Response to Intervention

Response to Intervention or RtI,is an outgrowth of changes in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and No Child Left Behind (NCLB) legislation. Previously, children who struggled academically in school had to:

• Fit the qualifications of a legislated category (special education, 504, English Language Learners) to ensure there was funding for extra services; and
• Fall significantly behind before being served.

Response to Intervention’s goal is to meet the needs of all students at risk for failure, whether or not they qualify for a legislated program. Response to Intervention is an approach that promotes a well-integrated system connecting general, compensatory, gifted, and special education in providing high quality, standards-based instruction/intervention that is matched to students’ academic, social-emotional, and behavioral needs.

The Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) believes that increased student learning requires the consistent practice of providing high quality instruction matched to student needs. Response to Intervention (RtI) is a general education initiative that requires collaborative efforts from all district staff, general educators, special educators and bilingual/ELL staff.

As districts develop their RtI Plans by January 2009, their plans shall support a fluid model of response to interventions of varying intensity to meet the needs of all students. The overarching purpose of RtI implementation is to improve educational outcomes for all students.

Some basic underpinnings of this systemic approach:

• It relies on the premise that all students receive research-based and standards-driven instruction in general education.
• The learning of all students is assessed early and often (ongoing progress monitoring).
• Assessment is focused on direct measurements of achievement and behavior.
• If there are concerns about student progress, increasingly intense tiers of intervention are available to groups or individuals.
• Individual student data gathered through the process may be used to determine appropriateness of a special education referral (e.g., in the case of students who do not respond adequately to intervention or who require ongoing intensive intervention in order to sustain growth) and as part of a comprehensive evaluation for determination of eligibility.

Progress Monitoring and Data Collection

RtI encompasses a three-tier process of increasingly intensive instructional interventions put in place in response to frequent progress monitoring indicating that a student’s academic and/or behavioral needs are not being met in the current instructional program.

Special Education Eligibility Considerations

When implementing an RtI process, school teams use student progress data collected at each tier to document a student’s response to scientific, research-based interventions as part of the evaluation process in order to consider eligibility for special education services. It is also important to note that a parent may request an evaluation at any point during this intervention process.

By the 2010-2011 school year, documentation of the RtI process shall be a part of the evaluation process for students when a specific learning disability (SLD) is suspected. After implementing an RtI process, a district may use a severe discrepancy between intellectual ability and achievement as part of the evaluation process for determining whether a child has a specific frequency with which that evaluation process will be used.

Oak Lawn-Hometown School District 123

Response to Intervention Blueprint

The District Will:

• Develop a shared vision that RtI is a “general education initiative” and that RtI and problem-solving will result in more productive and equitable outcomes for students.
• Identify the administrative support structures necessary for systemic planning and implementation of RtI.
• Identify the stakeholders in the district, inform them about RtI, and assure the stakeholders that their input will be considered in the development of the infrastructure.
• Develop a common understanding regarding the scope of RtI implementation.

General Outcomes:

• Define the policies and procedures regarding how to implement RtI.
• Systematize RtI with school improvement plans and other district initiatives.
• Develop a communication plan. Identify who will provide the information, how the information will be shared, and when the information will be communicated (Parents, students, staff, administrators, school board).
• Complete a needs assessment process to identify areas of strength and areas of need related to an RtI system.
• Develop and deploy an integrated professional development plan across personnel (parents, staff, administrators, etc…) and across needed content domains.
• Outline an evaluation plan and identify the data management system(s) that will be used to support RtI implementation and allows progress monitoring of district, school, classroom, and individual student’s progress.
• Identify a plan to develop strong, well-trained school-based problem-solving teams who can provide “on-the-ground” support for teachers, students, and parents.
• Schedule regular meetings for the District Leadership Team.

AIMSweb

AIMSweb® is a scientifically based, formative assessment system that “informs” the teaching and learning process by providing continuous student performance data and reporting improvement to parents, teachers, and administrators to enable evidence-based evaluation and data-driven instruction. AIMSweb will be used to monitor student progress in literacy.

The AIMSweb system consists of:

1. Two web-based data management and identification reporting programs to report and graph the results of Curriculum–Based Measurement (CBM) in early literacy, reading, and spelling.
2. Standard General Curriculum Assessment Materials
   • Standard Benchmark Reading Assessment Passages
   • Standard Progress Monitoring Reading Assessment Passages
   • Early Literacy Measures
   • Early Literacy Indicators for Progress Monitoring
   • Standard Maze Passages (Comprehension)
   • Standard Benchmark Spelling Lists
   • Standard Progress Monitoring Spelling Lists

Additional information may be found on the AIMSweb ® website which is located at www.aimsweb.com.

RtI - Frequently Asked Questions

1. What does “Response to Intervention” mean?
   Response to Intervention means students are closely monitored for academic and behavioral progress. The curriculum is modified in the event that an individual student or groups of students are not successful. The continued collection and analysis of data measures on how well students are responding to the interventions is provided by the teacher or another professional.
2. Is Response to Intervention only for Special Education Students?
   No. Response to Intervention is for any student who is not succeeding in the classroom. This may mean the student is learning at a slower rate or lower level than his or her classmates or the student is performing significantly below potential.
3. What is a Problem Solving Team?
   A Problem Solving Team is made up of a group of teachers and school staff who meet regularly to help design interventions for and monitor progress of students at risk for failure. Different staff members may be part of the team depending on the needs of the student. Parents or guardians are also encouraged to join the team to create an effective action plan for their child.
4. How do I know a student is progressing?
   Response to Intervention uses short, frequent tests (about 1-3 minutes each) to find out whether a student is making progress. The results are often displayed using a graph. The graph will provide valuable information about student progress and how he or she is performing in relation to a standard benchmark.
5. Is behavior part of RtI?
   Yes. Many students have the knowledge and skills to be successful. However, their behavior may negatively impact their academic success. Schools and classrooms have developed levels of interventions to help students monitor and improve their behavior.
6. What is the difference between academic skills and academic performance?
   Academic skills are those tasks, concepts and ideas that are grade level expectations for all students. Academic performance is the student’s ability to demonstrate skills by accurate work, attending class, taking tests, and staying on task in the classroom.
7. How does negative behavior impact academic achievement?
   When a child misbehaves in class he is less likely to be prepared to receive the instruction necessary for academic success. She may be distracted or distract others or miss valuable information, directions, or expectations.

RtI Definitions