English Language Learners and the Response to Intervention Model

English language learners (ELLs) are often misdiagnosed as having a learning disability or speech and language impairment and as a result are placed into special education programs. Response to Intervention (RTI) is a framework that can reduce this misdiagnosis and help these learners achieve more over time. This chapter explains how some of this misdiagnosis occurs and how to use Response to Intervention with the ELL population to overcome this problem. It includes research-based interventions proven to work for this population, suggestions on how to implement an RTI model, and case studies of students who represent situations that often come up in the field. With successful implementation of an RTI program, it is hoped that all students will receive the targeted support that they need and deserve.

The Role of Writing in RTI at the Secondary Level

A focus on teaching effective written communication skills is a necessity in our nation's schools. Students need to develop good writing skills not only to ensure academic success but also to later thrive in the workplace and in society as a whole. For struggling writers, difficulties with written communication that emerged during elementary school will persist into middle school, high school, and beyond if effective interventions are not employed. Implementing a Response to Intervention (RTI) literacy model that promotes the integration of writing across the curriculum can help schools make huge strides in improving the motivations, skills, and outcomes of struggling writers. This chapter presents specific elements of effective writing instruction as well as instructional strategies that can be employed within an RTI framework to assist struggling writers school wide. The focus is on informing not only English/language arts teachers but also content area teachers on research-based classroom writing supports.

High School Turnaround

After implementing Response to Intervention (RTI), a high school in a rural Kentucky community made a dramatic turnaround within 2 years after establishing structures to support both teachers and students. The principal, special education director, other administrators, district personnel, school improvement specialists, teacher leaders, interventionists (i.e., a high school content area specialist), and school faculty implemented changes that were responsible for the turnaround. High expectations, a positive school culture, professional development, guided planning, student assessment, data analysis, research-based intervention programs, and a systems change approach are some of the contributions that led to widespread improvements at the school level and in individual student gains.

Response to Intervention in Middle and High School Mathematics

Secondary schools are complex in structure and are challenged daily to provide high-quality, effective Response to Intervention (RTI) models in their school settings. RTI must be handled very differently in a middle or high school compared to an elementary school, and larger numbers of students, stricter time constraints, lack of resources, and larger academic gaps are among the typical obstacles secondary teachers face, including math teachers. However, there are RTI models that will work well in math classes, including the Adolescent Mathematics Intervention Structure (AMIS), which focuses on providing motivation, opportunities for academic discourse, cooperative learning, and a positive mathematical classroom environment. Additionally, students thrive in a mathematical learning environment that includes a focus on multiple representations for the mathematics, manipulatives, and targeted learning centers designed specifically for middle and high school students. This chapter focuses on discussing AMIS and providing recommendations for its implementation in secondary math classes.

Ongoing Issues Surrounding RTI

Despite federal and state mandates regarding the use of the Response to Intervention (RTI) service delivery model and its widespread adoption in school districts across the nation, many issues still surround the model and its implementation, particularly at the secondary level. This chapter focuses on some of the more prevalent issues, including the importance of determining whether the RTI model as a whole is effective within middle and high school educational environments, how much time students should spend within each tier, how the roles of certain school personnel have changed with the implementation of the RTI model, the importance of providing transition services for all struggling students within RTI, how involved parents should be in the RTI process, how assessments are conducted within the model, and how gifted and talented students fit into the model.

Teacher Insight on RTI Implementation at the Middle and High School Levels

The Response to Intervention (RTI) service delivery model has been incorporated at the elementary school level with success but is still lagging behind within the secondary school environment. This chapter demonstrates how two secondary schools, one a middle school and the other a high school, implemented the RTI model efficiently and effectively. The chapter shows that the RTI model can be successfully executed in different ways depending on a school's needs, funding, and personnel. The chapter provides details on the diagnostic practices, data collection methods, intervention strategies, administrative support, and professional development of each implemented model and includes insight from actual teachers and school counselors who participated in the implementations. A reflection on lessons learned from each school site is included.

Science, Social Studies, and RTI

The Response to Intervention (RTI) service delivery model has been used primarily in the secondary language arts (reading) academic content area and in the various math courses. RTI has rarely, if at all, been introduced in secondary science and social science courses, even though students are struggling in these courses due to the increase in reading and math content embedded within them. This chapter focuses on implementation of RTI in science and social studies courses at the secondary level. The utilization of a universal screener, tiers, progress monitoring, and fidelity is discussed, followed by a presentation of specific examples of research-based interventions that can be used at each tier level in the science and social sciences content areas.

RTI and Reading at the Secondary Level

Response to Intervention (RTI) provides a framework for effective prevention and intervention to students who have difficulty reading at all achievement levels by using a school-wide, tiered system. RTI is the means for helping struggling students become successful readers before they have a chance to fall behind. Using evidence-based reading strategies within multiple classrooms such as the inclusive classroom or the resource classroom provides students with learning disabilities the opportunity to succeed in all content areas while applying these reading strategies. All teachers can use these strategies to assist the at-risk and struggling reader make progress. The purpose of this chapter is to share research, resources, and reading instructional methods appropriate for students at the secondary level that can help them meet their academic needs.

Assistive Technology as Instructional Supports for Response to Intervention

This chapter examines current technology that may be used to enhance the learning process. Although technology changes rapidly on a near-daily basis, the hardware and software discussed here are currently available and being used to assist teachers in their presentations and to assist students in their learning. Assistive technology provides a unique manner in which to give students instructional supports in the classroom. From introducing new concepts to providing interactive repetition to alternative modes of assessment, technology has changed the modern-day classroom. Middle school and high school teachers clearly focus on their specific content area, but they may have trouble assisting students who exhibit learning problems. The technology in this chapter has been chosen specifically to satisfy that purpose.

Implementing Secondary RTI Models

This chapter explores the critical role that superintendents, principals, and other school leaders play in the effective implementation of secondary Response to Intervention (RTI) models in schools and school districts. This chapter also outlines the unique challenges that school leaders often encounter in their efforts to implement RTI reforms in secondary schools, including the unique culture and structure of secondary schools, the mindset and perspectives of secondary teachers, and the complexity of secondary students and their academic challenges. Finally, through research-supported frameworks (e.g., teacher efficacy, distributed leadership models, and educational change process models), this chapter offers tools and strategies for educational leaders who are undergoing RTI reforms in their secondary schools.