that students exist on a spectrum, with different levels of knowledge, interests, and motivation. These differences do not deter students from achieving multiple levels of success, since multitiered systems of supports appropriately acknowledge these differences with responsive, evidence-based interventions. This chapter explores screening and evaluation for behavior, literacy, and mathematics. It also demonstrates how instruction, practice, repetition, and application are valued, with an emphasis on how universal design for learning and differentiated instruction live and breathe in K–12 classrooms.
Chapter 4 discusses implementing best practices under the RTI umbrella and outlines how RTI addresses literacy and mathematical skills. It explores a multitiered system of supports with accommodations and modifications for strategic fluency with both academics and behavior in K–12 lessons. This chapter acknowledges that no one is born fluent in reading, writing, and mathematics skills and emphasizes the importance of tiered, cross-curricular connections and the support required to achieve successful learner outcomes. The chapter also emphasizes the importance of changing students’ roles as passive recipients of knowledge to ones of active learners.
Chapter 5 explores learner variability with student-specific tiers that value quality instruction and a collaborative, problem-solving approach. Evidence-based practice includes structuring academics and behaviors with multitiered interventions. This chapter offers sample lessons that infuse consistency; guided practice; modeling; multiple means of visual, auditory, and kinesthetic/tactile (VAKT) approaches; and specific and timely feedback through whole-class, small-group, and individualized instruction. The chapter also asserts that challenges are transformed into solutions with step-by-step planning, quality instruction, and assessment.
Chapter 6 discusses rigorous learning for all students. Teachers must minimize and maximize, fine-tune, and individualize strategic engagements and include varied pacing with opportunities for both repetition and enrichment. The chapter also discusses how the core knowledge must be strategically planned to engage students in independent, cooperative, and collaborative assignments. Strategic engagements offer students opportunities to increase their skills with metacognition of their own levels and how to achieve more gains. That means they know their starting points and believe that they can achieve these planned destinations. Instructional practices outlined in the lessons include direct instruction, cooperative learning, and peer supports within whole-class, small-group, and individualized settings.
Chapter 7 discusses teacher fidelity and professional development in preparing for and sustaining evidence-based practice for instruction. RTI routes should be planned and traveled with caution, scrutiny, and optimism. This chapter emphasizes that sustainability at the school level involves pragmatic applications that include teacher preparation with buy-in, supports, collaborative practices, ongoing feedback, coaching, and fidelity to the process. Teacher fidelity to offer responsive learning experiences ensures that RTI is effective at each tier.
Finally, the epilogue summarizes the book’s main points and suggests ways that educators can embrace RTI in their classrooms and schools.
Next, chapter 1 begins our journey into the RTI process, opening doors to allow every student to reach his or her intended destination—learning at high levels!
CHAPTER 1
OPENING DOORS FOR ALL LEARNERS
Doors allow entrance. Entrance in this case means access to knowledge, which in turn translates to greater lifelong opportunities for students. If the academic core knowledge is to reach all students, then teachers must honor diversity with prescriptive and cohesive instructional frameworks. Oral expression, listening comprehension, reading fluency, reading comprehension, written expression, vocabulary development, and mathematics computations and applications are all skills that open doors for future strides. Students enter these doors through primary, secondary, and tertiary entry points, known as tiers in the RTI process. The lessons in this chapter offer literacy, mathematics, and behavioral examples that allow teachers to embrace RTI so that doors are open to all students to achieve. Figure 1.1 (page 10) illustrates the structure of this chapter.
Teachers must honor diversity with prescriptive and cohesive instructional frameworks.
RTI Variables
A variable is considered an element or a factor that is subject to change. Variables are not always as clear cut and identifiable as the ones in a mathematical equation, such as solving for the variable of x in 5x = 20. However, as with this linear equation, RTI involves knowing how to isolate variables to figure out the solution. When teachers collaboratively problem solve, they can identify and isolate RTI variables. RTI’s academic and behavioral equations require looking at variables that include learner performance levels and the discrete steps of required tasks. Teachers analyze these variables to determine which academic and behavioral skills require introduction, reinforcement, reteaching, and maintenance. Administrators, teachers, students, and families are ultimately the human variables who continually collaborate to support interventions.
Two of the most important RTI variables include classroom dynamics and teacher expertise, which we explore in the following sections.
Figure 1.1: Plan for opening doors for all learners.
Administrators, teachers, students, and families are ultimately the human variables who continually collaborate to support interventions.
Classroom Dynamics
Planning student-specific, multitiered instruction is one way teachers positively influence classroom dynamics. Classroom dynamics include physical ones, such as the lighting, seating, and available resources, but emotional classroom dynamics are more important. These dynamics include setting up a classroom to value students as individuals within an accepting, trusting, and emotionally safe learning environment. Classroom dynamics value diverse interventions and multiple entry points for students at their instructional levels. Delivery should not frustrate students with learning that is too difficult or not within their prior knowledge base.
Just as navigation has several tools designed to increase movement, administrators should provide teachers with RTI supports, tools, and resources. This includes time to collaboratively plan, assess, tweak, and reflect on instruction.
Some students require additional instruction to hone skills with letter-sound correspondence, phoneme segmentation, fluency, word definitions, contextual clues, reading comprehension, mathematical practices, and behavior. Letters, words, sentences, numbers, shapes, motivation, attention, and good study skills are building blocks that allow students to understand, own, and apply concepts.
Teachers who realize that each student possesses different skill sets value not only the curriculum but also the student diversity present in every classroom. Depending on students’ skill sets, teachers must adapt. Classroom dynamics affect the structured interactions between students and teachers.
Successful educators need to know their subjects. Subject knowledge goes beyond the content to knowing students as the most closely studied subjects.
