal. Please note that the goals for MTSS are related to skills deficits, not Georgia Standards that guide Tier 1 instruction. As such, the constructs of Standards Based Grading do not apply to MTSS goals and how they are assessed. MTSS goals should not be assessed on the 1 to 4 scale.

How many goals must a child not master in order to progress to the next Tier in MTSS? There is no set number of unmet goals that define when a team must consider referring a child for consideration in moving to the next Tier in MTSS. In fact, a student may have multiple goals over time that move them closer to performing at grade level expectations. However, the team should consider whether the rate of a student's progress is such that at a reasonable time in the future, the child would be performing close to or at grade level expectations. The examples below may be helpful in addressing this question:

Why do we have Reading Intervention Tools and Math Intervention Tools if they already have subsections? Are they just extra resources? Yes, they are just resources. The behavior tab has a similar set of resources / tools / checklists to support the work teachers are doing in those areas.

T3-Does the 12 week strategy have to remain the same to be referred? When considering the 12-week requirement, you have to look at this in two ways.

First of all, the state regulations under Child Find currently state, “...per our State Child Find Rule, the implementation of a multitiered system of supports, including the use of scientific, research, or evidence-based interventions are required before referring a child for an initial evaluation for special education. See Georgia Rule 160-4-7-.03(2)(b).” So PRIOR to referral, there is nothing that indicates interventions have to have been provided for any specified period of time for any category of eligibility for special education.

Two, the state regulations that govern the “12 week” requirement are applicable only if a student is qualifying as a student with a Specific Learning Disability (SLD). All other eligibility categories have to have interventions provided, but they do not necessarily have to be 12 weeks in duration. Please note the following guidance from the recently updated Special Education Implementation Manual and then see guidance below.

1. The data points collected from the progress monitoring (for a child suspected of having a specific learning disability (SLD)) must be commensurate with the intensity of the interventions. As a best practice, a minimum of 4 data points should be collected for a period of time indicated by the instructional strategy(ies) or if no period of time is indicated, a minimum of 12 weeks of interventions. The team will analyze the information to determine what support is required for the child to succeed in the general education curriculum. For some children, core instruction in the curriculum combined with other interventions provided by the general education staff will be ample support for the child to make progress toward meeting the standards. Some children, despite the interventions, will continue to fall behind their peers. For these select children, the progress monitoring data must be reviewed to determine the level of progress being made. If a child: (1) does not make sufficient progress to meet age or State-approved grade-level standards in oral expression, listening comprehension, written expression, basic reading skills, reading fluency skills, reading comprehension, mathematics calculation, and mathematics problem solving when using a process based on the child’s response to scientific, research-based intervention; or (2) exhibits a pattern of strengths and weaknesses in performance, achievement, or both, relative to age, State-approved grade level standards, or intellectual development using appropriate assessments, then the child may be considered a child that has a specific learning disability. See 34 C.F.R. § 300.309(a)(2)(i)-(ii). The determination that the child has a specific learning disability cannot be primarily the result of a visual, hearing, or motor disability; an intellectual disability; an emotional behavioral disorder; cultural factors; environment or economic disadvantage; or limited English proficiency. See 34 C.F.R. § 300.309(a)(3).

Again, this guidance is very specific to a child who may be determined eligible as a student with a specific learning disability. For students determined eligible in other categories, there is not a specified time for how long interventions must be provided.

As to the original question of whether you must use one intervention for 12 weeks PRIOR to referral, the answer would be “no” as the regulations on Child Find do not indicate as such. But please note that interventions must be continued throughout the referral / testing process. Just because a child has been referred for testing does not mean teams can stop intervening. So, when SLD is being considered, I think the answer to whether teams have latitude in using multiple interventions within that 12 week period is yes (as implied by the plural “strateg(ies)” in the regulations. But teams working with students who are in the process of being referred should proceed with caution when changing interventions and do so with direction from the school psychologist providing the evaluation.

Do students that will qualify OHI need to be MTSS or 504? Does their referral process mirror academics?

1. Do students that will qualify OHI need to be MTSS or 504? If a student has previously qualified as a student with an Other Health Impairment (OHI), they are in special education. Most of the services that student receives will be a function of the IEP, thus MTSS is not necessary. Any student who is eligible as a student with a disability does not require a 504 plan, as the rights and protections of Section 504 are subordinate to the rights and protections that accompany any IDEA eligibility.

Just for clarification, when teams refer a student for a comprehensive educational evaluation, there should not be a predetermination of the eligibility category(ies) in which the child will be determined eligible. Teams may have information that may point to one eligibility category over another, but we must never go into a referral with tunnel vision that one specific category will be that child’s category of eligibility.

2. Does their referral process mirror academics? The referral process for OHI or any other category must include data collection that shows the educational impact of the suspected disability. For a child with an OHI, that data collection will most likely involve some level of academic performance. However, it may also focus more on behavioral issues, for which the team would also need to provide data to show the impact in that area. The bottom line is that data should be collected in all areas where a child is showing deficits - academics, behavior, adaptive skills, etc.

Do we have to meet with parents monthly if in MTSS? Are phone calls appropriate for parent contact between tiers? As stated in the MTSS manual (pages 8-9, 11-12), the requirements for team meetings for struggling students is ultimately governed by State board rule, 160-4-2-.32, STUDENT SUPPORT TEAM, which states that, “parents/guardians shall be invited to participate in all meetings of their child's SST and in the development of interventions for their child.” Teams should keep documentation of all attempts to involve parents in their SST meetings. Teams should provide multiple and varied attempts to reach the parents regarding upcoming meetings (e.g. email, text, phone call, US mail, etc). The state board rule on SST can be found at

http://www.gadoe.org/External-Affairs-and-Policy/State-Board-of-Education/SBOE%20Rules/160-4-2-.32.pdf#search=SST

If a student is tested and doesn’t qualify and the 12 weeks is up, do students stay in T3 or pull out? What do we with slow learners/low students? As stated in the MTSS manual (page 13)... “In some cases, the student may return to Tier 3/SST team because the student was determined to not be eligible for Special Education services. These cases in which a student does not qualify for Special Education must still be addressed as best as possible. This is when the team would want to consider possible eligibility for Section 504. In such a case, it may be that a Section 504 Individual Accommodation Plan (IAP) can be crafted that effectively diminishes the effects of the student’s condition. Section 504 and an IAP do not address a student reaching individual goals in the classroom, rather Section 504 and an IAP ensure students have an equal opportunity to access learning that is comparable to that of the student’s non-disabled peers. It would be up to a Section 504 evaluation team to decide whether or not to pursue this course of action. The SST team is assigned to be that Section 504 team.”

Do passages for progress monitoring need to be on grade level or on the student’s level? There are two schools of thought that could govern the response to this question. In deciding whether to use text that is on grade level or at the student’s instructional or independent level, the team needs to consider various factors (e.g. how far below grade level the child is reading) in order to avoid frustrating and overwhelming the student every time progress monitoring opportunities are presented. Above all else, teams MUST be consistent from month to month / year to year in the level of passages used for progress monitoring a child’s progress. The point of progress monitoring is to assist teams in determining growth or lack thereof. As long as the same level passage (student’s level or respective grade level) is used consistently over time, the data would be considered reliable. I

How current does hearing and vision need to be to enter MTSS? What to do if hearing and screening was not passed?New guidance states the following: “Federal regulations list vision and hearing as areas that may be evaluated in a special education evaluation, “as appropriate.” See 34 C.F.R. § 300.304(c)(4). However, professional ethics require that a diagnostic evaluation not proceed until it is documented that the child has acceptable levels of vision and hearing. Failure to do this would render test results invalid and might prevent discovery of vision and/or hearing problems as the primary or contributing source of the child’s problem(s). Therefore, if the hearing and vision screening was not conducted prior to receiving parental consent for evaluation, then the child should be screened at the beginning of the 60-day comprehensive evaluation. If the comprehensive evaluation will rely on prior hearing and vision screening (such as screening completed during the Student Support Team (SST) process), such screening should have been completed within one calendar year. If problems with the child’s hearing or vision need medical diagnosis or require the purchase of hearing aids or eyeglasses and the parents are unable to accomplish this, then the LEA must make sure that these devices and services are made available to the child.”

Are the MTSS kids held to the same requirements as SPED kids by not being able to be pulled for speech during ELA, reading and math? Or can MTSS speech pull MTSS kids during any academic class time since there is no legal reason why if it can't be helped? There are currently no parameters as to when a student can be pulled for MTSS intervention. However, teams would NOT want to pull students from Tier 1 instruction as the expectation is that intervention is to be added on to Tier 1 instruction.

Will there be a cover sheet for work samples? There is currently an analyzed work sample form that is used to assist teams when submitting work samples. It will be added to the RTI site for ease of access.

Are we going to have an official invitation letter for MTSS Meetings? There is not currently a letter of invitation that has been developed for all schools, but we can look at creating that and adding it as an “optional” form on the site.