Response to Instruction and Intervention – Part I

Published October 17, 2014

Response to Instruction and Intervention (RTI2) will be explained through a series of InFocus articles addressing the many facets of the framework. Upcoming articles will address the tiers of intervention, student screening and progress monitoring, and how RTI2 affects special education.

What is RTI2?

A general education initiative, Response to Instruction and Intervention, or RTI2, is a comprehensive framework for supporting students academically that focuses on high-quality instruction and evidence-based interventions. Instruction and intervention is tailored to meet the needs of the student through the use of initial screening data. Screening data come from assessments designed to identify student stengths and areas of need in reading, mathematics and written expression.

History of RTI2

In the past, the most common option for a student who was not successful in the general education classroom was special education. Schools would have to wait to identify students for a Specific Learning Disability (SLD) until they could show a discrepancy between the students intellectual and academic ability. The process usually occurred around third grade and has become known as the “wait to fail” model.

In 2004, the Individuals with Disablilities in Education Act (IDEA) was reauthorized to readdress the way districts and schools meet student needs. The RTI2 framework became the means by which students would become eligibile for an Individualized Education Program (IEP) by showing evidence of a Specific Learning Disability (SLD).

As of July 1, 2014, RTI2 is the sole criterion by which a student may be identified as having a Specific Learning Disability in the state of Tennessee.

The RTI2 Framework

Under the RTI2 model, the needs of students are addresssed at the first sign of struggle. Students who are not achieving at nationally set, research-based, benchmarks in the areas of reading, math, and written expression are provided additional, more targeted instruction in the general education classroom. Students could receive anywhere from 30 to 60 minutes of additional instruction and intervention daily based on their need. Research shows that about 20 percent of students will require some level of additional support or intervention. Students who are receiving additional instruction and intervention are progress monitored to ensure their needs are being met. Decisions are made as to how best serve students based on the student’s response to instruction and intervention.

As the student receives the additional support and academic interventions, he or she is likely to make up skill deficits and to be highly successful. If the academic interventions fail to help the student significantly, an evaluation may occur to determine whether special education services are needed.

It is important to remember that RTI is a general education initiative that is designed to ensure that every student gets what he or she needs to be successful.