Supporting RTI in Collaborative Efforts

By: Lenore Knudtson, Program Specialist, MPRRC

The IDEA Regulations released in 2006 make it clear that states must permit the use of a process based on the child’s response to scientific, research-based interventions when determining whether a child has a specific learning disability.  34 C.F.R. §300.307(a)(2).  Response to Intervention (RTI) is one instructional model being used in schools across the nation to measure a child’s response to scientific, research-based instruction and interventions in compliance with the federal law.  The emphasis placed on a child’s response to scientific, research-based intervention in the IDEA Regulations has served as a catalyst for the development of professional workgroups across the nation’s educational communities devoted to learning more about the RTI as a tool for both regular and special educators.

Mountain Plains Regional Resource Center (MPRRC) coordinates with the Northwest Region Comprehensive Center (NWRCC) to facilitate resource development, professional development, and collaboration surrounding RTI and its intersection between regular and special education.  Working together, these organizations provide monthly telephonic conferences across the nation to address and support RTI as a model for scientific, research-based instruction and intervention, and beyond that, as a practical instructional tool for both regular and special educators.

MPRRC brings to the workgroup table a special education perspective, while NWRCC offers the regular education perspective, and other organizations like the National Research Center on Learning Disabilities (NRCLD) bring the latest research and best practice perspectives. The focus is to respond to state identified needs for further resource development, refinement of best practices for special education identification, and the improved collaboration between regular and special education. The result is a complimentary effort of national and regional resources to help educators and administrators improve outcomes for all students, and refine efforts to accurately identify students with learning disabilities.