National Center on Response to Intervention (RTI)

RTI Practices | Caveats and Concerns | School Examples | Resources

Screening is a type of assessment that is characterized by providing quick, low-cost, repeatable testing of age-appropriate critical skills (for example, identifying letters of the alphabet or reading a list of high frequency words) or behaviors (for example, tardiness, aggression, or hyperactivity).

The basic question in a screening measure is whether or not the student should be judged as "at risk." The classroom teacher uses a screening measure to identify students who meet the criteria for possible at-risk status. These students are then considered for a more in-depth assessment, such as monitoring their progress over the next six weeks with specific assessments.

School-wide screening in an RTI setting: In the RTI model, screening is used to designate students who might be in need of closer monitoring in their general education curriculum or of a more intense intervention.

Screening represents the first gate or point of entry into subsequent tiers of RTI instruction. Screening is not a one-time process but an iterative system during the school year and across grade levels. Screening can serve three purposes:

1. Identify individuals in need of further assessment and possible movement to Tier 2 intervention.
2. Provide feedback about class performance to help school leadership identify when a teacher might require support.
3. If implemented on a regular basis across grade levels, identify students who slip through the screening at one level but are then identified at later points in their school years.