How Do We Define Multi-Tiered

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How Do We Define Multi-Tiered Interventions
Under RTI? Jim Wrightwww.interventioncentral.org

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Essential Elements of Any Academic or Behavioral
Intervention (Treatment) Strategy

• Method of delivery (Who or what delivers the
  treatment?)Examples include teachers,
  paraprofessionals, parents, volunteers,
  computers.
• Treatment component (What makes the intervention
  effective?)Examples include activation of prior
  knowledge to help the student to make meaningful
  connections between known and new material
  guide practice (e.g., Paired Reading) to increase
  reading fluency periodic review of material to
  aid student retention. As an example of a
  research-based commercial program, Read Naturally
  combines teacher modeling, repeated reading and
  progress monitoring to remediate fluency
  problems.

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Interventions, Accommodations Modifications
Sorting Them Out

• Interventions. An academic intervention is a
  strategy used to teach a new skill, build fluency
  in a skill, or encourage a child to apply an
  existing skill to new situations or settings.
  An intervention is said to be research-based
  when it has been demonstrated to be effective in
  one or more articles published in peerreviewed
  scientific journals. Interventions might be based
  on commercial programs such as Read Naturally.
  The school may also develop and implement an
  intervention that is based on guidelines provided
  in research articlessuch as Paired Reading
  (Topping, 1987).

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Interventions, Accommodations Modifications
Sorting Them Out

• Accommodations. An accommodation is intended to
  help the student to fully access the
  general-education curriculum without changing the
  instructional content. An accommodation for
  students who are slow readers, for example, may
  include having them supplement their silent
  reading of a novel by listening to the book on
  tape. An accommodation is intended to remove
  barriers to learning while still expecting that
  students will master the same instructional
  content as their typical peers. Informal
  accommodations may be used at the classroom level
  or be incorporated into a more intensive,
  individualized intervention plan.

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Interventions, Accommodations Modifications
Sorting Them Out

• Modifications. A modification changes the
  expectations of what a student is expected to
  know or dotypically by lowering the academic
  expectations against which the student is to be
  evaluated. Examples of modifications are
  reducing the number of multiple-choice items in a
  test from five to four or shortening a spelling
  list. Under RTI, modifications are generally not
  included in a students intervention plan,
  because the working assumption is that the
  student can be successful in the curriculum with
  appropriate interventions and accommodations
  alone.

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Interventions Essential Elements (Witt et al.,
2004)

• The absence of any of these essential elements
  constitute a fatal flaw to the students
  intervention
• Clear problem definition(s)
• Baseline data
• Goal(s) for improvement
• Plan to monitor student progress

Source Witt, J. C., VanDerHeyden, A. M.,
Gilbertson, D. (2004). Troubleshooting behavioral
interventions. A systematic process for finding
and eliminating problems. School Psychology
Review, 33, 363-383..
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Increasing the Intensity of an Intervention Key
Dimensions

• Interventions can move up the RTI Tiers through
  being intensified across several dimensions,
  including
• Type of intervention strategy or materials used
• Student-teacher ratio
• Length of intervention sessions
• Frequency of intervention sessions
• Duration of the intervention period (e.g.,
  extending an intervention from 5 weeks to 10
  weeks)
• Motivation strategies

Source Burns, M. K., Gibbons, K. A. (2008).
Implementing response-to-intervention in
elementary and secondary schools. Routledge New
York. Kratochwill, T. R., Clements, M. A.,
Kalymon, K. M. (2007). Response to intervention
Conceptual and methodological issues in
implementation. In Jimerson, S. R., Burns, M. K.,
VanDerHeyden, A. M. (Eds.), Handbook of
response to intervention The science and
practice of assessment and intervention. New
York Springer.
8
Research-Based Elements of Effective Academic
Interventions

• Correctly targeted The intervention is
  appropriately matched to the students academic
  or behavioral needs.
• Explicit instruction Student skills have been
  broken down into manageable and deliberately
  sequenced steps and providing overt strategies
  for students to learn and practice new skills
  p.1153
• Appropriate level of challenge The student
  experiences adequate success with the
  instructional task.
• High opportunity to respond The student
  actively responds at a rate frequent enough to
  promote effective learning.
• Feedback The student receives prompt
  performance feedback about the work completed.

Source Burns, M. K., VanDerHeyden, A. M.,
Boice, C. H. (2008). Best practices in intensive
academic interventions. In A. Thomas J. Grimes
(Eds.), Best practices in school psychology V
(pp.1151-1162). Bethesda, MD National
Association of School Psychologists.
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Secondary Students Should Interventions Be
Off-Level or Focus on Grade-Level Academics?

• There is a lack of consensus about how to
  address the academic needs of students with
  deficits in basic skills in secondary grades
  (Espin Tindal, 1998).
• Should the student be placed in remedial
  instruction at a point of instructional match
  to address those basic-skill deficits?
  (Instruction is adjusted down to the student)
• Or is time better spent providing the student
  with compensatory strategies to learn grade-level
  content and work around those basic-skill
  deficits? (Student is brought up to current
  instruction)

Source Espin, C. A., Tindal, G. (1998).
Curriculum-based measurement for secondary
students. In M. R. Shinn (Ed.) Advanced
applications of curriculum-based measurement. New
York Guilford Press.
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RTI Pyramid of Interventions
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Teachers Voice Behavior Management Strategies
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Tier I Instruction/Interventions

• Tier I instruction/interventions
• Are universalavailable to all students.
• Can be delivered within classrooms or throughout
  the school.
• Are likely to be put into place by the teacher at
  the first sign that a student is struggling.
• All children have access to Tier 1
  instruction/interventions. Teachers have the
  capability to use those strategies without
  requiring outside assistance.
• Tier 1 instruction/interventions encompass
• The schools core curriculum and all published or
  teacher-made materials used to deliver that
  curriculum.
• Teacher use of whole-group teaching
  management strategies.
• Teacher use of individualized strategies with
  specific students.
• Tier I instruction/interventions attempt to
  answer the question Are routine classroom
  instructional strategies sufficient to help the
  student to achieve academic success?

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Examples of Evidence-Based Tier I Management
Strategies (Fairbanks, Sugai, Guardino,
Lathrop, 2007)

• Consistently acknowledging appropriate behavior
  in class
• Providing students with frequent and varied
  opportunities to respond during instructional
  activities
• Reducing transition time between instructional
  activities to a minimum
• Giving students immediate and direct corrective
  feedback when they commit an academic error or
  engage in inappropriate behavior

Source Fairbanks, S., Sugai, G., Guardino, S.,
Lathrop, M. (2007). Response to intervention
Examining classroom behavior support in second
grade. Exceptional Children, 73, p. 290.
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Tier 1 What Are the Recommended Elements of
Core Curriculum? More Research Needed

• In essence, we now have a good beginning on the
  evaluation of Tier 2 and 3 interventions, but no
  idea about what it will take to get the core
  curriculum to work at Tier 1. A complicating
  issue with this potential line of research is
  that many schools use multiple materials as their
  core program. p. 640

Source Kovelski, J. F. (2007). Response to
intervention Considerations for research and
systems change. School Psychology Review, 36,
638-646.
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Schools Need to Review Tier 1 (Classroom)
Interventions to Ensure That They Are Supported
By Research

• There is a lack of agreement about what is meant
  by scientifically validated classroom (Tier I)
  interventions. Districts should establish a
  vetting processcriteria for judging whether a
  particular instructional or intervention approach
  should be considered empirically based.

Source Fuchs, D., Deshler, D. D. (2007). What
we need to know about responsiveness to
intervention (and shouldnt be afraid to ask)..
Learning Disabilities Research Practice,
22(2),129136.
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RTI Pyramid of Interventions
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Tier 2 Supplemental (Group-Based) Interventions

• Tier 2 interventions are typically delivered in
  small-group format. About 15 of students in the
  typical school will require Tier 2/supplemental
  intervention support.
• Group size for Tier 2 interventions is limited
  to 4-7 students. Students placed in Tier 2
  interventions should have a shared profile of
  intervention need.
• The reading progress of students in Tier 2
  interventions are monitored at least 1-2 times
  per month.

Source Burns, M. K., Gibbons, K. A. (2008).
Implementing response-to-intervention in
elementary and secondary schools. Routledge New
York.
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Group-Based Tier II Services How Much Time
Should Be Allocated?

• Emerging guidelines drawn largely from reading
  research suggest that standard protocol
  interventions should consist of at least three to
  five 30-minute sessions per week, in a group size
  not to exceed 6-7 students. Standard protocol
  interventions should also supplement, rather than
  replace, core instruction taking place in the
  classroom.

Sources Burns, Al Otaiba, S. Torgesen, J.
(2007). Effects from intensive standardized
kindergarten and first-grade interventions for
the prevention of reading difficulties. In S. R.
Jimerson, M. K. Burns, A. M. VanDerHeyden
(Eds.), Response to intervention The science and
practice of assessment and intervention (pp.
212-222). National Reading Panel. (2000).
Teaching children to read An evidence-based
assessment of the scientific research literature
on reading and its implications for reading
instruction. Bethesda, MD National Institute of
Child Health Human Development, National
Institutes of Health.
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Tier 2 Exploring Use of Non-Instructional
Personnel

• To expand their intervention capacity, schools
  may want to explore using people other than
  teachers to assist with some RTI interventions,
  including
• peer or older student tutors
• adult volunteers
• graduate students
• paraprofessionals
• Of course, any person serving as a tutor would
  need to be trained appropriately and their
  tutoring activities overseen by a certified
  educator. (Burns Gibbons, 2008).

Source Burns, M. K., Gibbons, K. A. (2008).
Implementing response-to-intervention in
elementary and secondary schools. Routledge New
York.
20
Tier II Standard Protocol Treatments Strengths
Limits in Secondary Settings

• Research indicates that students do well in
  targeted small-group interventions (4-7 students)
  when the intervention treatment is closely
  matched to those students academic needs (Burns
  Gibbons, 2008).
• However, in secondary schools
• students are sometimes grouped for remediation by
  convenience rather than by presenting need.
  Teachers instruct across a broad range of student
  skills, diluting the positive impact of the
  intervention.
• students often present with a unique profile of
  concerns that does not lend itself to placement
  in a group intervention.

Source Burns, M. K., Gibbons, K. A. (2008).
Implementing response-to-intervention in
elementary and secondary schools Procedures to
assure scientific-based practices. New York
Routledge.
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Caution About Secondary Tier 2 Standard-Protocol
Interventions Avoid the Homework Help Trap

• Tier 2 group-based or standard-protocol
  interventions are an efficient method to deliver
  targeted academic support to students (Burns
  Gibbons, 2008).
• However, students should be matched to specific
  research-based interventions that address their
  specific needs.
• RTI intervention support in secondary schools
  should not take the form of unfocused homework
  help.

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RTI Pyramid of Interventions
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Tier 3 Intensive Individualized Interventions

• Tier 3 interventions are the most intensive
  offered in a school setting.
• Students qualify for Tier 3 interventions
  because
• they are found to have a large skill gap when
  compared to their class or grade peers and/or
• They did not respond to interventions provided
  previously at Tiers 1 2.
• Tier 3 interventions are provided daily for
  sessions of 30 minutes. The student-teacher ratio
  is flexible but should allow the student to
  receive intensive, individualized instruction.
• The reading progress of students in Tier 3
  interventions is monitored at least weekly.

Source Burns, M. K., Gibbons, K. A. (2008).
Implementing response-to-intervention in
elementary and secondary schools. Routledge New
York.
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The Problem-Solving Model Multi-Disciplinary
Teams

• A school consultative process (the
  problem-solving model) with roots in applied
  behavior analysis was developed (e.g., Bergan,
  1995) that includes 4 steps
• Problem Identification
• Problem Analysis
• Plan Implementation
• Problem Evaluation
• Originally designed for individual consultation
  with teachers, the problem-solving model was
  later adapted in various forms to
  multi-disciplinary team settings.

Source Bergan, J. R. (1995). Evolution of a
problem-solving model of consultation. Journal of
Educational and Psychological Consultation, 6(2),
111-123.
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Tier 3 Targets Intervention, Curriculum, and
Environment

• For a tier 3 intervention to be effective and
  robust, it must focus on the specific needs of
  the student. It should also address the reason
  that the student is experiencing difficulty.
  Rather than considering a student problem to be
  the result of inalterable student
  characteristics, teams are compelled to focus on
  change that can be made to the intervention,
  curriculum or environment that would result in
  positive student outcome. The hypothesis and
  intervention should focus on those variables that
  are alterable within the school setting. These
  alterable variables include learning goals and
  objectives (what is to be learned), materials,
  time, student-to-teacher ratio, activities, and
  motivational strategies. p. 95

Source Burns, M. K., Gibbons, K. A. (2008).
Implementing response-to-intervention in
elementary and secondary schools. Routledge New
York.
26
Tier 3 Scripting Interventions to Promote Better
Compliance

• Interventions should be written up in a
  scripted format to ensure that
• Teachers have sufficient information about the
  intervention to implement it correctly and
• External observers can view the teacher
  implementing the intervention strategy andusing
  the script as a checklistverify that each step
  of the intervention was implemented correctly
  (treatment integrity).

Source Burns, M. K., Gibbons, K. A. (2008).
Implementing response-to-intervention in
elementary and secondary schools. Routledge New
York.
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Intervention Script Builder Form
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Advancing Through RTI Flexibility in the Tiers

• For purposes of efficiency, students should be
  placed in small-group instruction at Tier 2.
• However, group interventions may not always be
  possible because due to scheduling or other
  issuesno group is available. (For example,
  students with RTI behavioral referrals may not
  have a group intervention available.)
• In such a case, the student will go directly to
  the problem-solving process (Tier 3)typically
  through a referral to the school RTI Team.
• Nonetheless, the school must still document the
  same minimum number of interventions attempted
  for every student in RTI, whether or not a
  student first received interventions in a group
  setting.

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Team Activity Building Multi-Tier Capacity

• At your tables
• Discuss the task of building a continuum of
  interventions that span Tiers 1-3 in your middle
  or high school (in basic skills, content areas,
  and behavior).
• What are enabling factors that should help you to
  build or improve your multi-tier pyramid of
  interventions?
• What are challenges or areas needing improvement
  to allow you to construct your multi-tier
  pyramid of interventions?

• Intensifying Interventions. Interventions can be
  intensified across several dimensions
• Student-teacher ratio
• Length of intervention sessions
• Frequency of intervention sessions
• Duration of the intervention period (e.g.,
  extending an intervention from 5 weeks to 10
  weeks)
• Type of intervention strategy or materials used
• Motivation strategies

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Evaluating Intervention Follow-Through
(Treatment Integrity)
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Why Monitor Intervention Follow-Through?

• If the RTI Team does not monitor the quality of
  the intervention follow-through, it will not know
  how to explain a students failure to respond to
  intervention.
• Do qualities within the student explain the lack
  of academic or behavioral progress?
• Did problems with implementing the intervention
  prevent the student from making progress?

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What Are Potential Barriers to Assessing
Intervention Follow-Through?

• Direct observation of interventions is the gold
  standard for evaluating the quality of their
  implementation. However
• Teachers being observed may feel that they are
  being evaluated for global job performance
• Non-administrative staff may be uncomfortable
  observing a fellow educator to evaluate
  intervention follow-through
• It can be difficult for staff to find time to
  observe and evaluate interventions as they are
  being carried out

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Supplemental Ideas to Collect Information About
Classroom Implementation of Interventions

• Assign a case manager from the RTI Intervention
  Team to check in with the teacher within a week
  of the initial meeting to see how the
  intervention is going.
• Have the teacher use a data tool to collect
  information about the students response to
  intervention (e.g., Daily Behavior Report Card)
  or about the implementation of the intervention
  itself (e.g. Teacher Intervention Evaluation Log)
• Include a scripted question at the RTI
  Intervention Team Follow-Up Meeting that
  explicitly asks the referring teacher or
  instructional team to provide details about the
  implementation of the intervention.
• Review any work products or records that are
  generated by an intervention (e.g., student
  self-rating forms academic work teacher log of
  number of times that an intervention strategy was
  used). These work products or records can serve
  as indirect indicators of intervention
  follow-through.

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Intervention Script Builder
35
Building Teacher Capacity to Deliver Tier 1
Interventions An 8-Step Checklist Jim
Wrightwww.interventioncentral.org
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What Are Appropriate Content-Area Tier 1
Universal Interventions for Secondary Schools?

• High schools need to determine what constitutes
  high-quality universal instruction across content
  areas. In addition, high school teachers need
  professional development in, for example,
  differentiated instructional techniques that will
  help ensure student access to instruction
  interventions that are effectively implemented.

Source Duffy, H. (August 2007). Meeting the
needs of significantly struggling learners in
high school. Washington, DC National High School
Center. Retrieved from http//www.betterhighschool
s.org/pubs/ p. 9
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Team Activity Building Tier 1 Capacity

• At your tables
• Consider the eight steps to building Tier 1
  teacher capacity to deliver effective classroom
  interventions.
• Discuss the strengths and challenges that your
  school or district presents in promoting Tier 1
  interventions.
• Be prepared to share your discussion with the
  larger group!

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End
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What Works Clearinghousehttp//ies.ed.gov/ncee/ww
c/
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Intervention Centralhttp//www.interventioncentra
l.org
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Building Positive Relationships With
StudentsJim Wrightwww.interventioncentral.org
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Avoiding the Reprimand Trap

• When working with students who display
  challenging behaviors, instructors can easily
  fall into the reprimand trap. In this
  sequence
• The student misbehaves.
• The teacher approaches the student to reprimand
  and redirect. (But the teacher tends not to give
  the student attention for positive behaviors,
  such as paying attention and doing school work.)
• As the misbehave-reprimand pattern becomes
  ingrained, both student and teacher experience a
  strained relationship and negative feelings.

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Sample Ideas to Improve Relationships With
Students The Two-By-Ten Intervention (Mendler,
2000)

• Make a commitment to spend 2 minutes per day for
  10 consecutive days in building a relationship
  with the studentby talking about topics of
  interest to the student. Avoid discussing
  problems with the students behaviors or
  schoolwork during these times.

Source Mendler, A. N. (2000). Motivating
students who dont care. Bloomington, IN
National Educational Service.
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Sample Ideas to Improve Relationships With
Students The Three-to-One Intervention (Sprick,
Borgmeier, Nolet, 2002)

• Give positive attention or praise to problem
  students at least three times more frequently
  than you reprimand them. Give the student the
  attention or praise during moments when that
  student is acting appropriately. Keep track of
  how frequently you give positive attention and
  reprimands to the student.

Source Sprick, R. S., Borgmeier, C., Nolet, V.
(2002). Prevention and management of behavior
problems in secondary schools. In M. A. Shinn, H.
M. Walker G. Stoner (Eds.), Interventions for
academic and behavior problems II Preventive and
remedial approaches (pp.373-401). Bethesda, MD
National Association of School Psychologists.