Response to Intervention

1. Response to Intervention USING RTI FOR NONACADEMIC INTERVENTIONS SARAH FAIRBANKS, GEORGE SUGAI, DAVID GUARDINO, & MARGARET LATHROP (2007)

2. Vocabulary: Social, Emotional, and Behavioral • Other names for RTI (nonacademic) • Social Behavioral Support • Positive Behavioral Support • Other names for behavioral interventions in schools • Functional Behavioral Analysis (FBA) • Behavior Intervention Plan (BIP) • Special Education Terms • Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) • Emotional/ Behaviorally Disabled • Severely Emotionally Disabled • Immersion in the classroom • Pull-out program • Alternative School Placement • Psycho-educational Treatment Facility

3. Change in Treatment Special Ed.: IEP Determination Tertiary: Selected Individual Intervention Secondary: Small Group Therapy/ Consultation Primary: Large Group Therapy/ Consultation

4. Tier I: Examples of Large Group Interventions • Behavior Problems • Implement a school-wide behavior management plan • Provide multiple and varied opportunities for students to respond to instruction. • Minimize transition time between activities. • Provide direct and immediate corrective feedback. • Social Problems • Anti-bullying (psycho-educational programs) • Empathy training • Emotional Problems • Teacher training to identify problems • Provide positive feedback • Establish “success” events

5. Tier II: Examples of Small Group Interventions • Behavioral Problems • Check in and Check out (CICO): additional structure, prompts, instruction, feedback, and acknowledgement (low-level probs.) • Stop-and-Think programs • Social Problems • Social skills training programs (psycho-educational) • Self-esteem building programs • Emotional Problems • Talking, feeling, doing game • Parent training groups • Group therapy

6. Tier III: Examples of Individual Interventions • Behavioral Problems • Functional Behavioral Assessment (FBA): Assessment for determining the Antecedent, Behavior, Consequence (ABC). • Behavioral Intervention Plan (BIP): Incorporates the FBA information into a behavioral plan. • Social Problems • Psycho-educational therapy (ineffective outside of a group) • Peer support/ helper (especially good for children with developmental disabilities) • Emotional Problems • Individual Therapy • Family Therapy

7. Tier IV: Special Education • What is the IDEA definition of a child with an emotional disturbance? • "(i) The term means a condition exhibiting one or more of the following characteristics over a long period of time and to a marked degree that adversely affects a child’s educational performance: • (A) An inability to learn that cannot be explained by intellectual, sensory, or health factors • (B) An inability to build or maintain satisfactory interpersonal relationships with peers and teachers. • (C) Inappropriate types of behavior or feelings under normal circumstances. • (D) A general pervasive mood of unhappiness or depression. • (E) A tendency to develop physical symptoms or fears associated with personal or school problems. • (ii) The term includes schizophrenia. The term does not apply to children who are socially maladjusted, unless it is determined that they have an emotional disturbance" (CFR §300.7 (a) 9).

8. Tier IV: Special Education • What is the different settings for children with emotional disturbance (rule of least restrictive environment)? • Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) is a continuum • Monitoring (least) • Immersion in the general education classroom • Immersion with a collaborative teacher • Pull-out program (1 class) • Pull-out program (more than 1 class) • Alternative School Program • Psycho-educational Center • Hospitalization

9. Tier IV: Special Education • Who provides counseling as a related service? • qualified social workers • psychologists • guidance counselors • other qualified personnel. • What about requiring, requesting, or suggesting medical treatment? • Schools cannot require students to take medication. • Requesting medication that is not “academically necessary” could result in additional financial responsibility to the school. • Suggesting for children who need it can be done, but be sure that you do not pressure the family.

10. Ways to Measure Response • Measure pretest/posttest scores and calculate statistics • ANCOVA using control and treatment groups. • ANOVA using repeated measure design. • Growth curve analysis (GCA) using hierarchical linear models • Determine common growth curves for a class of students or an intervention group • Determine an individual’s growth curve • Compare the individual growth curve to the group’s growth curve • Looking at the data in a graphical format. • Less scientific (no statistical analyses run). • Easier to do; harder to make a decision

11. RTI: Behavior Assignment • The set-up: • 8 y.o. boy is performing constantly talking out during class. This teacher’s class is “famous” for behavior problems. • Answer the following: • What specific interventions could be done at Tier I, Tier II, Tier III? • What would be done? • Who would provide the service? • Who would receive the service? • How long would it be in place? • How would you operationally define the behavior for observation? • How would you design an observation tool to use with this child?

12. RTI: Behavior Assignment • The set-up: • 8 y.o. boy is performing constantly talking out during class. This teacher’s class is “famous” for behavior problems. • The data: • Structured observation examining “inappropriate verbalizations” • Baseline scores (per min) • (Student 7, 8, 7;. Class avg=5; SD =1) • Tier I: Classroom reward system • (Student: 4,3,5; Class avg=3; SD=1) • Tier II: Small group reward system • (Student: 3,4,3; Class avg=3; SD=1) • Tier III: BIP for the student • (Student: 2,2,2; Class avg=3; SD=1) • Answer the following: • Did the teacher use the correct tool for assessment? • Did the teacher use a researched based intervention? • Did the child respond to the intervention @ Tier 1? Tier 2? Tier 3?

13. RTI: Behavior Assignment • The set-up: • 8 y.o. boy is performing constantly talking out during class. This teacher’s class is “famous” for behavior problems. • The data: • Structured observation examining “inappropriate verbalizations” • Baseline scores (per min) • (Student 7, 8, 7;. Class avg=5; SD =1) • Tier I: Classroom reward system • (Student: 4,3,5; Class avg=3; SD=1) • Tier II: Small group reward system • (Student: 3,4,3; Class avg=3; SD=1) • Tier III: BIP for the student • (Student: 2,2,2; Class avg=3; SD=1) • Tier IV: referred on to eligibility team • Answer the following: • Did the teacher correctly refer the child? • Does the child need special education? • Does the child’s information indicate an IDEA disability?