Since the easyCBM© learning system was first published in 2006, over $8 million of federal funding (both from the Office of Special Education Programs and more recently from the Institute of Education Sciences) has been used to develop, study, and refine the assessments available on the system. This Technical Manual summarizes the ongoing research…

The purpose of this qualitative exploratory case study based on Danielson's (2002) assertion that when teachers learn, student achievement improves was to examine how teachers created a collaborative learning experience through Professional Learning Community (PLC) concepts to implement Response to Intervention (RtI) with at-risk students. The…

In this Issue Brief we discuss the impact that the Schoolwide Integrated Framework for Transformation (SWIFT) has on improving the outcomes of several current federal, state, district, and school education reform initiatives. Federal initiatives include Race to the Top, School Improvement Grants, and Campaign for Grade-Level Reading; Common Core…

The purpose of this problem-based study was to gather data which analyzed the degree of fidelity of implementation of Response to Intervention as reported by building principals in the State of Missouri. The project began when team members, providing professional development for the Response to Intervention process, came to the conclusion there…

Although the importance of literacy instruction has remained constant since the beginning of the new millennium, literacy trends have shifted, often alongside acts of legislation. Areas of literacy education that were once overlooked in the past like adolescent literacy and RTI are now receiving increased attention, whereas areas of literacy like…

The Response to Intervention (RTI) Essential Components Integrity Rubric and the RTI Essential Components Integrity Worksheet are for use by individuals responsible for monitoring the school-level fidelity of Response to Intervention (RTI) implementation. They may also be used by schools for self-appraisal; however, they were not designed for…

The notion that development influences children's responses to traumatic stress is not novel. Chronological age and maturity level interact with environmental factors to mediate responses to trauma. Clinicians and researchers have confirmed that children can experience the full range of traumatic stress reactions seen in adults, and many youth…

During a period spanning more than 2 decades, the author assessed approximately 2,000 school-age students, about 50 of whom were educated entirely at home. In many respects, the data gathering activities were similar regardless of the settings involved, but the uniqueness of homeschooling sometimes made assessment adaptations necessary in order…

Curriculum-Based Measurement of Oral Reading (CBM-R) is used to collect time series data, estimate the rate of student achievement, and evaluate program effectiveness. A series of 5 studies were carried out to evaluate the validity, reliability, precision, and diagnostic accuracy of progress monitoring across a variety of progress monitoring…

Response to Intervention (RTI) models are currently being implemented in many school districts nationwide. However, at a time when interest in RTI is high, the extent to which it is being implemented effectively in rural schools is largely unknown. Teachers and administrators in two rural elementary schools in the Southeastern United States who…

The article by Dixon, Eusebio, Turton, Wright, and Hale is entitled "Forest Grove School District v. T.A. Supreme Court Case: Implications for School Psychology Practice." Its implications are that a "comprehensive evaluation" under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) requires assessment of the child's…

The purpose of this quantitative study was to determine whether kindergarten-reading achievement could be increased by implementing Response to Intervention (RtI) strategies. Kindergarten children (N = 290) who were identified as at-risk for reading difficulties were assigned to receive intervention through a) small reading groups (SRG), b)…

The mixed methods correlational study examined the problem that AYP of Pennsylvania gifted middle school students who have met state-mandated proficiency requirements under No Child Left Behind (NCLB) has been reliant upon minimum proficiency tests. The purpose of the mixed methods study was to examine the correlations between the current measure…

Many schools are adopting a Response to Intervention (RTI) model to support and evaluate learning (Fuchs & Fuchs, 2006). Universal screening and progress monitoring are two essential components of RTI that generally support improved student outcomes (Shinn, 2007). In many schools, teachers collect and use a tool called oral reading fluency for…

This ex post facto descriptive-comparative quantitative study compared the differences in reading achievement between groups of 6th- through 8th-grade students enrolled in a response to intervention (RtI) classroom against groups of students enrolled in a general education classroom. Students across English language learner and low socioeconomic…