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Call for Technical Assistance for State Education Agencies
To provide high quality technical assistance (TA) that contributes to states’ implementation of RTI frameworks, the National Center on Response to Intervention is now accepting requests from states interested in receiving direct TA. States can request a wide variety of TA activities, including:
- One-time events or activities on RTI or related topics;
- Short-term series of activities that facilitate the implementation of RTI; or
- Sustained, multi-year, comprehensive sets of RTI implementation activities.
To learn more about the Center’s TA services and the call for TA, visit the Center’s website and read responses to FAQs about the TA services and process.
Upcoming Webinar: RTI and Mathematics
On November 18th at 2:00 pm EST, the National Center on Response to Intervention is hosting a free webinar entitled “RTI and Mathematics.” This webinar will provide an overview of the research related to RTI and mathematics and will describe specific guidelines for implementation in grades K-7. The topics that will be discussed include effective instructional practices for interventions, strategies for screening and progress monitoring, and criteria to consider when selecting intervention curricula. The webinar will also offer a candid appraisal of the quality and quantity of research on these topics. Our special guest presenter will be Dr. Russell Gersten.
Pre-registration is not required for this free event. For more information, visit the Center’s website.
Did you miss the October webinar, "Monitoring Fidelity in RTI?" See it, as well as all of NCRTI’s previous webinars, on our website.
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STATE RTI NEWS AND EVENTS |
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Florida RtI Update: Polk County School District’s Implementation of RtI
 The fall 2009 issue of the Florida RtI Update newsletter showcases the Polk County School District, a district located in central Florida that is participating in the Florida Problem Solving (PS)/RtI Project. The article describes the evolution of Polk County’s district level RtI team, and the district’s efforts to scale-up implementation of PS/RtI as a framework for improving the educational outcomes of all students. Click here to read about Polk County School District’s efforts to implement RtI (found on pages 3 & 5 of the newsletter) and other Florida RtI updates.
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RESOURCES FROM OUR PARTNERS |
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RTI Action Network: Create Your Implementation Blueprint Series
 This series, written by consultant Susan L. Hall, Ed.D, and offered by the RTI Action Network, delineates six stages of RTI implementation based on frameworks developed by Dean L. Fixsen and his colleagues. The series includes articles on each stage to guide readers through the process of creating a plan for implementing RTI. The series also addresses potential pitfalls that can hinder implementation progress.
IRA Survey on RTI
 The International Reading Association's (IRA) Commission on RTI is conducting a survey to learn about teachers’ and reading specialists’ experiences with RTI. If you are a teacher or reading specialist who would like to share your experiences, please visit the IRA survey site.
UNC Announces Findings from Study on Recognition & Response
 Researchers at the FPG Child Development Institute at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill recently completed a study evaluating the effectiveness of Recognition & Response (R&R), a tiered model for providing high quality instruction and targeted interventions to pre-k children. The model is based on the principles of Response to Intervention (RTI) but adapted for younger children.
The UNC study provides the first evidence of the effectiveness of the R&R model for promoting language and literacy skills in pre-k children. The study’s key findings include:
- Universal screenings conducted as part of the R&R approach helped teachers identify which children could benefit the most from language and literacy interventions.
- Children who received the language and literacy interventions made greater gains than their classmates in letter naming, vocabulary, sound awareness, and print knowledge, and made gains at the same rate as their classmates in other language and literacy skills.
- Pre-k teachers were able to implement the R&R approach successfully with a high level of accuracy, and found R&R to be a useful instructional approach.
For more information on the study and its findings, watch the webinar presented in September by Dr. Virginia Buysse and Dr. Ellen Peisner-Feinberg, principal investigators on the R&R project. A handout that provides a summary of the study’s main findings is also available. For more information on Response & Recognition, visit the FPG Child Development Institute website.
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NEWS FROM THE U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION |
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Investing in Innovation (i3) Grant Program
 The U.S. Department of Education has instituted the Investing in Innovation (i3) Fund, which will provide competitive grants that expand the implementation of, and investment in, innovative and evidence-based practices, programs, and strategies that significantly:
- Improve K-12 achievement and close achievement gaps;
- Decrease dropout rates;
- Increase high school graduation rates; and
- Improve teacher and school leader effectiveness.
The Department of Education anticipates accepting grant applications in early 2010, with all applications due in early spring of 2010. Click here to access a fact sheet on the Fund that was released in October. In addition, a webinar was hosted to discuss the notice of proposed priorities for the $650 million Investing in Innovation Fund (i3). For more information on the purpose of the Investing in Innovation Fund and the proposed program requirements, visit the Department of Education’s website.
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This is the National Center on Response to Intervention's monthly e-newsletter, the RTI Responder! We share the latest research findings about RTI, related information from our partners and the federal Technical Assistance and Dissemination network, as well as the policies, strategies, and techniques that states have developed to implement an RTI model.We hope that you find this newsletter pertinent and informative.
The National Center on RTI Staff
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"How does RTI and math differ from RTI and reading?" 
