Barrow County Schools

Response to Intervention

Broad Overview

Intervening

Progress Monitoring

SPED Identification

Why RTI?

Approximately two-thirds of eighth- and twelfth- grade students read at less than the “proficient” level as described by NAEP (National Institute for Literacy, 2006).

Approximately 32 percent of high school graduates are not ready for college-level English composition courses (ACT, 2005).

Over half of adults scoring at the lowest literacy levels are drop-outs and almost a quarter are high school graduates (NCES, 2005).

Approximately 40 percent of high school graduates lack the literacy skills employers seek (Achieve, Inc., 2005).

U.S. drop-outs’ literacy skills are lower than most industrialized nations, performing comparably only to Chile, Poland, Portugal and Slovenia (OECD, 2000).

Special Education Outcomes Treatment/Intervention Effect Size Special Classes (IQ 75-90) -.34 MR/Special Classes (IQ 60-75) -.14 SLD Resource +.29

RTI Outcomes Treatment/Intervention Effect Size Applied Behavior Analysis +1.00 CBM + Graphing + Evaluation +1.00 Explicit Instruction & Problem Solving +0.70 Comprehensive Strategies +1.0 Source: Kavale (2005) Learning Disabilities

SLD Prevalence Rates MR: (NJ) 0.4% to (WV) 3.0% ED: (AR) 0.1% to (MN) 2.0% LD: (KY) 2.7% to (RI) 9.3% OHI: (MS) 0.1% to (RI) 2.1% Speech: (HI) 0.8% to (WV) 3.8% All Sped: (CO) 9.7% to (RI) 17.9% Source: www.IDEAdata.org

RTI as a Preventive Framework RTI is a multi-level instructional framework aimed at

improving outcomes for ALL students. RTI is preventative and provides immediate support to

students who are at risk for academic failure. RTI may be a component of a comprehensive evaluation

for students with learning disabilities.

Essential RTI Components

School-wide, Multi-level Instructional System for Preventing School Failure

Primary (Tier 1) Secondary (Tier 2) Tertiary (Tier 3)

Universal Screening Individualized Progress Monitoring Data-Based Decision Making for:

Instruction Movement within the multi-level system Disability identification (in accordance with state law)

Broad Overview

How do you do RTI at a school?

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Key Characteristics of RtI

Universal Screening of academics and behavior

Multiple tiers of increasingly intense interventions

Differentiated curriculum-tiered intervention strategy

Use of scientifically research-based interventions

Continuous monitoring of student performance

Benchmark/Outcome assessment

RTI is all about the Pyramid

How many kids should be in each tier at my school? AES – 769 HMMS - 714 BES – 846 RMS - 758 BRES – 704 WMS - 686 CLES – 928 BCMS - 737 HES – 949 AHS – 1613 KES – 806 WBHS - 1786 SES – 897 SPS - 181 YES - 765

How to Calculate an estimate Take your original number (737 for BCMS) Remove 12% for SPED (Tier 4) 649 for BCMS

That number is your adjusted number. Take 15% of the adjusted number. That is your Tier 2 Tier 2 Estimate for BCMS: 97

Take 5% of the adjusted number. That is your Tier 3 Tier 3 Estimate for BCMS: 32

But be careful putting too much stock in that math…

July 2007 IDEA Partnership 22

Problem-Solving Method

What is the problem?

Why is it happening?

What should be done about it?

Did it work?

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PROBLEM SOLVING CHART

Does the *%$# thing work?

Don’t mess with it! You Idiot! Did you mess with it?

Does anyone

else know?

Will you catch hell?

Hide it!

You poor slob! Ignore it

Can you blame somebody else?

NO PROBLEM

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

No

No

No

No

No

Tier 1

Standards Based Instruction: The oft overlooked Tier

Why adopt an RTI model?

Answering this question requires us to look back into history.

1975, PL 94–142 Identifying students with handicapping conditions

denied access to public education “Child Find”

Procedural safeguards as a major component of identification process

What Are The Characteristics Of Effective Tier 1 Instruction?

Incorporating all phases of lesson design correctly High levels of student engagement High levels of student participation Frequent checks for understanding with quality questions Constant corrective feedback Students interacting with students Differentiation of Instruction

A Hypothetical Classroom

Student Reading NPR

Math NPR Student Reading NPR

Math NPR

A 8 26 K 50 55

B 25 27 L 28 33

C 56 32 M 24 39

D 17 44 N 73 77

E 60 56 O 49 65

F 38 29 P 4 7

G 3 41 Q 93 81

H 25 32 R 14 26

I 58 58 S 63 51

J 65 55 T 41 33

Differentiation

Differentiation

All curriculum and instruction

Content

Process

Product

Universal Access Time

Small Group

Preteach

Reteach

Fill Gaps

Enrichment

Independent activities

Choice

Flexible Groupings

Based on interest and

need

At a level “accessible” for

students

Questioning

Whole Class Discussions

Within Activities

New Bloom's (Verbs)

Whole Class Scaffolding

Building Background Knowledge

Frontloading Key Vocabulary

Teaching Prerequisite

Skills

Compacting

Pacing

Assessment

Progress Monitoring

Retake Tests

Choice

Check for Understanding

July 2007 IDEA Partnership 29

Differentiating Instruction…

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Ass

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CORE CURRICULUM

Source: National Education Association IDEA Resource Cadre presentation on Differentiated Instruction, developed in collaboration with Deborah E Burns, Curriculum Coordinator, Cheshire Connecticut Public Schools and Kathleen Whitmire, Director, School Services in Speech-Language Pathology, American Speech and Hearing Association

How do I know if my school’s Tier 1 is successful? State Testing Results Teacher grades and assessments Retention rates Student growth year to year Discipline data Student surveys Dropout & graduation rates CCRPI What problems can you see with evaluating individual

students based on these criteria

Universal Screenings Given multiple times per year to ALL students Most common breakdown is Fall, Winter, & Spring

Typically tests for skills rather than curricular attainment

Usually covers reading and math

Students not meeting basic criteria are moved on to Tier 2

Many commercially available screeners (MAP, AimsWeb, etc.)

What options do I have for Universal Screeners? Home grown

State Assessments

Lexile scores

ITBS/COGAT

Georgia Online Assessment System

School based instruments (DRA, Star, etc.)

Universal Screening: Math

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Universal Screening: Math

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Caution

ALWAYS distinguish between skills and standards based learning

They are related but they are not the same

Interfering barriers (language, culture, poverty) must also be considerations

The insanity of not moving students to Tier 3 when they need it…

Tier 2

Targeted Group Intervention: Someone herd my cats!

Characteristics of Tier 2

Tends to be group based

Targets BROAD areas of problem Ex: Reading, Math, Behavior

Interventions can be identical for students in a group

Interventions v. Accommodations

Intervention Accommodation

“Teaches” a skill Targeted to a specific area

of skill Delivered by a qualified

educator

“Facilitates” a skill Can carry over across

many domains Can be delivered by

almost anyone

Interventions are just a highly specific and

individualized form of teaching.

Examples of Tier 2 Programs Remedial reading groups

IEP

Various “spirit” segments

After school or before school tutoring

Monitoring Progress Benchmark assessments

Non-universal screeners

Classroom grades

Anecdotal reports

Non academic factors (attendance, behavior, etc.)

Managing the process (when to evaluate Tier 2) Data team meetings

PLC meetings

Grade level meetings

Tier 2 specialized meetings

PBIS Meetings

Tier 3

Individualized Academic Interventions

Tier 3 In Georgia Tier 3 is the Student Support Team Model At this point parents MUST be involved

Here both interventions and method of progress

monitoring must be specific and individualized The attention student receives are much more intensive.

Intensity Amplifies Students should be given weekly interventions and

progress monitoring done frequently (minimum bi-weekly).

If interventions are not effective they should be replaced

with either different interventions or supplemented with others.

Progress monitoring should be directly tied to the area of weakness.

What’s next? Students who do not show progress at Tier 3 may suffer

from learning disabilities.

A referral to school psychologist for testing may be appropriate if sufficient time has passed.

A psychological evaluation is NOT the logical outcome of Tier 3.

It simply sometimes does occur.

Activity: Fill in my Pyramid

Let’s take a break!!

Interventions

What are they and where the hell do I get them?

Activity – 2 Minutes Brainstorm all the academic and behavioral interventions

with which you have been involved

What are Interventions Targeted assistance based on evidence of weakness Administered by classroom teacher, specialized

teacher, or external interventionist Provides additional instruction Individual, Small group, And/or technology assisted

Intervention vs. Best Practice? Is this process/system used with ALL children? (Best

Practice)

Is this process/system fundamentally different than what you would do for any of your students? (Intervention)

SST is NOT a remediation or intervention

Interventions

Interventions become more intensive by Increasing the frequency (5 times/week rather than 3

times/week) Increasing the duration (50 minutes rather than 30

minutes) Decreasing the pupil–teacher ratio

Characteristics of an Effective Intervention Program

Urgent Research based Directive Timely Targeted Administered by trained professionals Systematic

Types of Interventions in RTI Research-validated curriculum Purchased Materials Research- based practices Research-based strategies

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Research-based means that the curriculum and instructional approaches have a high probability of success for the majority of students. By using research-based practices schools efficiently use time and resources and protect students from ineffective instructional and evaluative practices.

What is a Research-based Intervention?

5.29.08 59

Is It All About Reading…..

52% of IDEA $$ go to LD Programs

70% +/- of special education “activities” (e.g., evaluations, staffings, IEPs) related to LD cases

94% of students in LD because of reading/language arts

46% of IDEA $$ go to improve reading

We don’t have time to stop and intervene. We’ve got to get the whole

curricula covered by the CRCT!

Reschly RTI 61

Some things do not make sense

Areas of Academic Disability Basic Reading Reading Comprehension Reading Fluency Written Expression Math Calculation Math Reasoning Oral Expression Listening Comprehension

What’s missing here?

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Source: National Research Council. (2002). Helping children learn mathematics. Mathematics Learning Study Committee, J. Kilpatrick & J. Swafford, Editors, Center for Education, Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education. Washington, DC: National Academy Press.

5 Strands of Mathematical Proficiency

1. Understanding

2. Computing

3. Applying

4. Reasoning

5. Engagement

5 Big Ideas in Beginning Reading

1. Phonemic Awareness

2. Alphabetic Principle

3. Fluency with Text

4. Vocabulary

5. Comprehension Source: Big ideas in beginning reading. University of Oregon. Retrieved September 23, 2007, from http://reading.uoregon.edu/index.php

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Five Strands of Mathematical Proficiency 1. Understanding: Comprehending mathematical

concepts, operations, and relations--knowing what mathematical symbols, diagrams, and procedures mean.

2. Computing: Carrying out mathematical procedures, such as adding, subtracting, multiplying, and dividing numbers flexibly, accurately, efficiently, and appropriately.

3. Applying: Being able to formulate problems mathematically and to devise strategies for solving them using concepts and procedures appropriately.

Source: National Research Council. (2002). Helping children learn mathematics. Mathematics Learning Study Committee, J. Kilpatrick & J. Swafford, Editors, Center for Education, Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education. Washington, DC: National Academy Press.

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Five Strands of Mathematical Proficiency (Cont.)

4. Reasoning: Using logic to explain and justify a solution to a problem or to extend from something known to something less known.

5. Engaging: Seeing mathematics as sensible, useful, and doable—if you work at it—and being willing to do the work.

Source: National Research Council. (2002). Helping children learn mathematics. Mathematics Learning Study Committee, J. Kilpatrick & J. Swafford, Editors, Center for Education, Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education. Washington, DC: National Academy Press.

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Big Ideas in Beginning Reading “Phonemic Awareness: The ability to hear and manipulate

sounds in words. Alphabetic Principle: The ability to associate sounds with

letters and use these sounds to form words. Fluency with Text: The effortless, automatic ability to read

words in connected text. Vocabulary: The ability to understand (receptive) and use

(expressive) words to acquire and convey meaning. Comprehension: The complex cognitive process involving the

intentional interaction between reader and text to convey meaning.”

Source: Big ideas in beginning reading. University of Oregon. Retrieved September 23, 2007, from http://reading.uoregon.edu/index.php

Where do I find interventions?

Barrow Intervention Document www.interventioncentral.org What Works Clearinghouse http://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/ Florida Center for Reading Research:

http://www.fcrr.org/

Who does interventions? And When?! This is perhaps the single most important and difficult

part of RTI.

Typically a regular education teacher provides the interventions. A specialist can sometimes provide them.

Time must be planned for and structured.

This is a difficult endeavor but a crucial one.

Progress Monitoring

Oh yeah. The Excel chart thingy

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Why Monitor Progress? “In God we trust… All others must have data.”

Edward Deming

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Why Monitor Progress?

We do NOT KNOW ahead of time whether an intervention will be successful for an individual student

Do they ASSUME in the hospital that your heart is working just fine after your bypass surgery? After all… the surgery works well for MOST patients…..

Why not just use grades and anecdotal reports? Grades are not always the best indicator of academic skill

development, particularly intra-individual development

Anecdotal reports, while valuable, are often subject to differing interpretations, bias, and are difficult to quantify

Neither approach allows for easy analysis of the intersection of intervention and performance

Advantages of progress monitoring and measurement Quantitative Allows for individualization and modifications of

expectation Systematic Easily understood and generalized It is required by the new Regulations

Hallmarks of Effective Assessment Targeted to the skill deficit Measured consistently with fair assessments Charted to record growth, stasis, or regression Realistic expectations for growth set Lack of performance leads to modifications of

intervention package

Progress Monitoring PURPOSE: monitor student’s response to primary, secondary, or

tertiary instruction in order to estimate rates of improvement; identify students who are not demonstrating adequate progress; and compare the efficacy of different forms of instruction

FOCUS: students identified through screening as at risk for poor learning outcomes

TOOLS: brief assessments that are valid, reliable, and evidence-based

TIMEFRAME: students are assessed at regular intervals (e.g., weekly, biweekly, or monthly)

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Purpose of Progress Monitoring

Allows practitioners to… estimate rates of improvement, identify students who are not demonstrating

adequate progress and/or compare the efficacy of different forms of

instruction to design more effective, individualized instruction.

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Increasing Scores:

X

Goal line

Trend line X Goal line

Trend line

Flat Scores:

Tools

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Progress monitoring tools or “probes” are • brief assessments • reliable, valid, and evidence-based • repeated measures that capture student ability • measures of age appropriate outcomes

Different progress monitoring tools may be used to assess different outcome measures

Probes Short (typically 5 minutes or less) assessments of a skill

area.

Assess the same skill at the same level.

Administered frequently so linear progress can be tracked.

Some common probes County issued CD Easy CBM DIBELS Ed Checkup Many, many more

Key probe considerations Measure the same skill over time

Favor skills over classroom assessments

Do not change the difficulty level

Assess the student where their current skill level is at

Case Study: When things don’t match

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Screening Data and Progress Monitoring can be linked

The goal is to have a cohesive system.

If possible, use the same measures for both screening and progress monitoring (e.g, CBM).

Screen ALL students 3x per year (F, W, S)

Strategic Support and Monitoring Students at Some Risk

Intensive Support & Monitoring for

Students at Extreme Risk

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Suggested Progress Monitoring Interval Guidelines

Adapted from D. Marston, 2005

Risk Level Score Profile Progress Monitoring Frequency/Type

Above Benchmark Very Low to No risk (Universal)

>65th Percentile 2-3 x/year Benchmark Measurement

Near Benchmark Low Risk (Universal)

25-65th Percentile 4-6 x/year Benchmark Measurement

Below Benchmark Some risk (Targeted)

5th-25th Percentile 2 x/month Progress Measurement

Far Below Benchmark At-Risk (Intensive)

Below 5th Percentile At least weekly Progress Measurement

To change what you are doing with a student if it is not working (formative assessment) so you are effective and efficient with your time and instruction

To help make decisions about instructional goals, materials, levels, and groups

To aid in communication with parents

To document progress for special education students as required for periodic and annual reviews

Why Progress Monitor Frequently?

Phase Change During the Tier 3 RTI Process we must constantly be

aware of if our interventions and progress monitoring packages are being effective.

If the student is NOT making progress we must modify our approach.

When we change our intervention package that is a Phase Change

When in doubt use the Rule of Four

How do I track my data on an individual?

RTI – Applied

Let’s bollocks this up some

Adam Smith 9 Year old 3rd Grade Teacher reports Adam is struggling with decoding

words and recognizing sight words

Educational history suggests similar problems dating back to kindergarten

2nd Grade/Early 3rd Scores CRCT Reading – 781 ELA – 793 Math - 811

ITBS Reading Composite – 18th Percentile Math Composite – 43rd Percentile Total Composite – 39th Percentile

COGAT Verbal – 92 Quantitative – 99 Spatial – 82

Report Card/1st Nine Weeks Demonstrates comprehension of grade level text - 1 Applies decoding strategies - 1 Reads orally with rhythm, flow, and meter - 1 Reads and understands vocabulary in context -2

Tier 2 Student moved to Tier 2 on basis of at-risk status Teachers in Grade Level PLC meeting discuss his status

Paperwork needs to be kept, but does not need to be as

formal/quantitative as at Tier 3

Tier 2 Interventions EIP (student already served EIP)

Small group instruction in reading

Tier 2 Results Results can be more anecdotal than other aspects of

RTI

Often may be related to teacher observation, classroom grades, and report cards

Adam did not show any marked improvement in Tier 2 and was moved to Tier 3

Tier 3 Student referred to Tier 3 SST Meeting Parents invited Data and reports from Tier 1 & 2 reviewed SST team narrows down area of concern to basic

reading/phonemic decoding They choose interventions and plan for progress monitoring

Tier 3 Interventions Individual, prescribed Study Island sequence

Extra time (10 minutes per week) with teacher (certified

educator, not parapro)

Tier 3 Progress Monitoring Dibels – Basic Reading To be administered weekly to student Dibels administration takes approximately 1-3 minutes Afterward, data from progress monitoring entered into

progress monitoring document

PM Document Baseline must be established What can the student do initially

Goal must be set Needs to be attainable given time frame

Can be assessed as either a percentage or whole number With DIBELS word reading whole numbers are appropriate

Progress Monitoring

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1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13Data Points

Score (%)Goal (%)

Baseline

Score (%)

Goal (%) Date Phase

BL #N/A #N/A

1 #N/A #N/A

2 #N/A #N/A

3 #N/A #N/A

4 #N/A #N/A

5 #N/A #N/A

6 #N/A #N/A

7 #N/A #N/A

8 #N/A #N/A

9 #N/A #N/A

10 #N/A #N/A

Advanced Goal Setting Can set 2 goals if it advantageous Goal 1: What can a typically functioning 3rd grader do (use

other students to ascertain) Goal 2: What do we expect the student to accomplish with

intervention in a short period of time

Purpose would be to dually track both the students progress and their skill relative to normally functioning peers

Baseline Dibels Oral Reading Fluency benchmark administered

Student can read 9 words in one minute

From sampling we know that the average for a

student in his grade is 50

We set a goal of 25 WPM within 12 weeks

After 5 weeks

Progress Monitoring

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What do we know? Little or no progress Our first intervention package (phase 1) was not

successful Therefore we must adjust the package We can… Increase the intensity of interventions Add additional interventions Completely change the interventions

Interventions: Phase II Study Island (with more time) Extra time (20 minutes per week) with teacher

Teaching Sound Skills in Isolation

After 10 weeks…alternate reality 1

Progress Monitoring

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What do we decide RTI/SST team determines that little real progress has

been made Team examines if any “rule out” factors exist They determine they do not, therefore they

determine a referral for SPED assessment is appropriate

NOTE: While all 12 weeks do not have to be completed prior to referral, as a general rule 10 weeks should be completed other than in emergency situations

Exclusionary Factors Unbroken educational history

No language difficulties

No history of medical problems Attendance is good

After 10 weeks…alternate reality II

Progress Monitoring

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What we decide RTI/SST team determines that real progress has been

made As a result no referral for evaluation made This does NOT mean the student has caught up or is

achieving at expectations, only that the student has shown response to intervention

Continue with interventions/progress monitoring while waiting for evaluation

Alternate Reality II…now what?

Adam remains in Tier 3 for the time being Progress monitoring can and should continue Adam’s progress may not be consistent and he may

plateau When progress falters interventions should be

adjusted If student makes strong, consistent progress

movement down to Tier 2 may become appropriate

Progress Monitoring Using Multiple Goals…A Potential Grey Area

Progress Monitoring

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Data Points

Score Students Personal Goal Grade Level Goal

Considerations and reminders In general, 10-12 weeks of progress monitoring

should be completed prior to referral When interventions are not successful, they need to

be tweaked and changed Consider “rule-out” factors prior to evaluation The purpose of RTI is to try to fix the problem, not

to simply funnel a child towards a psychological assessment

Progress monitoring is a critical component of the evaluation

Wrap up and Questions

You don’t have to go home but you can’t stay here

Final Activity: What aspects of a functional RTI program are we doing

well at our school?

What aspects of a functional RTI program do we currently lack or need to grow in?

What do we need to improve these areas?