RtI Professional Development Project Two-Day Annual Conference

November 17 & 18, 2014Latham, NY

Dr. Karen Kemp Job Thomas

RtI District Design Team Purpose

• To build internal capacity for RtI implementation at all levels

Project Overview/Review

Yearly Deliverables• 2 day conference • 3 one-day trainings• 3 days on-site technical assistance• Off-site technical assistance

Content

Year 1 • RtI Basics• Infrastructure• Screening• Progress Monitoring

Year 2• Data-based Decision-

making• Multi-tiered

Interventions• Sustaining RtI

Day 1 – Overview

8:30 – Welcome & Housekeeping

9:00 - Module 2: RtI Infrastructure

11:30 - Lunch on Your Own

1:00 – Module 3: Screening

3:30 – Closing Remarks

House-Keeping & Reminders

• Bathrooms

• Lunch

• Folders

• Movement

• Hand Signal/Side Talk

Group Share

Step 1 • As DDT, decide on one positive movement that

has occurred in your district with RtI implementation.

Step 2• Identify a spokesperson to share with large

group

Module 2 — RtI Infrastructure

Session Outcomes• Understand essential elements of an effective

RtI infrastructure • Create a vision statement• Identify team roles, responsibilities, and

norms• Discuss best practices for RtI infrastructure and

identify possible implementation gaps.

Developed by American Instiutes of Reserach (AIR)Porsche Cox, Laura Magnuson, Monica Ng, Winsome Waite

Esse

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tI

INFRASTRUCTURE

Working Definition of Infrastructure

A set of interconnected elements to operationalize a common goal within a system. • Knowledge• Resources• Communication• Organizational structures

Infrastructure Example

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a2-DXXoenAg

SEVEN ELEMENTS OF INFRASTRUCTURE

1. Leadership2. Team Collaboration 3. Scheduling4. Data Use

5. Resources6. Communication7. Professional

Development

On Your Own: Using a scale of 1 (low) to 5 (high), rate the degree to which each infrastructure element supports RtI implementation in your building/district

With a Peer: Share your response

Element 1Leadership

INFRASTRUCTURE

LeadershipKey Roles Purpose and

focus

Resources and

structures

Shared visionCulture and expectations

Promote buy-in

Purpose and focus

Culture and expectations

Shared vision

Promote buy-in

Resources and

structures

Inspiring Vision

“Good (business) leaders create a vision, articulate the vision, passionately own the vision, and relentlessly drive it to

completion”Jack Welch, Chairman, General Electric

Vision Statement

Optimal desired future state

Guidance and inspiration

“North Star“

Succinct

Sample Vision Statement

Students will have the resources and knowledge necessary to reach their full potential.

Sample Mission StatementTo provide a districtwide process that provides prevention, early intervention services, and appropriate instructional programming to ensure academic progress and success for all students. The districtwide process will include frequent and repeated assessment of student performance; data-based decision making; and the use of multi-tiered, research-based intervention.

Vision Statement Reflection

What do you see as the optimal desired future state of your district?

Handout 1

Teams and CollaborationINFRASTRUCTURE

Element 2Team Collaboration

Teams

District-level team

School-level team

Grade-level/ Content team

Benefits of A Team Approach

Workload

Expertise

Coordination, Collaboration, Communication

Data-based decision making

Buy-in

RtI Teams at Each Level Must Have …

Roles, responsibilities, and norms

Clear purposeMeeting scheduleData sources that drive

their decisionsProblem-solving process

Decision rulesCommunication system

District-level team

School-level team

Grade-level/ Content team

Norm - a group held belief about how members should behave within a given context

Role – a designated responsibility that helps a group accomplish its task and maintain itself

Norms and Roles

Activity • Handouts 2 & 3

• Review and add more as needed• Handout 4

• Review the recommendations for the District, Building, and Grade level/Content teams, then compare to each of the teams within your district.

• Complete the worksheet as a group to determine areas of strength and areas for improvement. Consider the areas of improvement and agree upon at least 1 idea for strengthening the team process at each level.

30 Minutes

SEVEN ELEMENTS OF INFRASTRUCTURE

1. Leadership2. Team Collaboration 3. Scheduling4. Data Use

5. Resources6. Communication7. Professional

Development

Element 3SCHEDULING

INFRASTRUCTURE

Importance of Scheduling for RtI Implementation

Priority

Structure

Consistency

Transparency

Fidelity

What to Schedule

• Core Instruction Time• Intervention Time• Assessments• Team Meetings• Professional Development

Scheduling Core Instruction

• 90 minutes or more • Instructional time before

other activities• Aligned across grades• Staggered vs .Coordinated

Core Reading

Block

Scheduling Supplemental Instruction (Intervention)

Considerations:

How long?

How often?

When & Where?

Within classroom

Within grade

Across grades

Who?

Scheduling: Intervention Time

Sample Middle School Schedule

32

Scheduling Assessments

Screening• Three times per year (at least twice)• Determine who will administer

Progress Monitoring• Varies by tier• Include who will administer

Interim Assessments

Classroom Assessments

State Assessments

Scheduling Team Meetings (Data, IST, Grade level/Content)

Time

Timeframe

Availability

Scheduling Professional Development

Plan professional development on yearly

calendar

When/How

Frequency

Evaluation

Target audience needs

Universal or specific to individuals

The Role of Assessment in RtI

Reflection

• Does your schedule currently allocate time for these five areas? • Core Instruction Time• Intervention Time• Assessments• Team Meetings• Professional Development

Stretch Your Minds/Stretch Your LegsNew Learning/New Contact

• Jot down a though/idea/new learning• Find a new contact to share your idea or later

networking.

Element 4DATA

INFRASTRUCTURE

DATAPurpose - Decision making

• ID students at risk• Instruction/Intervention

Cut points & Benchmarks

• Make instructional changesInstructional Delivery

• Movement between tiers• Create visual depiction of student

learning

Student Responsiveness

• Document interventions LD Classification

DATA Sources for Tiered Decision Making

Tier 1: universal screening, accountability assessments, grades, classroom assessments, observations, parental concerns

Tier 2: universal screening, diagnostic assessments, progress monitoring, formative assessments, local assessments, classroom assessments

Tier 3: universal screening, individual diagnostics, progress monitoring, formative assessment, other informal assessments

Problem Solving Process

A recursive, self-correcting, ongoing methodology used for effective decision making at all levels within the system. Handout 5

Element 5RESOURCES

INFRASTRUCTURE

Infrastructural Resources for RtI

Screening Tool

Progress- Monitoring

Tools

Core Curriculum

Data Warehousing

System

Evidence-Based

Intervention Programs and

Practices

Considerations for Selecting Resources

Budget and cost

Evidence base

Training requirements and ease of use

Existing resources within school/district

Alignment of resources

Needs identified through data (interventions)

Element 6COMMUNCATION

INFRASTRUCTURE

Communication

District

School

Grade

Families

Communication Plans

• Inform parents and other stakeholders about the RtI framework, how it integrates with other initiatives, and how it contributes to student success

• Include a distribution process• In house• Community

RtI

CommunicationProject Communication Plan

Audience Key Message(s)

Desired Outcome Date Methods Person(s)

ResponsibleSchool-based and district RtI leadership Parents Community and school partners

Overview of RtI

Public awareness and methods of parent support

Jan 2015 RtI website Parent brochure in English & home language Presentation to various audiences

Carol While District RtI leadership Director of Curriculum & Instruction

Teacher teams RtI Framework: Professional Development

Awareness Jan−March 2015

Face-to-face professional development sessions Summer Institute

Teacher teams

Where Are You?

Do you have a written plan?

Has it been communicated to all stakeholders?

If there are gaps, how will you address them?

NewslettersWebsiteBoard MeetingsBack to School NightsFaculty Meetings

Element 7PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

INFRASTRUCTURE

Professional Development

• Builds staff knowledge• Provides continuous support for implementation

Professional Development

• Aligned to the essential components of RtI• Flexible• Ongoing• Job embedded • Research based

PD should be….

Professional DevelopmentEssential RtI Topics

• Core curriculum• Evidence-based intervention

programs and practices• Administering and scoring

assessments• Use of data warehousing

system• Data-based decision making

Include: Initial training

Refresher training

New staff training

Where Are You?

•What professional development activities does your district already have in place?

• Which activities and/or topics relate to RtI?

•What else is needed to build staff knowledge and district capacity for RtI implementation?

Rolling Out the RtI Initiative…• Vision statement• Commitment to implementation• Roles and responsibilities of team members• Action plan for implementation (e.g., timelines,

professional development strategies/activities)• Schedule & calendar of process events• Decision rules, problem-solving procedures• Documentation and communication of

students’ status

PLANNING for IMPLEMENTATION

INFRASTRUCTURE

Action Planning for RtI Implementation

Self-Assessment

Action Plan Modify & Adjust

Implementation & TA

Review action plan to adjust or modify areas of focus.

Day 1 – Overview

8:30 – Welcome & Housekeeping

9:00 - Module 2: RtI Infrastructure

11:30 - Lunch on Your Own

1:00 – Module 3: Screening

3:30 – Closing Remarks