Tier+I

At Tier I, student concerns are addressed by informal parent and teacher conferences. Tier I should be started when you recognize that a student is either struggling to learn the core curriculum or having difficulty maintaining appropriate behavior in the general education classroom or when the student is required to have Personalized Education Plan (PEP).


 * Think of Tier I as a booster shot to the core instruction. ** The core curriculum, be it in reading, writing, math or emotional development, is a systematic, consistently delivered curriculum adopted by the district and used throughout with fidelity. If the core curriculum is delivered inconsistently or with variability from class to class it will be impossible to determine if the core is meeting expectations. It will also be impossible to develop strategic and individual interventions for a student if the core curriculum is lacking. The core curriculum should meet the needs of a majority of the students in the class.

Activities at Tier I include the parent and teacher working together to **Define the Problem.**
 * What is it?
 * When does it occur?
 * Why is this happening?
 * Analyze baseline data or develop plan for collecting baseline data?

Some guiding questions for defining the skill area include:
 * 1) In the area of (content, skill), peers are able to (What can they do?)
 * 2) Compared to his/her peers (student) is able to (What can s/he do?)
 * 3) How far off grade level (the learning gap) is (student) in this area?
 * 4) Are there prerequisite skills that (student) must do in order to perform as well as his/her peers?
 * 5) (If yes to #4) What skills can (the student) do and what skills is s/he not able to do?
 * 6) Identify which skill(s) should be addressed.

When considering the skill area, some guiding insights include:
 * Does it have endurance? Is the skill needed over time?
 * Does it have leverage? Will proficiency in this skill help the student in other areas of the curriculum and other academic disciplines?
 * Does it develop student readiness for the next level of learning? Is it essential for success as the student moves through the curriculum and/or to the next level?

Based on baseline data develop an intervention plan
 * Parent and teacher together brainstorm ideas for interventions. Discuss what interventions look like. Look at differentiated instruction.
 * Develop progress monitoring plan
 * Set time table for reconvening to evaluate interventions
 * Implement intervention plan
 * Evaluate (Teacher and parent use progress monitoring data to evaluate the effectiveness of interventions.)

When writing goals keep in mind the rate at which the student's peers are progressing, identify a timeframe for accelerating (the student's) learning to the level of his/her peers. This becomes your long term goal. Using the long term goal as a guide, determine reasonable short term goal(s).

The goal needs to be a SMART goal.
 * S -specific - Well defined. Clear to anyone that has a basis knowledge
 * M-measurable - Concrete criteria for measuring progress
 * A-attainable -Challenging, but not out of reach
 * R-realistic - Within the availability of resources, knowledge and time
 * T-timely - Grounded within a time frame

**Intervention Design**
__Academic Intervention Design__

Utilization of flexible grouping for differentiation of instruction based on skill level Research-based classroom interventions designed to achieve grade-level content expectations Minimum 2 to 3 intervention sessions per week
 * //Focus://** Ongoing monitoring and adjustments of instruction are designed to meet the needs of students
 * //Design://** Specific to the student's learning profile
 * //Interventionist://** Primarily the classroom teacher and parent. Other school personnel may be involved in rare cases, when identified by need.
 * //Setting://** Intervention sessions should be occurring primarily in the general education classroom
 * //Progress Monitoring://** Must take place a minimum of once a month

__Behavior Intervention Design__

Research-based classroom interventions designed to achieve behavioral expectations Minimum 2 to 3 classroom behavioral lessons. (See PBS lessons)
 * //Focus://** Ongoing monitoring and adjustments of classroom and school-wide behavior expectations designed to meet the needs of students.
 * //Design://** Specific to the student's learning profile
 * //Interventionist://** Primarily the classroom teacher and parent. Other school personnel may be involved in rare cases, when identified by need.
 * //Setting://** Intervention sessions should be occurring primarily in the general education classroom.
 * //Progress Monitoring://** Must be reviewed a minimum of once a month.

**Reflective Questions for Decision Making for Tier I**
//Use the Implementation and Evidence Questions when making decisions for Tier I//

__Implementation__ //If the answer is “no” to any of the above questions, you must first make adjustments to the plan before considering moving the student up a Tier II.//
 * Did the delivery of interventions follow the plan for implementation with accuracy and consistency?
 * Is progress monitoring of the intervention used and adjustments made as needed?
 * Did the intervention match the student's specific need?

__Evidence__
 * Does the instruction or the intervention decrease the student's learning gap (learning rate)?
 * Does the intervention reduce the problem behavior and/or increase the desired behavior?
 * Does progress monitoring data determine the intervention to be effective?
 * Does student performance improved as measured by assessment(s)?

__**Forms, etc.**__

(open in word) || || N/A || N/A ||
 * **Form** || **PDF** || **Word** || **Interactive**
 * Tier I/PEP || [[file:Tier I Adjusted Revision.pdf]] || [[file:Tier I Adjusted Revision.doc]] || [[file:Tier I Interactive.doc]] ||
 * Intervention Program || [[file:Intervention Program Revised.pdf]] || [[file:Intervention Program Revised.doc]] || [[file:Intervention Program Revised Interactive.doc]] ||
 * Intervention Program Directions || [[file:Intervention Plan directions.pdf]] || N/A || N/A ||
 * Intervention Program Examples || [[file:Intervention Program Computation.pdf]]
 * Spanish Tier I/PEP || [[file:Tier I Adjusted Revision Spanish-1.pdf]] || [[file:Tier I Adjusted Revision Spanish-1.doc]] || [[file:Tier I Adjusted Revision Spanish interactive.doc]] ||
 * Parent Document (English) || [[file:Responsiveness to Instruction.pdf]] || N/A || N/A ||
 * Parent Document (Spanish) || [[file:Responsiveness to Instruction Spanish.pdf]] || N/A || N/A ||
 * Parent Invitation (English) || [[file:parentinvite Tier I.pdf]] || [[file:parentinvite Tier I.doc]] || [[file:parentinvite Tier I.rtf]] ||
 * Parent Invitation (Spanish) || [[file:psm1a-parent-spanish.pdf]] || [[file:psm1a-parent-spanish.doc]] || [[file:psm1a-parent-spanish.doc]] ||
 * EC PEP || [[file:EC PEP Adjusted.pdf]] || [[file:EC PEP Adjusted.doc]] || [[file:EC PEP.doc]] ||
 * Directions for EC PEP || [[file:Exceptional Children’s PEP.pdf]] || N/A || N/A ||
 * PEP for students instructionally on grade level || [[file:Personalized Education Plan Grade Level.pdf]] || [[file:Personalized Education Plan Grade Level.doc]] || N/A ||
 * Reflective Questions for Decision Making || [[file:Reflective Questions Final.pdf]] || N/A || N/A ||
 * Classroom Performance checklist for language issues || [[file:classroom performance checklist_RtI.pdf]] ||  ||   ||