What is Response to Intervention (RTI)?

RTI is a problem-solving model for early identification of struggling learners and targeted instruction focused on individual skill deficits.

Grounded in educational best practices, RTI is characterized by the use of scientifically based curriculum and assessment, frequent progress monitoring, and multidisciplinary teams that develop and implement interventions. The recently reauthorized IDEA legislation allows a process like RTI to be used as a means to identify students with specific learning disabilities and determine eligibility for special education services.

Most RTI models have a progression of activities organized into tiers. While the number of tiers varies, there is a common set of best practices central to different models. Classroom teachers provide students with effective instruction. Often referred to as “universal interventions” because they are for all students, these activities are proactive and preventative. Students who do not respond to instruction at this level are candidates for interventions of increasing intensity. In some settings, these may be small group interventions. In other settings, they may be completely individualized.

In the context of special education, students who remain unresponsive to their interventions either qualify for special education (eligibility models), or are referred for a comprehensive evaluation to determine special education eligibility (prereferral models).

Click here to download Riverside’s RTI brochure.

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