1. Michele Farah Diane Katakowski Susan Koceski Joan Firestone RtI Foundational Content: Evaluating and Rounding Out Your Elementary Literacy Intervention Continuum

2. Description This session is designed to support the implementation efforts of building leadership teams who are beginning or sustaining an RTI framework for elementary literacy. Participants will learn how to use a problem-solving process to evaluate their current literacy intervention continuums. Questions to consider prior to adding additional interventions to an elementary literacy continuum will be presented.

3. What does this have to do with intervention?

4. Focus for today… Core Belief: Everyone starts with core instruction and builds a tiered system of support. 1. What are the components of successful intervention continuums? 2. How do we use data to evaluate an intervention continuum? What problems do we notice? What type and level of problem are we looking at? How big is the problem? 3. What questions should we consider prior to adding an additional intervention to our continuum? 4. Once we have an intervention, now what?

5. Not the focus for today A list of interventions!

6. Common Pitfalls Overemphasis of intervention selection and under emphasis of intervention management Buying a program or intervention ensures fidelity of intervention. Planning an intervention without planning how to monitor the integrity of the intervention  Have you ever agreed to follow a diet, medication or budget and then failed to comply with the plan that you agreed to? Being overwhelmed by interventions; that is, too many kids need them Too quickly or haphazardly selecting interventions.

7. Tier One is what all kids get Tier Two is what some kids get Tier Three is what few kids get and is intensive 1. How do the tiers differ?

8. Data-based instructional decision making model for MTSS Is this an individual student problem or a larger systemic problem based on schoolwide screening data? Are over 20% of students not meeting expectations? Analyze problem on a systems level Examine instruction, curriculum and environment for needed adaptations and develop intervention Are between 5%-20% of students not meeting expectations? Analyze problem on a Group Level Develop Tier II small group intervention Are 5% or fewer students not meeting expectations? Analyze problem at an individual level Develop Tier III Small group instruction Complete instruction problem solving

9. Everybody starts with Tier One! Whether you have started RtI or not, everybody in America has Tier one. Building tiers has to do with identifying student who need more intensive support than what is provided in Tier One. You will be overwhelmed by interventions, if you do not keep Tier 1 at the core and evaluate supplement strategies or supports. Example: If decoding or word study is missing from your core curriculum, you will have 50-60% of students needing this in supplemental instruction

10. Continuum of interventions: Tier One Is our Tier I Core Program Sufficient? Collect universal screening data. Enter, organize, summarize and display data. Determine the acceptable percentage of proficiency. Identify the percentage of students who are proficient ? not proficient. Make a comparison. Fork in the Road: Determine what worked? Does anything need to be done with the core programming?

11. Consider Tier I Interventions Begin with differentiating and scaffolding the core Implement research-validated practices in Tier 1 (examples) Pre-teaching Re-teaching More active responding Choral Responding Response Cards Dry Erase Boards More guided practice and feedback Peer Assisted Learning Strategies Partner Responding Peer Tutoring Controlling instructional materials Structuring and scaffolding academic tasks Continuum of interventions: Tier One

12. Focus Program Interventionist Setting Grouping Time Assessment For students identified with marked reading difficulties, and who have not responded to Tier I efforts Personnel determined by the school (e.g., a classroom teacher, a specialized reading teacher, an external interventionist) Appropriate setting designated by the school; may be within or outside of the classroom Homogeneous small group instruction (1:3, 1:4, or 1:5) Minimum of 30 minutes per day in small group in addition to 90 minutes of core reading instruction Progress monitoring twice a month on target skill to ensure adequate progress and learning Specialized, scientifically based reading program(s) emphasizing the five critical elements of beginning reading Continuum of interventions: Tier Two

13. Determine the Need for Tier 2 Interventions List students for whom the core instruction is not sufficient. Determine what specific supplemental instruction is needed? Group students with similar instructional needs. Identify current resources to match instructional needs. Identify additional resources needed to match instructional needs. Determine how supplemental instruction will be delivered? Decide who will provide instruction. Decide when, where and how often instruction will occur. Determine how treatment integrity will be monitored Continuum of interventions: Tier Two

14. What should Tier II instruction look like? Tier II Instruction requires: systematic and explicit instruction with modeling, multiple examples, and feedback to students pacing to match each student’s skill level providing students with multiple opportunities to participate and respond providing students with corrective feedback Tier II interventionists coordinate with the general education classroom teacher so that Tier II instruction can be used to pre-teach and review skills. Continuum of interventions: Tier Two

15. www.oakland.k12.mi.us 15 When should Tier II instruction start? Tier II instruction starts as soon as possible after students have been identified through benchmark testing. Continuum of interventions: Tier Two

16. www.oakland.k12.mi.us 16 How long is a round of Tier II instruction? One round of Tier II instruction lasts 10 to 12 weeks (approx. 50 sessions). After the first 10- to 12-week round of Tier II instruction, a decision should be made about the student’s instructional needs. The options to be considered include:  Exiting Tier II instruction  Another round of Tier II instruction  Entrance to Tier III instruction for intensive intervention  Referral for special services (dyslexia, 504, etc...) Continuum of interventions: Tier Two NOTE: These comments are like big idea guidelines. There should really be no hard fast policy of this...For some problems 10 weeks is not enough and for other problems 10 weeks is way too much time. Intervention rounds should be based on the student’s response. Positive response -> continue to grade level outcomes and fade Questionable response -> increase intensity or check fidelity to increase response Insufficient or poor response - > Check integrity and go back to problem analysis and intervention design. See OS SLD Guidelines pages 6.08-6.10

17. Focus Program Interventionist Setting Grouping Time Assessment For students with marked difficulties in reading and who have not responded adequately to Tier I and Tier II efforts Appropriate setting designated by the school Homogeneous small group instruction (1:3) Minimum of two 30-minute sessions per day in small group in addition to 90 minutes of core reading instruction. Progress monitoring weekly on target skill to ensure adequate progress and learning Sustained, intensive, scientifically based reading program(s) emphasizing the critical elements of reading for students with reading difficulties/disabilities Personnel determined by the school (e.g., a classroom teacher, a specialized reading teacher, an external interventionist) Continuum of interventions: Tier Three

18. www.oakland.k12.mi.us 18 How are students selected for Tier III instruction? There are three ways:  If a student has participated in two rounds of Tier II instruction and has not made sufficient progress even after adjustments to instruction  If after receiving only one round of Tier II instruction because the student shows a marked lack of progress and further Tier II instruction is deemed insufficient to put him/her back on track  A student who has received previous Tier III instruction and has exited may re-enter Tier III as needed Continuum of interventions: Tier Three Big Idea: Tier III is about increasing the intensity and instructional focus

19. Key Principles www.oakland.k12.mi.us 19 Tier II and III interventionists coordinate with the general education classroom teacher so that supplemental instruction is aligned with the classroom reading instruction and carry-over of skills are maximized. Special Education is not tied to a tier.

20. Key Principles www.oakland.k12.mi.us 20 Intervention Fidelity: Is the intervention administered at correctly? Is it sufficient (the right intensity). Instructional support meetings with peers/coach: a) Review student data b) instructor identified barriers, c) practices are reviewed This is not a evaluation process! This is improving instructional practices and outcomes for students Is Tier II or Tier III working? We need to determine the percentage of kids that are exposed to an intervention if it actually worked? Otherwise, kids are getting low teacher –student ratio instruction that does not make a difference in outcomes.

21. HOW DO TIER II AND TIER III DIFFER? Tier II instructionTier III instruction Focus Narrow range then core instruction Daily instruction Minimum of 30 minutes (+ Tier I) Minimum of 30 minutes twice a day (+ Tier I) Duration 10 - 12 weeks (1 or 2 rounds) Often considerably greater than 10-12 weeks Group size1: 3 to 51:3, 1:2, 1:1 Ongoing progress monitoring every 2 weeksevery 1-2 weeks Narrow focus than 5 big ideas in core instruction Significant amount of additional time Fewer kids

22. Consortium on Reading Excellence, Inc. (Core): Teaching Reading Sourcebook Handout

24. Interventions: Current State Dimensions Tier IITier III Focus / Grade Level Program Grouping Time Frequency Duration Assessment Interventionist Setting

25. What problems do we notice? What type and level of problem are we looking at? How big is the problem? 2. Key Elements of Intervention continuums

26. Is this an individual student problem or a larger systemic problem based on schoolwide screening data? Are over 20% of students not meeting expectations? Analyze problem on a systems level Examine instruction, curriculum and environment for needed adaptations and develop intervention Are between 5%-20% of students not meeting expectations? Analyze problem on a Group Level Develop Tier II small group intervention Are 5% or fewer students not meeting expectations? Analyze problem at an individual level Develop Tier III Small group instruction Complete instruction problem solving

27. www.oakland.k12.mi.us 27 Key elements of effective intervention systems 1.Professional Development: Well trained teachers who understand the process of learning to read, how to identify children lagging behind in literacy development, and how to monitor the growth of critical reading skills. 2.Progress Monitoring: Progress monitoring takes place and is graphed on a regularly scheduled basis with a specific goal. www.oakland.k12.mi.us

28. 28 Key elements of effective intervention systems 3.Explicit & Systematic: Instruction that is provided at the onset of a problem, and is systematic, explicit and targeted (i.e.: modeling, guided practice of skills/ strategies, and feedback are used). 4.Intensive: Instruction that is delivered intensively (30 minutes, 4- 5 days/week), with a consistent lesson structure, most often in small groups (1:6 or 1:4) by the most highly qualified teachers. www.oakland.k12.mi.us

29. 29 Key elements of effective intervention systems 5.Supplemental: Instruction that is supplemental to but coordinated and communicated with the core reading program so that carry-over of skills/ strategies is maximized. 6.Supportive materials: Resource materials are available to help structure interventions and provide scaffold for instruction. Practice activities at the appropriate level of difficulty. www.oakland.k12.mi.us

30. 30 Key elements of effective intervention systems 7.Leadership: Within the school to allocate intervention resources appropriately and to monitor the use of those resources. 8.Personnel: To assist the classroom teacher in providing intensive interventions to the students most in need. www.oakland.k12.mi.us

31. 31 Activity: Differentiating intervention Current StateMeets Expectation Professional Development Progress Monitoring Explicit, Systematic, Targeted Instruction Intensive Instruction Supplemental to Core Supportive Materials Supportive Leadership Allocated Personnel & Resources www.oakland.k12.mi.us

32. 3. What questions should we consider prior to adding an additional intervention to our continuum?

33. Questions to consider prior to adding an additional intervention to your continuum… www.oakland.k12.mi.us 33 “Considerations” Handout Identify And Clarify The Problem For which students is the core instruction not sufficient? Why? Identify instructional needs. For what percentage of students is core instruction not being effective? Is it a skills issue or a practice issue? Can core be changed to meet these needs? What skills need more attention that cannot be accomplished by core instruction? Does adding additional materials, supports or programs make sense given the population, PD needs, and student needs? When Exploring Additional Resources, the Following Questions Might Be Considered Is the program/strategy research-based or evidenced based? How do you know? Is it feasible given the cost of materials, training, coaching, etc. compared to available resources? Which Big Ideas are targeted (instructional focus)?  Does the intervention have a clear goal and purpose?  Does the intervention align with and support core classroom instruction? Does the intervention match the student(s) instructional need?  Do the instructional focus, strategies and materials match the student need and level?  Does the intervention have a purposeful scope and sequence so that it can be matched to classroom instruction? How will I know if the intervention is making a difference?  Does the intervention establish a criterion measure for performance, a timeframe to achieve it, and a PM schedule?  Does the goal(s) represent ambitious acceleration towards a curriculum benchmark? Is this the right group of students? What kind of student needs does the intervention purport to target?  Are the students grouped homogenously based on matched instructional needs?  Is group size strategically configured to provide sufficient teacher modeling & support? Who is intended to deliver the intervention? Is training needed, if so, what extent? Will the training be enough? How much time needs to be allocated to achieve the desired results?  Is the instructional time allocated sufficient to accelerate learning?  Is the instructional time delivered equal to the instruction time that is allocated? Do the materials or strategies have motivational components to increase student engagement? How much explicit, direct instruction is embedded for the targeted students? Is it enough given the population of students? Practice and alignment  Do the materials used promote mastery of the objective and actually help the student practice the skill? Is the level of challenge correctly matched to student skills? Is it too hard? Is it too easy?  Are materials matched to the student’s instructional level?  Are tasks matched to the student’s instructional level?  Is the instruction at the right pace for the student to gain mastery of skills?

34. When evaluating research, remember… There is a difference between, “What is the evidence?” and “What is the extent of the evidence?” Consider both questions Evidence-based practice draws upon peer-reviewed research results, practitioner experience, and student characteristics www.oakland.k12.mi.us 34

35. Activity Directions: Find the intervention table to which your team is assigned. Spend 30 minutes reviewing an intervention as a building team. Together, answer the highlighted questions on the Considerations” handout using the intervention materials. Record your findings (use 1 handout per building team). Possible Interventions: Rewards Leveled Literacy Intervention (LLI) Read Naturally Ladders to Literacy- Kindergarten www.oakland.k12.mi.us 35

36. “Many educators spend a great deal of time focusing on selecting the right intervention. Intervention selection is important, no doubt. However, most interventions fail because they are not implemented well.” VanDerHeyden and Tilly (2010) p. 20

37. 4. Once we have an intervention, now what?

38. Once an intervention is selected, how do you ensure management Road-test the intervention before you deploy it. Ensure that a trainer is available who has expertise conducting the intervention. Provide a written protocol or script for implementing the intervention (e.g.,: Fidelity Checklists) Watch the teacher conduct the intervention correctly and independently before you leave Provide all materials needed to run the intervention for at least one week. Measure the children’s performance each week When student performance does not improve, measure integrity of intervention implementation directly When student performance does not improve and integrity is strong, adjust the intervention and continue monitoring. VanDerheyden and Tilly 2010 Keeping RTI on Track. Chapter 3- We overemphasized intervention selection and underemphasized intervention management (pp19-28).