What’s Response to Intervention (RtI) Model?

The Response to Intervention (RtI) model provides districts and schools with a useful tool for helping all subgroups of underperforming students to achieve.

RtI is a monitoring system recommended under the reauthorization of the federal Building the Legacy: IDEA2004—Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (Outside Source). Although originally designed for special education, RtI provides a practical model for continuous progress monitoring, carefully tailored instruction, and frequent, accelerated interventions that move students on a strategic path to success. RtI can help teachers determine if students are learning as expected, or if not, whether they require early intervention services. It can also help teachers determine student eligibility for special education services. A more detailed discussion about the instruction and intervention aspect of RtI can be found at Response toInstruction and Intervention RTI2, Recommendation 2—Instruction, Assessment, and Intervention, TCSII.

The intent of universal access is to meet the needs of all students, including English Language Learners (ELL), with reading difficulties, students with disabilities, and advanced learners. All SBE-adopted programs have been designed with additional ancillary materials that are to be used with and beyond the basic program that include extra support for struggling readers and ELL. In cases where students have processing difficulties (e.g., auditory discrimination input difficulties) or lack specific academic vocabulary, as in the case of many new immigrants and bilingual students, lectures and auditory discussions will not provide equal access. These types of instructional methods must be supplemented with multiple support strategies. For example, teachers can use realia and flash cards to reinforce vocabulary, slide shows, hands-on materials, and aides or tutors to help students learn the material.