Universal Screening and Progress Monitoring Nebraska Department of Education Response-to-Intervention Consortium

Universal Screening and Progress Monitoring Assessment Curriculum Based Measurement Screening Choosing a measure Procedures and Tips Decisions Progress Monitoring Procedures Data examples Decisions Special Education Placement

Response to Intervention (RtI) The practice of 1. providing high-quality instruction/intervention matched to student needs and 2. using learning rate over time and level of performance to 3. make important educational decisions. National Association of State Directors of Special Education, Inc. (2005). Response to intervention: Policy considerations and implementation

Assessment “The process of collecting data for the purpose of 1. specifying and verifying problems and 2. making decisions about students.” Salvia, J. A., & Ysseldyke, J. E. (2001). Assessment in special and remedial education (8 th ed.). Boston: Houghton Mifflin.

Types of Assessment Methods Norm-Referenced Tests Criterion-Referenced Tests Direct Assessment of Academic Skills

Curriculum-Based Measurement (CBM) Contents of the assessment are based on the instructional curriculum. Measures are presented in a standardized format. Material for assessment is controlled for difficulty by grade levels. Measures are generally brief. Shapiro, E. S. (2004). Academic skills problems: Direct assessment and intervention (3 rd ed.). New York: The Guilford Press.

Curriculum Based Measurement (cont.) Advantages: Can be used efficiently by teachers Produces accurate, meaningful information to index growth Answers questions about the effectiveness of programs in producing academic growth Provides information to help teachers plan better instructional programs Fuchs, L. S. Fuchs, D. (1997) Use of curriculum-based measurement in identifying students with disabilities. Focus on Exceptional Children, 30, 3, 1-15.

Universal Screening The practice of assessing all students to identify those who are not making academic or behavioral progress at expected rates. National Association of State Directors of Special Education, Inc. (2005). Response to intervention: Policy considerations and implementation

Universal Screening A classroom-wide, school-wide, or district-wide assessment used to identify students who are at risk for academic failure or behavioral difficulties and could potentially benefit from specific instruction or intervention.

Universal Screening “A critical prerequisite to providing early school- based prevention and intervention services for students at risk for or with academic, behavioral or emotional difficulties.” Glover, T. A., & Albers, C. A. (in press). Considerations for evaluating universal screening assessments. Journal of School Psychology.

Choosing a Screening Measure Compatibility with local service delivery needs Alignment with constructs of interest Theoretical and empirical support Population fit Practical to administer Glover, T. A., & Albers, C. A. (in press). Considerations for evaluating universal screening assessments. Journal of School Psychology.

Choosing a Screening Measure Appropriately standardized for use with the target population Consistent in measurement Accurate in its identification of individuals at risk

Pre-Screening Procedures 1. Decide who will conduct the screening. 2. Ensure that the individuals who are administering the screening have been trained in using the chosen CBM materials. 3. Organize CBM materials (e.g., make sure there are enough, write student names on them, etc.). 4. Decide whether to use local or national (published) norms to determine which students need additional academic assistance.

Screening Tips Reading CBM measures need to be administered individually. It is best to have several administrators and bring entire classrooms into a central location at one time. Math and writing can be administered to students as a group, so administer these probes to entire classrooms. It is also helpful to prepare materials so that each student has their own materials with their names on them.

Post-Screening Procedures 1. Enter student scores into a computer program (e.g., Excel) that can easily sort the data. 2. Sort the data so that students are rank- ordered. 3. Determine which students fell below the previously specified cut-off

Screening Results Example

Screening Decisions Students who fell below pre-specified cutoff Based on scores, supporting documentation, and prior knowledge of student abilities, determine the necessary educational intervention. Decide who is going to implement the intervention(s). Decide who is going to monitor student progress over time.

Progress Monitoring The practice of assessing students to determine if academic or behavioral interventions are producing desired effects. National Association of State Directors of Special Education, Inc. (2005). Response to intervention: Policy considerations and implementation

Progress Monitoring Provides critical information about student progress that is used to ensure the use of effective educational practices and to verify that students are progressing at an adequate rate.

Progress Monitoring Those students who did not make the screening cutoff will be monitored on a frequent (generally once per week) basis. It is recommended that the same form of CBM be used for screening and progress monitoring.

Progress Monitoring Typically occurs at least once per week Provides ongoing information regarding student progress Can be used to determine whether interventions need to be strengthened or modified

Progress Monitoring Procedures 1. Based upon the norms you have decided to use and each student’s screening results, set an eight week goal for each student. This goal should reflect an average gain per week as determined by the norms that you are using. 2. Once the student’s intervention has begun, monitor the student’s progress once per week.

Progress Monitoring Procedures (cont.) 3. Graph the student’s scores (e.g., correct read words/minute, correct writing sequences, digits correct) on a chart. 4. Periodically review the chart to determine whether progress is being made. 5. After the student has been in an intervention for eight weeks, hold a meeting with your decision making team. Look at the level, and the rate of progress Determine whether the goal was attained

Progress Monitoring: Example 1 Baseline Intervention

Progress Monitoring Decisions (Example 1) What you can do in this situation: Continue with the intervention and monitoring. Continue with the intervention and monitor less frequently. Discontinue intervention but monitor to ensure that progress doesn’t decrease.

Progress Monitoring Example 2 Baseline Intervention

Progress Monitoring Decisions: Example 2 Decision that needs to be made in this situation: 1.Modify the current intervention, or 2. Implement a different intervention in place of the current intervention.

Progress Monitoring Examples In example 1, adequate rate and level were being achieved The team will decide whether or not to continue to monitor student progress. The student will still be involved in universal screenings.

Progress Monitoring Examples In example 2 neither adequate rate nor level were being achieved. It is necessary to modify the current intervention or introduce a new intervention. Progress monitoring is still necessary.

Progress Monitoring: Example 2 Establish a new 8 week goal based on the last three data points obtained by the student. After the intervention is modified or a new intervention is implemented, progress monitoring continues for 8 weeks.

Progress Monitoring: Example 2a

What you can do in this situation: Continue with the intervention and monitoring Continue with the intervention and monitor less frequently Discontinue intervention but monitor to ensure that progress doesn’t decrease

Progress Monitoring: Example 2b

After 16 weeks of intensive, empirically based interventions in which the student has not achieved the level and rate goal established from baseline data, the team should discuss special education placement.

Special Education Placement Before placing a student in special education, several factors need to be considered: 1. Was the measurement of progress accurate? 2. Was the intervention appropriate for the child? 3. Is there evidence that the student could benefit from special education?

Special Education Placement If a student is placed in special education: Continue to monitor progress frequently (once per week) Periodically review student progress The special education curriculum may need to be adjusted to ensure student progress.

Conclusion Universal screening and progress monitoring are important components of the RtI process. Both processes are used to ensure that students receive the services that they need to increase performance.

Additional Resources Edformation. (2004). AIMSweb, retrieved from Glover, T. A., & Albers, C. A. (in press). Considerations for evaluating universal screening assessments. Journal of School Psychology. Good, R. H. & Kaminski, R. A. (Eds.). (2002). Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills (6 th ed.). Eugene, OR: Institute for the Development of Educational Achievement. Retrieved from dibels.uoregon.edu/ National Association of State Directors of Special Education, Inc. (2005). Response to Intervention: Policy considerations and implementation. New York, NY: The Guilford Press