Response to Intervention: Implications for use when Identifying Students with Special Needs

Upon being registered in August of 2006, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEIA) began requiring schools to think about the way in which they identify students with learning disabilities (SLD) and in many cases, then make changes to their systems of classification. Response to Intervention, or RTI, has emerged as a popular method for meeting the federal mandates. Combining high quality instruction, progress monitoring, and more specific supports based on students’ response to research-based teaching practices, RTI is becoming a common way to provide both instructional and behavioral interventions for students at risk, and determine if a child has a learning disability. This study reports on a survey done in a rural school that has begun to implement RTI. The study supports literature that discusses the need for training for all those involved in the RTI process. It also speaks of the need for education and support for teachers when providing interventions for students that struggle behaviorally