North East School Division
An Introduction
to
Response to Intervention (RTI)
2009
KEY QUESTION
What do we do when students
don’t learn??
 Utilization of the Pyramid Response to
Intervention framework will create an effective
process for all NESD teachers,
administrators, support personnel and
division staff to answer this question.
What is Pyramid Response to
Intervention?
 It is the practice of providing high-quality
instruction and interventions that match
student's needs and using students’
learning rate over time and level of
performance to make important
educational decisions.
It is……
 RTI or 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 student’s academic,
social-emotional, and behavioral needs.
It is…..
 A continuum of intervention tiers with
increasing levels of intensity and duration
is central to RTI.
 Collaborative educational decisions that
are based on data derived from frequent
monitoring of student performance and
rate of learning.
Timely, Directive, Systematic,
Flexible Support
 Using this process allows students to receive
timely interventions at the first indication that
they need more time and support.
 This process should be directive rather than
invitational, so that the students get the extra
help they need, consistently and without
interruption until they are successful.
 Interventions are sequences to build
upon each other, from least to most
restrictive, from least to most intensive,
and from what happens in every
classroom for all children to what
happens for individual students who need
highly focused, targeted help.
It is not….
 RTI is not a program but rather a
process for ensuring that all students
learn.
 RTI is not another add on.
3 Tiers
Pyramid of RTI Support
Intensive
Interventions focused
on closing the gap.
TIER 3
Immediate and powerful targeted
interventions systematically applied and
monitored for any students not achieving.
TIER 2
A coherent and viable core curriculum that
embeds ongoing monitoring for all students.
TIER 1
A Focus on Learning* A collaborative Culture* A Focus on Results
Why use this model?
 When schools operate as professional learning
communities, create a pyramid of intervention, they
create the opportunity for powerful change.
 It is believed that these three ideas will unite the longseparated worlds of regular education and special
education to create a unified system of schooling.
 With the demise of the “wait to fail” model, we can now
move toward a systematic, directive, and timely
response to all children when they don’t learn
adequately regardless of labels or subgroups.
A Three-Tier RTI Model
 While there is no single, thoroughly researched
and widely practiced “model” of the RTI
process, it is generally defined as a three-tier
(or 3-step) model of school supports that uses
research-based academic and/or behavior
interventions.
 At all stages of the process, RTI should focus
on discovering how to make the student more
successful rather than focusing on the
student’s lack of success.
Tier 1
(A coherent and viable core curriculum that embeds
ongoing monitoring for ALL students.)
 A Tier 1 curriculum must be prioritized so that the
students have ample opportunity to master power
standards. It must also include a component that
specializes instruction and learning based on
individuals’ and small groups’ disparate needs.
 The most important step a school can take to improve
its core program is differentiating instruction.
 In Tier 1, educators meet individual student needs by
differentiating the support and time they offer. If they
need further support (tier 2 or 3), the process that has
been established should be followed.
Tier 1
 Approximately 75-80% of the student
population will have their educational
needs met by Tier 1 interventions.
Tier 2
(Immediate and powerful targeted interventions
systematically applied and monitored for any student
not achieving.)
 The level of the pyramid where supplemental
interventions are implemented for students
who’s educational needs have not been met by
the core program.
 Small group interventions.
 An additional 10-15% of the student population
will benefit from Tier 2 interventions.
Tier 3
(Intensive Interventions focused on closing the
gap.)
 The level of the pyramid where intensive
individual interventions are implemented
for student’s whose educational needs
have not been met in Tier 1 or Tier 2.
 5-10% of the student population will
require these types of interventions.
Others we work with are using
this model.
 Various agencies and departments are
utilizing similar procedures that are
represented within this model.
 One example of this is the Ministry of
Education and their RTI model that is
used to identify Intense Level Students.
Saskatchewan Ministry of
Education
*Promising approach
*Sound instructional principles such as intervening early, using
research based interventions,
*Monitoring students’ progress; and using assessments to inform
instructional decisions.
An Effective Response to
Intervention Pyramid …
 Will have academic as well as behavioral
interventions in all 3 tiers.
 Will be built upon a strong core program.
 Will have established identification,
placement and monitoring processes.
Overview
 Successful implementation of the RTI
process becomes the collective
responsibility of the entire system – both
at the school and division level.
 The RTI framework will be most effective
if it is implemented using the PLC format.
Division
 What does this RTI
Pyramid look like
within our division?
 Your administrator
will hand out a copy
of this Division
Pyramid
Your School
 What does this look
like in your school
now?
 What could it look
like, now that you are
more familiar with
this pyramid?
 Activities
 Discussion