Academic progress monitoring is essential when implementing Individualized Education Programs for students with learning disabilities and more generally in a multi-tiered system of supports framework. Although students' progress is monitored frequently in schools today, these students often are not actively involved in this practice. Research has…

This article explains a process for improving specific learning disabilities (SLD) eligibility guidelines in a special education cooperative in Nebraska. The Central Nebraska Support Services Program (CNSSP) is a special education cooperative that serves four public school districts and seven parochial schools in central Nebraska. Children birth…

The purpose of this paper is to describe how Curriculum-Based Measurement (CBM) for beginning writers might be used within a Response to Intervention (RTI) framework. First, we describe CBM, and review research on CBM for beginning writers. Next, we discuss how CBM for beginning writers might fit within RTI, including use for universal screening…

Progress monitoring focuses on individualized decision making in general and special education with respect to academic skill development at the elementary grades. Progress monitoring is conducted frequently (at least monthly) and is designed to: (1) Estimate rates of improvement; (2) Identify students who are not demonstrating adequate progress…

General outcome measurement, a specific type of formative evaluation, can be used to assess progress toward long-term academic goals. Curriculum-based measurement is a widely used type of general outcome measurement. When used to develop local norms, curriculum-based measurement data are helpful in making individual student and systems-level…

Response to intervention (RTI) is on the radar screen of most principals these days--finding out what it is, how it can improve teaching and learning, and what needs to be done to implement it effectively. One critical component of RTI that will require particular attention from principals is student progress monitoring, which is required in every…

States and districts have been encouraged to consider responsiveness to scientifically based instruction and intervention (RTI) as one of many markers of eligibility for special education under the category of learning disabilities. In this article, the authors describe variations in determining responsiveness, and cultural and linguistic…

In this article, the authors describe the use of curriculum-based measurement as a research-validated practice for monitoring student academic achievement and ultimately for improving students' educational outcomes. The authors describe oral-reading fluency and maze fluency as assessment tools for monitoring student progress, evaluating…

Curriculum-based measurement (CBM) is a useful tool for both general and special educators to evaluate and improve student achievement. Although it is backed by more than 30 years of research and validation, particularly in reading, many teachers still do not use CBM in their classrooms. Historically, the use of CBM to guide instructional changes…

The most salient difficulty in assessing English language learner (ELL) students who exhibit academic difficulties is identifying whether the problem is one of English proficiency or of a learning disability. In many cases, the symptoms are shared and difficult to disentangle, but obtaining a comprehensive picture of the child is vital for…

Many students believe that math is something one learns about, but they do not understand that it is a tool for learning about other concepts. Mathematics is a language used to describe the relationship between objects, events, and time. Learning math requires that a student interacts with a system of symbols just as a person interacts with…

This article describes the use of curriculum-based measurement, specifically oral reading fluency, as a tool for monitoring students' overall reading achievement. A brief overview of curriculum-based measurement is provided as well as a description of procedures for collecting and graphing data. A case study illustrates the application of…

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act of 1997 (IDEA 1997) and Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004 (IDEA 2004) define specific learning disabilities in a similar manner. "The term "specific learning disability" means a disorder in one or more of the basic psychological processes involved in…

This article examines the purposes of the high-stakes tests that are given annually to students in elementary, middle, and high schools. It also describes the need to improve the test scores of all students, including those with disabilities. To improve results, educators are applying progress monitoring methods, including Curriculum-Based…

This article describes a reading intervention for students with learning disabilities, the Systematic Teaching and Recording Tactic (S.T.A.R.T.), to be used in conjunction with curriculum-based measurement. Ongoing assessment, teaching to a criterion, re-reading, and reciprocal teaching are major components of the intervention. (Contains six…