Student writing skills are a growing concern in secondary schools given the current focus on common core standards and college readiness. This qualitative case study addressed the growing problem of high school students being unprepared for the rigor of college level-writing. The study used a series of 10 interviews with writing center directors and teachers in 2 secondary schools with writing centers. This research adds to the literature on peer-managed writing centers and contributes to the body of knowledge of writing centers as a specific conceptual framework of response to intervention (RtI). The broad research questions were focused on 3 topics: student's writing abilities, the effectiveness of the intervention of the writing center, and possible improvements to the writing center. Three directors and 7 teachers were selected for interviews through purposeful sampling. Inductive analysis was used to identify emergent themes: establishing a peer-managed writing center, function of the center, student writing, effectiveness of the writing center, and suggested improvements. The culminating project for this research was the establishment of a professional development program designed to provide a foundation for schools that are creating a peer-managed writing center at the secondary level. This study promotes the development of these centers across the school district of the study and provides evidence for RtI as a method to address the problem of secondary students being unprepared for writing at the post-secondary level. Positive social change can be achieved for the local school district by expanding the use of peer-managed writing centers with a focus on using RtI to address the problem of students being unprepared for the rigors of college writing.

A Southeastern school district was in the initial phases of a response to intervention (RtI) model using 3 tiers of intervention prior to students being identified for participation in special education. General education classroom teachers were responsible for all Tier I interventions by differentiating the core curriculum. However, teachers received little to no specific training related to implementation, progress monitoring, and data analysis of these differentiated interventions. This case study examined teachers' perceptions of the current implementation of RtI in one elementary school and their perceptions of professional support needed to implement, assess, and analyze RtI data. This qualitative research project study used constructivism as the theoretical framework. The research questions centered on teacher perceptions of how the implementation of the RtI model impacted teacher efficacy in meeting the needs of students and to what extent teachers at the school felt prepared to implement Tier I interventions as they were intended. The purpose of the study was to identify gaps in practice and teacher perceptions of the effectiveness of Tier I intervention. Data collected from questionnaires and individual interviews were analyzed using open coding. Themes and concepts that emerged related to Tier 1 were the use of data, instruction, support, analysis, and differentiation. These findings led to the development of 3 specific trainings to provide educators with more knowledge about Tier I implementation and data-driven decisions in the RtI process at the school. Because it may strengthen the implementation and effectiveness of Tier I level interventions in the general education classroom, the project has the potential to decrease the number of students referred for special education evaluation and placement.

Specific Learning Disabilities (SLD) have historically been difficult to define and measure which has led to uncertainty and controversy. The current study explored the practices of identifying specific learning disabilities in Kentucky by surveying school psychologist practitioners in the state. Information was obtained about current practices with regard to RTI implementation and methods and data used for SLD identification as well as the roles that school psychologists take in the response to intervention (RTI) process. The sample consisted of 97 current or recently (within the past year) practicing school psychologists from 45 districts across the state. It was predicted that the use of RTI data for SLD identification would be associated with the length of time a district had been implementing RTI. The data did not support such a relationship. The majority of the districts represented by respondents were noted to be beyond an initial implementation of RTI practices. Responses to questions regarding the implementation of core features of RTI were grouped into High Implementation (HI; n = 45) and Low Implementation (LI; n = 41) groups. An independent samples t-test found a significant difference between the HI and LI groups for the quality of implementation. The HI group evidenced higher quality ratings than the LI. The use of RTI data as the most frequent method for SLD determination was noted for 30.9% of respondents as opposed to 0% prior to 2007. However, severe discrepancy was the most preferred method (59.3%) used for determining placement followed by RTI (28.4%) and a pattern of strengths and weaknesses (4.9%). Districts were also not likely to utilize non-preferred types of data if a student transferred into their district with that non-preferred data. Finally, the roles of school psychologists in the RTI process were explored. Great variability was found across practitioners with regard to the roles they actively have in the RTI process; however, practitioners in the HI group generally were more involved in the RTI process than those in the LI group. The findings are discussed with regard to the current national SLD identification practices and the limitations of the current findings.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Mississippi State University. Department of Counseling and Educational Psychology. / Title from title screen. Includes bibliographical references.

xiv, 188 p. : ill. A print copy of this thesis is available through the UO Libraries. Search the library catalog for the location and call number. / Response to Intervention (RTI) is a relatively new approach to identifying students with learning disabilities that has impacted how schools coordinate resources and implement their instructional support and assessment systems. Because RTI is a federal initiative and relatively new approach, there is little consensus on specific approaches and practices to guide school in implementation. This approach has potentially great consequences in providing supports in a more efficient manner for at-risk students as well as improving outcomes for all students. However, to meet this goal, schools need a tool to help guide and evaluate their practices to ensure quality implementation. In this dissertation, I describe the development of a rubric designed to meet this need. This RTI Assessment Rubric is intended to be a tool that practitioners and researchers can use to evaluate the implementation of RTI at the elementary school level. Using qualitative methodologies, the rubric was developed based upon a review of the literature and validated by known experts in the field in terms of its breadth and depth of content. Through this process six components were identified which include evaluating: Tier 1 instruction, universal screening procedures, Tier 2 and Tier 3 interventions, progress monitoring practices, evidence-based decision-making, and organizational supports. Next, case studies were created on 5 second grade students who are at risk for reading disabilities in two elementary schools implementing RTI practices. These case studies included classroom observations, interviews with teachers/administrators, record reviews, as well as evaluating student response to school implemented interventions. When these case studies were examined by external reviewers using the RTI rubric, the device demonstrated initial evidence of inter-rater reliability and sensitivity in discriminating between the quality of RTI implementation in these two schools. Teachers reported that the rubric captured the RTI experience within their building. This rubric appears to be useful for both researchers and practitioners as they begin implementation of RTI in schools because it appears to provide relevant, practical, and useful information to guide schools' next steps in RTI implementation. / Committee in charge: Elizabeth Ham, Co-Chairperson, Special Education and Clinical Sciences; Gerald Tindal, Co-Chairperson, Educational Methodology, Policy, and Leadership; Deborah Olson, Member, Special Education and Clinical Sciences; Yvonne Braun, Outside Member, Sociology

xiii, 83 p. A print copy of this thesis is available through the UO Libraries. Search the library catalog for the location and call number. / The present study examined the stability (i.e., 4-month and 12-month test-retest reliability) of six selected school-based indices of adequate reading progress. The total sampling frame included between 3970 and 5655 schools depending on the index and research question. Each school had at least 40 second-grade students that had complete Oral Reading Fluency (ORF) data for the time periods in question. Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills (DIBELS) scores were used to examine school-wide adequate reading progress. The stability of those indices from semester-to-semester and from year- to-year across the 2005-2006, 2006-2007, and 2007-2008 school years was examined. Adequate progress was defined as students improving their instructional recommendation (i.e., reducing their level of risk) or remaining at benchmark (i.e., remaining on track) over a specified period of time. The six indices were as follows: (1) outcome percent established, (2) percent adequate progress, (3) intensive percent adequate progress, (4) strategic percent adequate progress, (5) barely benchmark percent adequate progress, and (6) school-wide high rates of adequate progress. The indices were intended to provide a snapshot of how well a school's reading instruction is meeting student needs. Based on the analysis, the stability coefficients ranged from .10 to .90 indicating that certain indices had higher stability coefficients than others. Overall, the year-to-year indices tended to be more stable that the semester-to-semester indices. Between 143 and 203 schools had school-wide high rates of adequate progress over a two- and three-year period. These findings indicate that schools can be generally effective in helping their students achieve high rates of adequate reading progress and that schools are able to maintain and support high rates of adequate progress for consecutive cohorts of second- grade students. Results are discussed within a broader framework of school effectiveness indices and response to intervention. / Committee in charge: Roland Good, Chairperson, Special Education and Clinical Sciences; Edward Kameenui, Member, Educational Methodology, Policy, and Leadership; Kenneth Merrell, Member, Special Education and Clinical Sciences; Sara Hodges, Outside Member, Psychology

xv, 109 p. : col. ill. / The current study investigated variability in student performance on DIBELS Oral Reading Fluency (DORF) Progress Monitoring passages for third grade and sought to determine to what extent the variability in weekly progress monitoring scores is related to passage-level factors (e.g., type of passage [i.e., narrative or expository]), readability of the passage, reading rate for words in lists, passage specific comprehension, background knowledge, and interest in the topic of the passage) and student-level factors (e.g., the student's initial skill and variability across benchmark passages). In light of recent changes in IDEIA legislation allowing for the use of Response to Intervention models and formative assessment practices in the identification of specific learning disabilities, it was intent of this study to identify factors associated with oral reading fluency that, once identified, could potentially be altered or controlled during progress monitoring and decision-making to allow for more defensible educational decisions. The sample for analysis included 70 third grade students from one school in Iowa. Results of two-level HLM analyses indicated significant effects for background knowledge, interest in the passage, type of passage, retell fluency, readability, and word reading, with type of passage and readability demonstrating the largest magnitude effects. Magnitude of effect was based upon a calculation of proportion of reduction in level 1 residual variance. At level 2, initial risk status demonstrated a significant effect on a student's initial oral reading fluency score, while the benchmark variability demonstrated a significant effect on a student's growth over time. Results demonstrate support for readability as an indicator of passage difficulty as it relates to predicting oral reading fluency for students and suggest that consideration for the type of passage may be warranted when interpreting student ORF scores. Additionally, results indicated possible student-level effects of variables such as background knowledge and word list that were not investigated within the current study. Limitations of the study, considerations for future research, and implications for practice are discussed. / Committee in charge: Roland Good, Chairperson/Advisor; Laura Lee McIntyre, Member; Joe Stevens Member; Robert Davis, Outside Member; Scott Baker, Member

abstract: The popularity of response-to-intervention (RTI) frameworks of service delivery has increased in recent years. Scholars have speculated that RTI may be particularly relevant to the special education assessment process for culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) students, due to its suspected utility in ruling out linguistic proficiency as the primary factor in learning difficulties. The present study explored how RTI and traditional assessment methods were integrated into the psychoeducational evaluation process for students suspected of having specific learning disabilities (SLD). The content of psychoeducational evaluation reports completed on students who were found eligible for special education services under the SLD category from 2009-2013 was analyzed. Two main research questions were addressed: how RTI influenced the psychoeducational evaluation process, and how this process differed for CLD and non-CLD students. Findings indicated variability in the incorporation of RTI in evaluation reports, with an increase across time in the tendency to reference the prereferral intervention process. However, actual RTI data was present in a minority of reports, with the inclusion of such data more common for reading than other academic areas, as well as more likely for elementary students than secondary students. Contrary to expectations, RTI did not play a larger role in evaluation reports for CLD students than reports for non-CLD students. Evaluations of CLD students also did not demonstrate greater variability in the use of traditional assessments, and were more likely to rely on nonverbal cognitive measures than evaluations of non-CLD students. Methods by which practitioners addressed linguistic proficiency were variable, with parent input, educational history, and individually-administered proficiency test data commonly used. Assessment practices identified in this study are interpreted in the context of best practice recommendations. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Educational Psychology 2014

As it has become a prominent feature in the identification of students with specific learning disabilities (SLD), response to intervention (RTI) has generated significant interest and, in some respects, controversy regarding assessment and attendant procedures. In the present study, the authors surveyed state directors of special education (n = 31) to examine (a) the degree to which RTI policies and recommended practices are transmitted between state and local agencies, including those related to referrals of low achieving (i.e., “non-responsive”) students for a comprehensive evaluation; (b) communication with parents; and (c) their perceptions of the impact of RTI insofar as SLD identification is concerned. Results reflect disparities among many states and their districts in terms of the procedures used, data collected, and whether the effectiveness of RTI is evaluated. Implications for future research and practice are discussed.

School leaders, especially in those in rural areas, struggle to find teachers who are adequately trained in Response to Intervention. This presentation describes the development of a RTI Certificate Program at a rural university in Tennessee to promote the professional growth of graduate teacher candidates and those in the field.