Response to Intervention (RTI) has become prevalent in education recently, while the time youth spend being physically active has consistently decreased. Given the known physical, mental, and cognitive benefits of regular physical activity and the time youth spend in school, this article explores the use of increased physical education (PE) time…

Response to Intervention (RTI) is a multiple tiered system of instructional interventions that may also serve to identify children with Specific Learning Disabilities (particularly in reading and spelling). This article summarizes the findings of Evaluation of Response to Intervention Practices for Elementary School Reading (Balu, Zhu, Doolittle,…

Classroom research on adaptive teaching indicates few teachers modify instruction for at-risk students in a manner that benefits them. Responsiveness-To-Intervention, with its tiers of increasingly intensive instruction, represents an alternative approach to adaptive instruction that may prove more workable in today's schools.

Schools implement Positive Behavior Intervention and Supports (PBIS) as a way of meeting students' needs in classrooms. PBIS focuses on tiered instruction. Tiered instruction is a teaching strategy in which the educator implements incremental changes that increase supports based on students' needs--academic or behavioral. Yet, tiered instruction…

Teaching children to read is a complicated process. Children begin school at varying levels of ability, yet are all required to meet a set standard of achievement. It is up to teachers to assess each student, identify individual learning needs, and provide support. A motivating, literacy-rich program that includes whole-class, small-group, and…

In the United States and elsewhere in the world, disabilities are being studied by two different schools of thought: special education and disability studies. In the field of special education, analyses are often pragmatic and instrumental. In contrast, analyses in the field of disability studies are often historical and cultural, explaining…

National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) data reveal that students with disabilities who are emergent bilinguals (English language learners) have the lowest levels of proficiency in reading and mathematics among all student groups. We consider issues related to the instruction of emergent bilinguals, including those identified as having…

Children face numerous transitions throughout their school careers. Research has demonstrated that early transitions can positively or negatively impact future school performance. Establishing effective models to ensure carryover of instructional strategies and interventions into early elementary school can increase the likelihood children will…

Clarke et al. (2014) provide a persuasive case for the role of a theory-of-change model to guide the nature of curriculum development work embodying both a theoretical and empirical knowledge foundation. They illuminate the components of their model, which were used to design and test the efficacy of a Tier 2 intervention for students who met…

In Singapore, the Special Education for Autism (SEA) calls for a more focused, systematically structured framework to cater to the needs of children with autism in schools. As autism is a syndrome with co-morbid subtypes and different degrees of severity, a universal design for both learning and living becomes necessary to meet all the various…

Rural students are at risk for vocabulary underdevelopment and often have less access to educational resources. The purpose of this investigation was to examine the effectiveness of an Internet-based Speech/Language Pathologist (SLP)-teacher consultation to support rural teachers' vocabulary instruction to improve their students' lexical…

The Response to Intervention initiative is in danger of failing and being thrown on the ash heaps of countless education reform initiatives, but not because it is poorly structured, rather on account of poor implementation. Among the implementation mistakes are seven that can be watched for and avoided. (Contains 3 tables.)

With a renewed focus on early intervention, teachers must address the difficulties students are having as early as possible to promote their progress. Culturally and linguistically diverse students may not respond to universal interventions that have shown efficiency for mainstream populations. In order for Response to Intervention to be…

This review of research focuses on technological intervention methods as an alternative way to teach literacy to students with disabilities. It discusses the current emphasis of integrating students with specific learning needs in the general education curriculum and the fact that they are struggling, especially in the area of literacy. Through…

Trends in educational research, teaching practices, and teacher responsibilities change over time. There is currently a movement away from relying on summative assessment and large-group research to assessing individual students on a formative basis. This push is partially legal, and the 2004 Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act…