RTI Focus Improves Literacy Instruction
As you walk through the halls of the New Prague Area schools, you will hear the letters "RTI" being tossed around by both professionals and parents. The main goal of Response to Intervention (RTI) is to lay the groundwork for achieving full literacy through early intervention services. Within the RTI model, school staff intensify instructional support for struggling readers, to close their learning gaps as soon as possible and keep them on track for reading and school success.

RTI is a three-tiered instructional model, where student performance is regularly measured and progress is monitored to identify gaps in skill development.

• Tier 1 is the delivery of a scientifically based core program with fidelity, intensity, passion, and reasonable accommodations. If done well, we expect to meet the needs of most students.
• Tier 2 is "more" - more time, more specific teacher led instruction, more opportunities to respond, and more progress monitoring.
• Tier 3 is the "most" - most time, most specific teacher led instruction, most opportunities to respond and the most frequent progress monitoring.

If a child's performance in a specific skill area falls into Tier 2 or 3, a continuum of research-based action commences, with specific methods of evaluating and monitoring, to bring the student to proficiency. A successful implementation of RTI is based on three primary concepts:

• School structures ensuring the most effective instruction.
• Regular collection of data to screen the progress of all students.
• Use of research-based intervention practices within a multitiered delivery model (i.e., different interventions based on the need level of the student).

Response to Intervention (RTI) was introduced to the education world in 2001 by President Bush with No Child Left Behind. At that time, the national motto changed from "all students can learn" to "all students must learn."

The RTI model relies on terrific instruction by the classroom teacher using excellent curriculum. It is critical to have a high-quality, research-based curriculum in place that meets the initial needs of 80-90% of our students, reducing the proportion in need of intervention. "The goal is to make sure curriculum and instruction is not at the root of referrals for problem solving or special education," says Special Services Director Tony Buthe. "We are arming our teachers with the best tools and methods, to establish the best possible base."

RTI in Our Schools

NPAS elementary schools are in their third full year of implementation in the area of reading for grades K-5. All elementary teachers have received training on benchmarks and progress monitoring. They also know how to record the data collected from progress monitoring and implement interventions based on the data for the students who are at risk of falling behind expectations. "Response to Intervention has enabled Eagle View Elementary to use data to drive our instruction and teaching practices in order to best meet the needs of our students," says Mark Randall, Eagle View Principal. "It has provided us the ability to look at data to target specific skill deficits of students so that we can define appropriate and effective interventions in order to meet their needs."

The School Readiness program (pre-school) and the Middle School are in their first full year of implementation, after one year of planning. Each focused this fall on screening and identifying students who are below grade level in reading. "At the Middle School," explains Brad Gregor, NPMS Assistant Principal, "the advanced screening of students in reading proficiency allows us to provide services for children based on prevention and intervention instead of waiting for them to fall behind." The High School is in its planning year and continues to work to identify both Tier 1 and Tier 2 interventions for the 2011-2012 school years. Specific classes within the areas of reading and math have been added to help support students who are below grade level within those two areas.

Other Areas of Impact

The concepts of RTI also apply to mathematics and specific student behaviors, where interventions are available. All of the New Prague Schools are in the planning and implementation phase in both these areas. The fidelity of the RTI program is crucial and a systematic approach works best to ensure that the programs operate effectively. A district RTI Team meets monthly to create and direct a common understanding of the district-wide intervention program among all staff members. The team works to ensure our district's RTI program is considered in decisions affecting both general education and special education, creating a well integrated system of instruction and intervention guided by child outcome data. Although there are many formats for how a school might implement RTI to best serve the needs of its students, in New Prague, our Response to Intervention Program has been established to be a district-wide framework for efficiently allocating resources to improve student outcomes.