RI's RTI Module Series
Welcome to a series of train-the-trainer modules developed by the Rhode Island Response to Intervention Initiative to assist districts in preparing their staff to implement a systematic problem solving process to meet the needs of all students. These modules were developed to enable district teams to meet their increasing professional development needs in a flexible as-needed manner. While the modules will not provide all the information that you need to implement Response to Intervention effectively, they will provide an awareness of each of the key components and materials to help staff understand how Response to Intervention is consistent with many instructional and leadership initiatives: Personal Literacy Plans, Secondary Reform, Special Education Eligibility, Professional Learning Communities.
The team developing the modules considered their experiences in providing professional development on RTI, implementing RTI in the schools they work in as well as the variety of situations in which professional development occurs. To this end, each module is designed to be approximately two hours in length which can be divided into two one hour sessions. Two to three activities are built in to each module to encourage adult learning and interaction with topics. Follow-up resources and activities to extend the topic are also included.
The six modules are:
1. What is RTI?
2. What is an Intervention?
3. Assessment and RTI
4. Changing Roles and the Teaming Process
5. RTI and LD
6. Nuts and Bolts of Progress Monitoring
These materials were first shared in trainings during the 2007-2008 school year. They are now available for public use. We only ask that you credit the RI RTI Initiative when using them, and that if you revise anything you indicate that it is a revised/modified form of the RI RTI Initiative materials.
Follow-up support is available. Questions about the specific modules, both content and presentation approaches, can be directed to the members of the RI RTI Initiative Group who developed the module.
To view the presentation with the modules, click on any of the presentation links below. To download the complete module contents for use in study or presentation, click on the "Download Module Contents" link below; it is a .zip file.
Module 1 - What is RTI?
Module developed by: Laura B. Hauerwas, Ph.D. and Norma Cole, M.Ed.
Presentation: RTI: an Intervention System (PowerPoint)
Activities:
1. Why RTI?: develop understanding of the elements and process of RTI that are already in use in schools, and can be refined to be more effective
2. Turn and Talk: reflections on RTI and participants' schools/districts - connections, positive reactions, challenges
3. Case Study Example: 1st grade, Math - exploring RTI concepts
4. Next Steps: planning for what needs to be done in participants' schools/districts
Follow-Up Activities:
1. Case Study Example: 3rd Grade, Reading and Writing - further exploration
2. Leading Change in Your School: focusing on the need for collaborative learning communities in schools to support all students
Resources
Module 1 - Download Module Contents (.zip)
Module 2 -What is an Intervention?
Module developed by: Laura B. Hauerwas, Ph.D., Dena Chamberland, M.Ed., and John Magner, M.Ed.
Presentation: What is an Intervention? (PowerPoint)
Activities:
1. Our School or District Model: analysis of how well current instruction/interventions align with the RTI three-tiered model
2. Intervention ... or Not?: consideration of the necessary elements of an intervention
3. Problem-Solving vs. Standard Protocol: comparison of the two approaches
Follow-Up Activities:
1. Analysis of Current Instruction/Intervention: consideration of math and literacy curricula and interventions and planning next steps
2. Critique of Intervention Plans: analysis of existing student plans regarding areas for improvement
Resources
Download Module 2 - What is an Intervention (zip file)
Module 3 - Assessment and RTI
Module developed by: Dawn August, M.Ed. and Kristen Matthes, M.A.
Presentation: Building a Comprehensive Assessment System (PowerPoint)
Activities:
1. Assessment FOR Learning: consideration of the difference between assessment OF learning and assessment FOR learning, and the need for more of the latter
2. Assessment Alignment: Literacy: analysis of gaps and redundancies in the screening, progress monitoring and diagnostic assessments used in participants' schools/districts
3. Action Planning for Assessments: planning for professional development and other next steps needed in participants schools/districts
Follow-Up Activities:
1. Formative Assessment: using a text-based discussion protocol, participant groups examine issues related to formative assessment
2. Assessment Alignment: Math: analysis of gaps and redundancies in the assessments used in participants' schools/districts
Resources
Download Module 3 - Assessment and RTI (zip file)
Module 4 - Changing Roles and the Teaming Process
Module developed by: Jerry Schimmel, M.Ed. and Sally A. Mitchell, Ph.D.
Presentation: Changing Roles and the Teaming Process (PowerPoint)
Activities:
1. Reflection on Local Team Process: examination of existing process and role components and analysis of restructuring needs
2. Mock Meeting: practice applying a team problem-solving approach to a case study
3. Changing Roles, Challenges and Opportunities: consideration of participants' current roles and responsibilities, and anticipation of challenges and opportunities they can expect when implementing an RTI model
Follow-Up Activities:
1. Analyzing Specialists' Roles: participants consider the ways in which their specific roles are likely to change as schools adopt an RTI model
2. What Have You Learned?: an opportunity for participants to reflect on and deepen the knowledge they've acquired on RTI
3. Advanced Team Process: an action planning activity for teams to analyze their next steps in RTI implementation
Resources
Download Module 4 - Changing Roles and the Teaming Process (zip file)
Module 5 - RTI and LD
Module developed by: Laura B. Hauerwas, Ph.D. and Ina S. Woolman, C.A.G.S.
Presentation: RTI and LD (PowerPoint)
Activities:
1. Components of Team Decision-Making: exploration of RTI decision-making steps, and consideration of participants' local practices
2. Case Study: Accepting a Referral: using materials from a hypothetical student case to apply the components of decision-making during a referral meeting
3. RTI Decision-Making: What About Us?: an opportunity for participants to examine their local practices and plan for next steps
Follow-Up Activities:
1. Pros and Cons: Discrepancy vs. RTI: carousel activity to elicit participants' knowledge and attitudes toward the two approaches, and encourage change
2. Comprehensive Evaluation and RTI: literature-based jigsaw activity to explore perspectives on what is needed to make an evaluation 'comprehensive'
3. Case Study - First Grade: practicing the first components of an RTI process - examining and summarizing student information in a referral meeting
4. Case Study - Third Grade: Team Practice, Fishbowl, and Critique: practice acting as a team from accepting a referral through evaluation and disability determination, and stepping back to critique the process
5. Practice Applying RTI to Your Own Cases: as in Follow-Up #4, but utilizing actual cases previously handled by your team
6. History of RTI and LD Decision-Making: using key articles from professional journals and a study group approach to understand the emergence of RTI nationally
Resources
Download Module 5 - RTI and LD (zip file)
Module 6 - Nuts and Bolts of Progess Monitoring
Module developed by: Laura B. Hauerwas, Ph.D. and Kristen Matthes, M.A.
Presentation: Progress Monitoring (PowerPoint)
Activities:
1. What Can This Data Tell You? Graphs: exploration of two sample graphs with data of an individual student and of a group
2. Case Study: Determining Goals and Progress - Carlos: learning to use different approaches to setting goals and measuring progress
3. Case Studies: Did They Respond?: learning four rules to use in making decisions on whether students are showing progress
Follow-Up Activities:
1. Case Study: Determining Goals and Progress - Victoria: practice using different approaches to setting goals and measuring progress
2. Graphing 101: learning three approaches to graphing student data, and determining which is/are the most appropriate for participants' school/district capacities
3. Analysis of Assessment: taking the analysis done in Module Three further, to determine if assessments in participants' schools/districts are providing the data needed to set goals and measure student progress
Resources
