RtI…A School Improvement Process
Response to Intervention (RtI) is an organized process to provide students
early intervention and assistance before falling too far behind their peers. It
also serves as a structured way to ensure every student receives the
appropriate level of support for their academic progress. The plan is to
implement an RtI system at Harding at the start of the 2012-2013 school
year. There are three tiers to the RtI system:
Tier 1: Quality Core Instruction
Tier 1 is our core instruction, and it must be the goal of all Harding staff to
make our core instruction as strong as it can be. High-quality Tier 1
teaching at Harding looks like: gradual release of responsibility, writing to
learn opportunities, small flexible grouping, productive group work, having
learning objectives posted, progression of learning charts, etc.
(Reference 1-10 Quality Teacher Chart)
The RtI guidance team has written “I Will” Statements, so that all teaching
staff in the building is aware of our core norms.
As a Harding classroom teacher, I will:
 Go beyond simply administering an assessment. I will analyze and
breakdown the data to determine specific needs of my students.
 Be cognizant of my students’ progress toward proficiency.
 Go beyond delivering instruction exclusively in a whole group setting. I
will accommodate the learning levels of all students to encourage them
to grow.
 Be transparent with my academic expectations and timeline for each
unit. Expectations would include academic vocabulary needed,
objectives, concepts, and essential questions.
 I will communicate with my team about academic concerns I have
about any student I have receiving a D or F in my class.
 Work with my grade content level team to weekly reassess my
teaching strategies. In order to do this, I will bring collected data,
assessments to collaboratively score, and any other pertinent
information related to increasing student achievement.
 Consistently communicate with the families of all of my students. I will
include: positive comments, upcoming classroom events, and
academic data.
As part of Tier 1, there are two accountability factors that will help make our
core the strongest it can be:
1. The 1-10 Quality Teacher Chart, that is observable by administration.
2. The “I Will” Statements, that are for teacher driven success.
Tier 2 (3-5 students : 1 adult, 2-3 times a week for 20-30 minutes)




The RtI guidance team will develop a form for referral of students into
the RtI process. This form will include current student data and
attempted classroom interventions.
There will be teaching positions designated for tier 2 interventions for
literacy, math, and writing. These positions will supplant the current
tier 2 positions of reading, math, and writing support electives.
Science support will also be included if funding/scheduling allows it to
occur. These teachers will form the RtI implementation team.
Tier 2 support will be a combination of push-in and pull-out guided
instruction. These will be coordinated and communicated by the RtI
intervention team. Students will be able to receive tier 2 support in
multiple content areas.
All students receiving tier 2 support will be assigned a set length of
time, after which their progress will be evaluated and decisions for
future support will be made. Formative assessments given by RtI
implementation team staff and academic performance/growth data in
core classes will be used in this analysis.
Tier 3 (1-2 students : 1 adult, 2-3 times a week for 20-30 minutes)






All certified staff in building may be part of tier 3 intervention.
Certified people from “outside” the building may also be used in tier 3.
Ideal structure will be one-to-one support, but pairing students will be
considered if needed.
Tier 3 support will be provided during the regular school day,
coordinated by the RtI implementation committee and involved staff
members.
Harding does not currently have a Tier 3 intervention in place, so this
will be a new addition to our academic support structure.
If a student is not successful in core class with tier 3 support, a
referral for special education services will be made.
Tier 2 and Tier 3 interventions are not a band-aid for poor Tier 1 instruction.
Tier 1:
Quality
core
instruction
75-85%
Tier 2:
Supplemental
needs-based
instruction
10-15%
Tier 3:
Individualized
Instruction 5-10%
Increased time, intensity, frequency, and expertise