Response to intervention (RTI) is a number of procedures, which can be used in determining why and how students respond to change in specific instructions (Muoneke, 2007).
RTI approach provides advanced procedures for school in designing, implementing, and assessing educational interventions; it helps students who are having difficulties in learning (Muoneke, 2007). This paper will discuss about the response to intervention (RTI) approach.
RTI approach has been designed to benefit students and education institutions. One of the greatest benefits of the RTI approach is that, it eliminates the ‘wait to fail” situations (Fuchs and Fuchs, 2006).
With RTI approach, learners have access to immediate assistance and student’s learning difficulties are addressed directly. This reduces the chances of failure because teachers tackle student’s problems before they get worse.
Secondly, the RTI approach can be able to reduce the number of learners being referred for special education program. Considering that the RTI approach provides effective instructions and progress assessment, it has the potential of reducing the number of students being referred for special education while increasing the number of successful students (Fuchs and Fuchs, 2006).
In addition to this, the RTI approach provides more useful instructions compared to the traditional approach (Muoneke, 2007). With the utilization of the student progress-monitoring program, the RTI approach is able to meet the needs of learners directly.
Parents and teachers have observed this benefit. On the other hand, when trying to put into practice the RTI approach, they are numerous challenges that hinder this model from being fully effective.
The first issue is the problem of limited progress and monitoring tools for secondary schools (Muoneke, 2007). According to Muoneke (2007), less attention has been focused in the secondary schools and this has resulted in having few tools for progress monitoring in schools.
Due to the nature of the secondary school system such as departmental structure, there has been a shortage of progress and monitoring tools making it hard to implement this particular model.
Secondly, there is the issue of funding. To ensure the RTI model is implemented successful, proper funding is required to enable the entire program to work properly. There is poor allocation of resources to support this model. This hinders meeting the needs of struggling students as required (Fuchs and Fuchs, 2006).
The other challenging issue that must be addressed is redefining the roles of educators (Fuchs and Fuchs, 2006). While trying to implement the RTI approach in our schools, this issue is has emerged.
The existing educators such as classroom teachers and educational service providers have not been given enough orientation (Muoneke, 2007). As such, there is need to redefine the roles of educators to ensure that the program becomes effective.
For those schools already using the RTI approach, they are facing problems in clarifying the role of parents in this program (Fuchs and Fuchs, 2006). Notably, schools that have involved the parent in the RTI approach usually have positive results in student’s academic performance (Fuchs and Fuchs, 2006).
However, most schools have not been able to describe the role of the parents in the RTI model. The involvement of the parents is helpful in promoting communication of the progress and monitoring program. There is need to clarify the role of parents when implementing the RTI model in schools (Fuchs and Fuchs, 2006).
Another big challenge in our schools when implementing the RTI approach is incorporating culturally instructional practices (Muoneke, 2007). The use of cultural instructional from different backgrounds is beneficial to the students (Muoneke, 2007).
However, it has been very challenging in selecting the cultural instructional that can be able to work with the students of different cultural background (Muoneke, 2007). Finally, most schools using this model experience problems of understanding the scaling up RTI implementation (Muoneke, 2007).
Since RTI model is a new concept in education sector, a lot of time is required to develop guides that will facilitate understanding this model (Muoneke, 2007). However, until this is achieved, grading level will remain a big challenge for schools that are already using RTI approach.
To ensure effective implementation of the RTI program, all major challenges affecting this model must be addressed. Teachers, parents, government, and all other involved stakeholders should work towards ensuring effective implementation of the RTI model, which is no doubt very beneficial. Different strategies can be employed to overcome the existing challenges.
First, the government should focus its attention in supporting this program. It should provide schools with enough funds to facilitate implementation of the program. This will solve issues of funds shortage.
Secondly, teachers and parents should be given enough orientation through training and education programs to sensitize on the utilization of the RTI approach (Muoneke, 2007). This will clarify the roles of parents in the school concerning this particular model. It will also help in redefining the role of teachers in making the model to become successful.
To address the shortage of progress and monitoring tools in secondary school, the involved stakeholders and government should come in and emphasize the need to focus attention to our secondary schools. The government should also provide financial support to increase the necessary tools for progress and monitoring to be effective in the school system (Muoneke, 2007).
There are many advantages of intervening early in student’s learning experience. First, intervening early in children’s learning experience helps the parents and teachers to indentify young children who are at the risk of experiencing learning difficulties (Fuchs and Fuchs, 2006).
The ability to recognize children with difficulties of learning enables the teachers and parents to develop policies that will facilitate learning among the affected learners. This helps in eradicating cases of school failure.
Early intervention of children’s learning experiences facilitates social change. The situation in which teachers can be able to detect difficulties in learning abilities of certain students revolutionizes the way children’s needs are addressed (Fuchs and Fuchs, 2006).
Detecting that a particular student has learning problems gives teachers opportunities to offer special care to the affected students. This facilitates positive change in the society.
Apart from recognizing students with learning difficulties, early intervention of children’s learning experience helps in making children with special needs to be successful in their first school experiences (Fuchs and Fuchs, 2006). RTI approach offers the necessary solution. It is the first step in making sure the needs of students with learning difficulties are addressed.
In summary, RTI approach is a developed system of instructions and intervention that has been created to cater for students with learning difficulties (Fuchs and Fuchs, 2006). There is no doubt that the RTI approach is useful and very beneficial in eliminating cases of school failure among the student.
This model represents the latest improvements in education sector since it ensures that students with learning difficulties are assisted. Despite the challenges facing implementation of RTI approach, this model can bring positive changes in our schools.
Reference List
Fuchs, D., & Fuchs, L. (2006). Introduction to response to intervention: What, why, and how valid is it? Reading Research Quarterly, 41(1), 93–99.
Muoneke, A. (2007). Response to Intervention (RtI): A Systematic Approach to Reading and School Improvement. Web.