EVALUATION AND ELIGIBILITY USING RTI

November 2009 Oregon RTI Project Cadre 5

OBJECTIVES

Participants will understand both general IDEA evaluation requirements and evaluation requirements for Specific Learning Disabilities

Participants will understand characteristics of learning disabilities

Participants will practice weighing information about student performance in the context of LD eligibility decisions

OREGON ADMINISTRATIVE RULES

Activity

Once you’ve been assigned a section: Find your group Take 30 minutes to read your section, and plan a

lesson to teach the important content to the larger group (e.g. omit language related to preschool age students)

Utilize OrRTI staff to clarify or explain confusing language

Each group will have 10 minutes to present their lesson

OREGON ADMINISTRATIVE RULES

Activity: Count off by 5 into the following groups:

1) Evaluation and Reevaluation Requirements2) General Evaluation & Reevaluation

Procedures3) Evaluation Planning4) Determination of Eligibility/Interpretation of

Data5) Specific Learning Disability

STEPS IN THE EVALUATION PROCESS

Referral for a special education evaluation Evaluation planning Prior Notice About Evaluation/Consent for

Evaluation Evaluation (60 school days) Evaluation Summary Eligibility Determination meeting

REFERRAL

Typically made by the RTI team Parents may make a referral at any time If another disability is suspected, proceed to

referral while intervening

Remember: Referral does not equal evaluation. Once a student is referred, the evaluation planning team (including the parents) convene to determine if an evaluation is appropriate. Before the meeting, parents receive procedural safeguards. At the end of the meeting, parents receive prior notice of the team’s decision.

STUDENT INTERVENTION PROFILE

PROGRESS MONITORING DATA

DEVELOPMENTAL HISTORY

EVALUATION PLANNING

When making evaluation decisions, consider:

General Requirements for evaluation

LD Eligibility Statement

The team answers the question:

What do we still need to know before we can determine if the student is eligible under IDEA? What do we still need to know in order to determine the student’s educational needs?

PARENT NOTIFICATION IN TTSD

Identifying Learning Disabilities

Under an RTI Model

ELIGIBILITY DETERMINATION

BIG Idea!Low achievement and slow progress are the foundation for determining SLD eligibility using RTI.

Low skills

Slow progress despite intensive intervention

DUAL DISCREPANCY

DOES THE STUDENT HAVE LOW SKILLS?

Determine parameters

Maintain consistency School to school Grade to grade Child to child

How much is enough? Progress monitoring growth

rates Yearly RIT gains

Context is key Typical growth

National norms District norms

Cohort growth

IS PROGRESS SLOW?

Scientific, research-based (IDEA 2004)

Sufficient frequency and duration

Implemented with fidelity

IS THE INTERVENTION INTENSIVE?

ELIGIBILITY DECISION MAKING

It comes down to the balance. How does the “weight” of the intervention compare to the “weight” of progress?

KEEP THE END IN MIND

Required components Other relevant components Exclusionary factors

Avoid the “whoops”

ARE THERE OTHER EXPLANATIONS?

Lack of appropriate instruction

Existence of another disability

Limited English proficiency

Environmental or Economic Disadvantage

SUSIE

2nd Grader Fall: ORF 22 Winter: ORF 55 Gain: 2.37

words/week Typical gain: 1.5

words/week

Core program + SMART volunteer + Read Naturally 2

times per week +Phonics for

Reading and Read Naturally 5 times per week

ELLIE

25thth percentile on ORF

Remains at 25th percentile

“Low average”

Core program 20 minutes/day

additional practice 40 minutes/day

explicit instruction and guided practice

EMILY

1st Grader Gain: 6-10 wpm in 8

weeks Other students gain

22 wpm in the same period of time

Core program +45 minutes of

decoding and fluency program

JOHANNA

2nd grader Reads 45 words per

minute (target is 90 wpm)

Core program Reading Mastery in

addition New to the district Has been in 4

different school districts

Recently moved in with a relative

JIM

5th grader

Reads 77 words per minute (target is 150 wpm)

Scores below average benchmark on the State-wide assessment

Core reading program 30 minutes of additional

reading program 5x a week

Jim was adopted from Russia 2 years ago

ELL teacher interviews family and finds out he didn’t attend school before he came the U.S.

MARISOL

3rd grader Reads 45 words per

minute in Spanish Reads 5 words per

minute in English

Core Spanish reading program

Additional interventions in Spanish 5x a week since 1st grade

Has been in the same school since Kindergarten

The other students in her cohort group read an average of 90wpm in Spanish and English

Individually: Quickly read the sample report, highlighting 4 or 5 sentences that provide especially useful information.

As a Group: Share what you’ve highlighted. What makes this report useful?

QUALITY ELIGIBILITY REPORTS