10 Success Factors for Literacy Intervention: Getting Results with MTSS in Elementary Schools

In some schools, MTSS/RTI is losing steam because other initiatives are consuming educators’ attention. Diverting focus away from MTSS is a mistake. A systemic approach to differentiating instruction to meet the needs of all students should be non-negotiable. It’s not a fad, and it shouldn’t be pushed aside for something else that draws the staff’s attention.

What are schools that are getting good results doing? When results are unimpressive, what’s missing?

In 10 Success Factors for Literacy Intervention, Dr. Hall provides answers to these questions in the form of ten elements for implementing and sustaining MTSS/RTI frameworks. She highlights how successful school leaders manage MTSS/RTI processes and make key decisions that effectively improve the implementation process by explaining the "whys" and "hows" of:

• Grouping by skill deficit and using diagnostic assessments to get helpful data for grouping and regrouping,
• Implementing an instructional delivery model, including the "walk-to-intervention" model,
• Using intervention time wisely and being aware of what makes intervention effective,
• Providing teachers with the materials they need to deliver targeted intervention lessons and offering differentiated professional development for administrators, reading coaches, teachers, and instructional assistants, and
• Monitoring progress regularly and conducting non-evaluative observations of intervention

instruction.

Offering practical tips, 10 Success Factors for Literacy Intervention is designed to provide the guidance educators need to move from disappointing MTSS/RTI results to substantial gains in students' literacy achievement.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments ix

Introduction

1. Group by Skill Deficit 11
2. Use Diagnostic Assessments 25
3. Implement a Walk-to-intervention Delivery Model 53
4. Monitor Progress with an Appropriate Assessment 69
5. Flood the Intervention Block with Extra Instructors 81
6. Use intervention Time Wisely 87
7. Be Aware of What Makes Intervention Effective 97
8. Provide Teachers with Intervention Lesson Materials 115
9. Invest in Professional Development 125
10. Inspect What You Expect 139

Epilogue 151

References 153

Index 154

About the Author 159

"Leaders, coaches, and teachers responsible for student growth in reading will find this a valuable resource for reflecting on their current practices, determining success factors that may be missing, and implementing needed success factors to increase their students’ reading outcomes."
- Deb Fulton, M.Ed., Former State-Wide Lead for Literacy, Pennsylvania Training and Technical Assistance Network (PaTTAN) Harrisburg, PA

"We have been implementing the 10 Success Factors for Literacy Intervention district-wide over the last three years in kindergarten through third grade.   We are very excited about the focus our teachers now have for reading intervention, the success they are beginning to see, and the reading skills our students are learning.
As a result, our teachers have the opportunity for professional conversations through research-based common language that guides their ongoing decision making about the teaching of reading.  This gives us hope that we can make a significant difference in the number of students reading on grade level by the end of third grade."
- Clare Gist, Ed.D., Superintendent , Tulare City School District, Tulare, CA