Michelle BosonCI 407RTI/PBIS/GT Reflections & Interviews

Interviews

RTI Interviews

RTI Interview with RTI Specialist (Dr. Todd Gorges – School Psychologist)Assessment:

How are children assessed?o Benchmarking 3x/year utilizing CBM's as screeners (K-2); along with MAP (2-

5).  Diagnostic assessment for students identified "at-risk" or below benchmark targets.

o Children are assessed by CBMs (curriculum based measures)o AIMSweb- houses the data people get confused by that, but AIMSweb is the data

houseo Interesting thing – we use CBM in k-2, we used to use it preK to 5th but there are

mixed opinions, people who really believe in CBMS and people who don’t, especially in reading, “they don’t tell me anything just how fast kids read”, people who know the research know that CBMs is the best quick measure of where kids are at, that’s why they are called a screening tool because you can use them quick

o In our district, because of politics, CBM used in k-2 and MAPS test used at 2-5, they call the MAPS test a screener and its not a screener, screeners are quick like a thermometer, MAPS can take a student over 45 minutes

What assessment instruments are used?o Early Literacy & Numeracy Measures from AIMsweb; with WIF & Highly

Decodeable Passages forKindergarten.  R-CBM & M-COMP for 1st and 2nd Grades.  MAP for students in 2nd - 5th grades.

o Kindergarten- at beginning of kindergarten we might assess them on letter naming and letter sounds, we use 1 minute probes you can do fast with kids; same for math- basic number identification, which numbers are bigger

o As you move up in grade level, we look at sight words and more the traditional probes like having the student read for a minute, how many words correct a minute

When are they assessed?o Fall (Sept.); Winter (Dec./Jan.); Spring (April/May) for

Benchmarking/screening.  Progress monitoring is utilized for students at-risk or near benchmark in some cases to examine rate of growth/improvement.

o Test everybody 3 times a year, based on that data, we have benchmark targets where we expect students to be based on district data, if not up to that level and receiving intervention, we try to do progress monitoring while intervening

o Reading teachers also do Fountas and Pinnell and running records- not a progress monitoring tool but more of an assessment to see where they are

Who is responsible for the assessment?

o RTI Site Facilitator (School Psychologist) coordinates the assessment; a building team of teachers, specialists, and trained educational assistants conduct the actual assessments.

o Typically we have an assesssment team, sometimes teachers are apart of that because they like to assess their own kids

o But this led to too much missed instructional time, so now we have an assessment team comprised of education assistants, reading teachers, interns student teachers; we rotate classes in and out of the multipurpose room and have different stations set up, we can do a class in reading and screen them in 20 minutes

Results: Who receives the results?

o Results are shared with teachers via grade-level Data Analysis Meetings during benchmark periods. Parents are provided hard copies of MAP results and CBM results are shared in parent-teacher conferences.

o At the meeting, we look at kids who are at risk with grade level teams, so we look and math and reading data, as we get narrower in looking at students, we see which kids might have similar issues that we can group together and go group interventions, sometimes these are just in the classroom, they just need extra fluency work but sometimes involves reading resource or special education teacher to do the intervention if its more of a pull out situation

o Start with data analysis and identify groups of students who need interventions, valuable thing at looking at group data is that you see trends, seeing a trend can help us decide what is going on and what needs to be done about this

o Can look at the data evener narrower by looking at individual students- these students might need more intensive intervention planning because they might be 2 grade levels below

How are the results used?o Results are used to examine (a) Tier 1/Core Instruction and its effectiveness, (b)

identify at-risk students/groups, and to (c) plan differentiation and/or supplemental interventions.

Using Assessment Results: How is the plan for an individual child created and who is involved in its creation?

Individual Problem Solving would be initiated if a student was identified as not making expected progress despite evidence-based Core + Supplemental Instruction or strategies; or if behavioral/social-emotional factors are identified based on data.  The building Problem Solving Team would consist of general education teachers, along with specialists that pertain to the problem area (i.e., Reading Specialist, Special Ed. Teacher, Psychologist/Social Worker; with Principal).

Basically coming out of that meeting the grade level group, teachers know which student is 20 points below the bench mark and F&P shows they are a year and half behind, teachers know that they need to have individual

plan for reading. This could also go for math, but our math interventions aren’t as well developed

Also on behavioral sides- not progressing because non compliant with the intervention, possibly the student might have homeowrk issues. With these kids, we have an individual meeting with a teacher or 2, nice to have another teacher in the room, myself, principal, whatever specialist we need, reading teacher/special education teacher, etc. then go through problem solving framework for these students to identify the problem

Develop target ideas with base line intervention in mind, then decide intervention based on that data, then develop that plan and who is responsible for it, move from general to specific, grade level meeting then lead to small meeting with specialists

Who is involved in providing help for each child? As above, the interventionists could vary depending on the identified skill

or performance area of need; and the level/intensity of need. Some students may receive supplemental reading practice (e.g., repeated reading or fluency work) with educational assistants.  Others receive targeted interventions from certified teachers/specialists.  For behavioral issues, the Psych/SW typically consult with teachers/parents regarding intervention plans and may implement specific small-group or individual work.

We first look to see does it look as an academic or behavioral issue, then come up with a behavior plan with psychological or social worker, if the intervention is more on the academic side then there’s more help from the teacher

How is the classroom teacher involved? Teachers are involved throughout the process; from

benchmarking/assessment through Data Meetings/Group Problem Solving; to developing Individual Plans.

Obviously classroom teachers are huge in this because as a teacher you are asked to be the main implementer unless it is a pull out situation, parents and district policy try not to pull kids out as much as we used to because this is time out of the general education classroom, teacher needs to be involved in differentiating, involved in meetings and plans, they also may have to follow up with parts of plans and communicate with parents

Interventions: What happens once all the goals of the intervention are met?

o If/when goals are met, supplemental interventions are discontinued; in some cases, gradually with progress monitoring; in others, without direct support. Data should guide the decision-making (whether academic or behavioral).

o Reading is where we have our best data in this school, if were meeting goals then have grade level meetings in between benchmark meetings called data review, review how kids are doing so far and if they’re meeting their goals and making progress, if we decide they are based on data not just subjective opinion, then we may discontinue and wean them off the support, for example the student may go from 5 days a week to 3 days a week, gradually pull pieces of intervention out to

make them more independent, the goal is to get them out of intervention and get them back in the general flow

What happens if the student is unsuccessful with the intervention?o If data indicates that a particular intervention is not effective, or that progress is

slower than expected, the intervention may be changed, modified, or intensified. Additional problem solving should occur to identify other possible factors involved in the student's plan.

o If data shows the intervention is not effective or the progress is slower than expected, we may change the intervention, this kid is not responding to this, may intensify it by moving from 1-to1 instead of a group of 3, we can change it, modify it, or intensify it, through problem solving we can see if other factors are involved and go a different route

o At some point, RTI leads to entitlement to special education if they are not making progress and gap is widening

Other: What advice would you give to beginning teachers?

o I would just say in the RTI sounds cliché but it is really true, teachers have to remember and so does everybody, RTI is an all kids initiative and it should be, even though we focus on our lower kids, we’ve done a little better job of involving our gifted in these meetings

o Also it is an all staff initiative Very strict division between special education and gen education in the

past but now with RTI there is more collaboration; it’s not perfect and in some districts you hear teachers say I’m done with this kid and move them to special education, teachers feel they have done all they can for this kid so this is their last resort

Really important that divisions aren’t there if RTI is going to work This change is a very slow change – school climate and culture doesn’t

change very quickly Is there anything other important information you would like to share?

o We’ve made strides but we are not nearly where we should be

RTI Interview with Cooperating Teacher (Coop- Mrs. Retzlaff)Assessment:

How are children assessed?o By the MAPS test, tested 3 times a year, once a quarter, have data meetings

What assessment instruments are used?o Test on the computero For reading - students are tested on vocabulary, literature, informational text,

foundation skillso For math- students are tested on operations and algebraic thinking, number and

operations, measurement and data, geometry When are they assessed?

o 3 times a year, once each quarter Who is responsible for the assessment?

o The teachers give the assessment to the students all at the same time, it is not timed

Results: Who receives the results?

o Teachers, and Dr. Gorges and breaks the scores down to determine which tier students are in for RTI

How are the results used?o Follow benchmark scoreso Use the results to group together at risk kidso At a meeting, figure out how to differentiate to make these kids stronger

Using Assessment Results: How is the plan for an individual child created and who is involved in its creation?

Classroom teacher or parents get the ball rolling, IEP or 504 is created, classroom teacher, Dr. Gorges, reading specialist, special ed teachers, the principal, eventually the parents

Who is involved in providing help for each child? The classroom teacher, LD teacher, special ed teacher

How is the classroom teacher involved? Differentiates instruction for groups who need extra help,, homework and

answers to questions are differentiated

Interventions: What happens once all the goals of the intervention are met?

o The student would need to test out at grade level, mainstream back into the regular classroom, or given less or more help

What happens if the student is unsuccessful with the intervention?o Continue to receive services, may increase time with special ed teacher, alter the

services

Other: What advice would you give to beginning teachers?

o I would give every classroom teacher – teaching a whole class is no more, its all individualized teaching and differentiating, it’s a lot of work, you have 26 kids and ¾ of the class has different expectations, constantly chasing

Is there anything other important information you would like to share?o You truly have to have the patience.

Gifted Interviews

Gifted Interview with Gifted Coordinator (Ms. Jen Barnabee- Director of Extended Services)General questions (for all interviewees):

Is gifted education important? Why?o Yes.  It is one avenue of differentiation that can accelerate and further enrich the

academic lives of the top 5% of our student population.  Like special education,

gifted education falls on the other end of the continuum, and like special education, our gifted students need targeted instruction that matches their individual needs.  Think of the RtI model that works both directions.  Research has shown that gifted students grow academically when they are placed with other academically like-minded gifted students (see the Peabody recent study done over a 30-year time span!).

How is gifted education structured in the school/district?o Elementary: Students identified for Extended Mathematics in grades 3-5

participate daily in a pullout resource program at their home school for accelerated learning experiences and intervention.

o Students identified for Extended Reading in Grade 3 participate in pullout resource services twice a week, and students in grades 4 and 5 receive daily intervention.

o Both resource programs strive to challenge students by giving them opportunities for advanced critical and creative thinking with problem solving and inquiry approaches in the areas of mathematics and language arts.

o The self-contained program in grades 3-5 is available for students who qualify intellectually. Accelerated math and reading instruction is provided. In other areas the grade level curriculum is compacted to allow time to accelerate and explore other areas beyond the scope of the regular curriculum.

o Middle School: The Middle School Extended Program offers accelerated classes in English, Mathematics, Science and Art. Students may qualify for replacement/daily Extended Math classes and/or replacement/daily Extended Literacy/Language Arts classes in 6th grade and Extended English classes in 7th and 8th grade. Replacement/daily Extended Science classes are offered in grades 7 and 8. Extended Art classes meet one period per week in Grade 6 and two periods per week in grades 7 and 8.

o High School: Students from the Middle School Extended Services Program transition into appropriate Honors and Advanced Placement classes at Barrington High School.

Gifted Coordinator/teacher: Do classroom teachers view gifted education as important?

o Hmm?  Interesting question.  For the most part I believe they do. However, this does not mean that all classroom teachers have the same training in differentiation, nor the same training in gifted education, to understand the unique needs of this group.  There are many students who sit in the gen-ed classroom disengaged...  Is this because they are bored?  Is this because they are twice-exceptional (ADD, ADHD, etc.) and provide other challenges for their classroom teachers that mask their giftedness?  These are questions that our gifted teachers in each building try to help their gen-ed colleagues to answer on a regular basis. Our program has been around for more than 20 years, and I believe that most of our teaching staff value gifted education.  Some just need more training and professional development to understand how to meet gifted students' needs as well as how to identify them in their classrooms.  Test scores don't always provide

us with the answers. Neither does classroom performance, as you can connect my questions above with this issue.

How are gifted students identified? o Students qualify for Extended Services in several ways:

Students have scores at or above the determined local percentile on both the CogAT and MAP. (The local percentile is determined each year, at the end of each testing cycle, and depends on each grade-level cohort.)

Students go through the Review Process.  During the process, teachers administer common assessments, which are submitted to the Review Committee for consideration.

The identification process considers students who demonstrate a need for accelerated, above grade-level instruction.

Extended Services teachers at each building meet with students outside of the general education classrooms:

3rd, 4th, and 5th Grade Math - daily 3rd Grade Reading - approximately 100 minutes per week 4th and 5th Grade Reading - daily

Who developed the qualification procedures? How do students qualify?o As a team we look at the qualification procedures each fall.  As a matter of fact,

this has been an on-going conversation all year.  We are trying to develop a more transparent protocol for our Review Process (which is another way that we help students to qualify for the program - when they do not qualify based on test scores).  Therefore, to answer your question: our team of gifted teachers throughout the district develops the qualification procedures.  And, to answer your question about how students qualify:  students qualify in either of two ways, 1.based on test scores, and 2.through a review process.  Always we have teacher recommendation part of each way.  We need to know how a student performs in the classroom to give us additional information beyond test scores, and for the review process

What benefits do students receive from being involved in gifted education?o Extended Program Grades 3-5

Extended students receive accelerated instruction daily in reading and math (with exception of 3rd grade reading – 100 minutes/week)

Program available at all District 220 elementary schools Full-time Extended Resource Teacher as each elementary school

o Extended Program Grades 6-8 6th grade Extended Literature and Language Arts daily classes 7th and 8th grade Extended English daily classes 6th, 7th, and 8th grade Extended Math classes 7th and 8th grade Extended Science classes 6th, 7th, and 8th grade Extended Art classes (6th grade meets once a week

during advisory period; 7th and 8th grade meet twice a week during advisory period)

What are the goals for gifted education? o From our "Welcome" section: The Extended Program addresses the needs of

students for educational services distinct in nature and content from the existing

standard program in District schools. District 220 identifies students for extended classes as those who demonstrate achievement or potential aptitude in general intellectual ability, specific academic aptitude, or performance in visual arts. The mission of Barrington Community Unit School District 220 is "Inspiring all learners to achieve excellence." Extended Service Programs are logical manifestations of a concern for excellence and the development of each student's potential. These programs strive to provide opportunities and challenges which match student abilities.

o From our "Identification/Criteria" section: In Barrington School District 220, we recognize that students develop at different rates.  The Extended Services Program is one form of differentiated instruction.  To ensure a child*s continued progress, the child’s Extended Services teacher keeps parents informed on a regular basis.   Open lines of communication are encouraged between students, teachers, administration and home.  Every child’s success is our goal!

Gifted Interview with Gifted Educator (Mrs. Miller)General questions (for all interviewees):

Is gifted education important? Why?o Yes it is readily important. I strongly believe that our schools forever have

always recognized and responded to the needs of students at the other end of the spectrum and gifted education is no differe.t differetinated their needs to make it faster, more maerial, see things in a different way. It is vitally important. The focus of a gifted program changes and looks different in every school, certianily in Illinois. I feel really proud of the focus of the program in barrington, ivee worked in other programs it the focus here is intellectual gifted. Theyre the kids going to be solving our problems in the future.

How is gifted education structured in the school/district?o For 3rd graders- right now we identify children in 3rd grade, classes are in reading

and math, math in 3rd grade it’s a full replacement program, no longer receive math instruction from homeworoom teacher, a curriculum 1-2 years above designated grade level, lots of problem solving

o 3rd grade reading- only 100 minutes a week with mrs. Miller, introduce literature above grade level, analogies and vocabulary

o 4th grade- replacement program for a guide reading group, I don’t teach language and writing, with curriculum 2+ years above grade level

o middle school – continue to be tracked into extended classes eventually builds into tracking for science and SS classes, then honors and AP sequence in high school

Classroom teacher: Is gifted education important? Why? How is gifted education structured in the school/district? Tell me about the preparation did you receive to teach gifted students in the regular

classroom?o Undergrad- never even ehard the word gifted in her courses/assignments; in my

first job as a regular classroom teacher I ehard about it in PD then a masters

degree in teaching gifted children from northeastern, stays up to date in field with reading, meetings, conferences and work with my colleagues

What accommodations do you make for gifted students?o Curriculum is above grade level, still a greta deal of differentiation in the

classroom, class of 8 I can send home 8 different assignments, truly gifted kids do not need a lot of repetition, with just a frew practice problems they got it, more at a quicker pace

How do you feel about the gifted education program?o I feel supported and positive about it, ive been involved in other gifted programs,

but in terms of really making a difference long term for their educational path I see the program here in district 220 prepares them for the rigor of whats coming and be able to take the really top classes and present a transcript that shows the challenges they’ve done and move into new things in college. The fact that its base din reading and math and accelerated its really good for the kids who need this enrichment. In a perfect world theres always room for improvement, many years ago we would pull kids in 2nd grade then I could start right away at 3rd grade so now theres a lot of lost teaching time. I wish there was a way to have a structure in an elementary class to have a longer 50 min period because another group of kids are coming.

What role do you play in identifying gifted students? (If they have a role)- What criteria do you use for referring students to gifted education?

o Im part of a team where we look at a multitude of critera and create a portfolio of the student, look at work smaples, talk to current and previous etachers for how they do in the classroom, look at data points of their MAPS test (achievement test), and their abilities based test, and sometimes input from parents to find the kids whove already been givene enrichment and difffernetiated instruction but need more than what a classroom etacher can provide with differentiation

o You look at kids and if you can take test data and find a local percentile and see how they relate to district kids not national because they look wonderful, but this gives us a better understanding of who is high achiving – looking at 95th or high percentile is a base line cut off, no score cut off, this is where we focus looking at kids

Gifted Interview with Student (Liam)General questions (for all interviewees):

Is gifted education important? Why?o Yes because you learn other things that you wont learn if you are in just normal

regular classes How is gifted education structured in the school/district?

o Every time the ISATS come around you do geometry and practice questions, when Mrs. R teachers reading and math, I go to Mrs. Miller’s classroom

What do you enjoy about the gifted program (class)?o Well she’s a fun teacher and she lets us celebrate albert Einstein’s birthday and

pie day; well she like makes learning fun (how?) she like let’s us play 24 it’s a game where you have to multiply and divide to get to that number

o I like how if I go for a job and they can look at my record and see I was in gifted

Tell me about your regular classroom experience? What do you do when you are finished early with work? (Probing questions if you need more information) Do you enjoy this? What would you rather be doing?

o When I finish early I just read or work on something else in the hall or in the pod so we do not disrupt the class

o I enjoy reading when I’m done but sometimes I don’t have a book with me so I just read other books I find

What challenges do you have in school? What is easy for you?o Challenges- sometimes formulas for questions in Mrs. Miller get complex for me,

or I forget something and I have to go back to find it and look back in the booko Easy- math is really fun for me and it’s easy, I like reading with Mrs. Miller. We

had a prep thing in 2nd grade where she would meet with us to learn about stuff we were going to learn in 3rd grade.

Do you remember the testing to qualify for gifted? Tell me about it?o I’m pretty sure I got in it after the MAPS test and you got in depending on the

score you got on the MAPS test

PBIS Interviews (Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports)

PBIS Interview with PBIS Committee Member (Principal Kimberly Foster-Thomas) What are the school PBIS expectations?

o That students will be safe in their environment and act in a safe manner towards each other, that they will act in a respectful manner towards everyone in our learning community, and that they will be responsible for their actions and for their things which includes coming to school ready to learn

What are some examples of positive supports available in this school? How are students rewarded for positive behaviors?

o Examples of – adults in the huilding are asked to provide token to students when they see students following the 3 tennants of the pbis standards especially when they are going abolve and beyond normal exptecations, classroom teachers provide students with special privileges to studnets within the classroom

o Reward in 2 ways, host a whole school booster (an additional activity) for all students who have met the goal of collecting tokens for that month, in addtioion students are able to turn in additional tokens for extra classroom priviliages in addition to that

What types of data do you collect for the PBIS process?o We typically collect data around students who demonstrate a challenge with the

expectations in specific settings for example- the playground and the lunchroom are the primary areas where we try to collect data, ask lunchroom assistants to complete behavior reports and if they had to intervene or redirect a student on a specific behavior on more than one occastion, we try to be consistant with problem solving on how to turn the behavior around either a reteach or a social skill group or a behavior modification plan of some kind

What are some examples of Tier 1, Tier 2, and Tier 3 interventions for students?

o Tier 1- all school boosters and classroom incentives teachers offer, we have school wide and district wide we have a social/emotional program that is expected to be delivered by all of the classroom teachers on a consistent basis

o Tier 2- our school psychologist and social worker, doing small group social skills groups in conjunction with classroom teacher’s 2nd step lessons

o Tier 3- one on one or some partner time with our social worker or psychologist for some more direct focused problem solving and social skills work; possibly coming up with behvaior plan to be supported by aprents and classroom teacher

Do you have any information about how this initiative might have changed your school’s climate?

o I think that the bug thing its done is provided a way for everyone in the building to be speaking the same language, we have posters, it has allowed us to set some common epxectations in the buildings about how students should behave in a variety of settings in the building, theres common language when talking to kids about hwo they are showing respobinsilbe, respetcaul behaviors, everyone knows what we are tlakign about

Do you think that this implementation has changed teacher behavior in any way? If so, how?

o I think that whats its done for the most part its encouraged and caused teachers to make an effort, not just teachers but all staff, to try to focus on positive behaviors as a way to promote our expectations rather than focusing on negative behaviors

PBIS Interview with Cooperating Teacher or Principal (Coop Mrs. Retzlaff) What are the school PBIS expectations?

o To follow the rules o PAWS Program- safe, respect, responsible, ready to learno Second Step- anti bullying program

What are some examples of positive supports available in this school? How are students rewarded for positive behaviors?

o Positive supports available in the school – Dr. Gorges- eat lunches with a special ed student, Principal-birthday lunches

o Students are rewarded with a free gym period, free movie, extra time with COWs, extra recess, each month the reward changes

What types of data do you collect for the PBIS process?o Students need 4 paws each month (evidence) to engage in the reward, can be

given to student from any staff member in the school What are some examples of Tier 1, Tier 2, and Tier 3 interventions for students?

o Infractions for 5th grade- 3 of these and get a detention and have to come in on a Thursday morning

o Can receive an infraction for academic problems or behavior problems Do you have any information about how this initiative might have changed your school’s

climate?o The negative of PAWS – students only do something for a PAW or ask am I

going to get a paw for this

o The positive of PAWS- this program really works for younger students, older elementary students see right through this

Do you think that this implementation has changed teacher behavior in any way? If so, how?

o I personally think in the upper grades it has no effecto The only thing that has effect in the 5th grade is infractions because it affects

parents, students have to ask parents to take them earlyo They don’t care about the rewards- infractions work more to change behavioro Teachers don’t see PAWS working in upper grades so turn to infractionso Taking away a recess is more powerful than giving the students an extra one

Reflection

Through my completion of interviews at my two placements, participation in class discussions,

and my knowledge gained through course readings, I have learned a great deal in regards to the

differences in educational policy implementation. The knowledge and insights I gained through

this assignment have assisted in molding my views as an educator in relation to Response to

Intervention (RTI), Gifted and Talented Programs (GT), and Positive Behavior Interventions and

Supports (PBIS).

My placement for CI 406 was at a small, rural parochial school, St. Malachy, located in

Rantoul, IL, while my current student teaching placement at Countryside Elementary School is

located in an affluent suburban area in Barrington, IL. Although these schools are drastically

different, I was able to see many similarities in both schools’ RTI implementation. At St.

Malachy, I interviewed my cooperating teacher and the special education/title teacher about RTI.

From the interviews, I learned that students are assessed three times a year using AIMSweb tests.

Similarly, my interview with the school psychologist at Countryside School provided me with

the exact same information in regards to their RTI implementation. Students at Countryside are

also assessed three times a year. The one main difference between these two school’s RTI

implementation was in regards to who is responsible for the assessment. At St. Malachy, it is the

classroom teacher’s responsibility. However, at Countryside, it is the school psychologist and

their assessment team of trained specialists that are responsible for coordinating the assessment.

It was interesting for me to learn that two completely different school environments follow the

same assessment process in relation to RTI.

What surprised me during my RTI interviews was the differences in the steps the schools

take when looking over assessment data and determining if students’ assessment results indicate

the need for tier 2 or tier 3 interventions. At St. Malachy, there is only one classroom for each

grade level, so the classroom teacher and the one special education/title teacher in the school are

required to create and implement plans for students. However, the process is much more

demanding at Countryside. Results of all students’ assessments are shared and discussed at a

grade-level data analysis meeting. Classroom teachers, as well as other teachers including gifted

teachers and special education teachers, attend these meetings to identify students who may need

interventions and begin the planning process for each student’s interventions. At Countryside, a

student’s intervention plan may include meeting with a reading specialist or spending time with

the school social worker. At St. Malachy, these resources are not available.

My RTI interviews proved the importance of understanding your school or district’s

policies that have been established in relation to RTI, as there will be differences in every school.

In class discussions with other pre-service teachers, I learned that their placements had different

RTI procedures than either of my placements. As an educator, I believe that RTI needs to be

fully understood by all members of the assessment and intervention processes, to be sure that all

students are receiving the supports and resources they need to be successful in their learning

environment. Although both processes in my schools were similar, they were not entirely the

same. The fact that RTI is such a common educational practice that is implemented in schools, it

is shocking to me that it is not implemented the same way at every school. If not all educators

are speaking the same language in regards to RTI, I am still a little unclear as to which RTI

programs are most effective, as every program I have seen or heard of seemed to be different?

The knowledge I gained from the GT interviews and from class discussion with my peers

proved that GT programs at schools differ greatly from one another. For example, at St.

Malachy School, there is no GT program within the school. Teachers must design learning

activities for gifted students on their own. However, my interviews with the district coordinator

for the gifted program and with the gifted educator at Countryside introduced me to what a GT

program encompasses. In my own opinion, the GT program at Barrington seemed very organized

and extensive. Students who qualify for the program in 2nd grade then enter a self-contained

program for 3rd through 5th grade. These students leave the general education classroom during

the reading and math instructional periods and instead meet with the gifted educator.

My interview with the gifted educator at Countryside truly opened my eyes to what a

gifted program is all about. When I asked Mrs. Miller if gifted education is important, she

responded, “I strongly believe that our schools have always recognized and responded to the

needs of students at the other end of the spectrum and gifted education is no different”. This

quote truly resonated with me as a pre-service teacher. These students see things in a different

way, and in order to meet the needs of gifted learners, teachers need to provide these students

with more material at an accelerated pace to ensure their success in the classroom as well. As a

future educator, this interview made me think deeply about how I plan to differentiate my

classroom in the future. It is my responsibility to teach all students in my classroom, which

includes students below grade level, but also those gifted students.

The more I reflected on this interview with the gifted educator, the more I realized how

unprepared I feel to teach gifted students in my classroom. If there is no formal gifted program

at my future school, how will I know how to differentiate for these students? I feel as though so

much of my course instruction at the University of Illinois has focused on RTI interventions for

students and how to help lower-achieving students meet grade level standards. However, I feel

unsure about how to effectively instruct students who move at a much faster pace than other

students in my class. Many pre-service teachers I spoke with do not have gifted programs at

their placements, which make my concerns about teaching gifted students seem as though it will

become a reality when I have a classroom of my own.

During a class discussion with Stephanie Sabath, I was able to learn more about how her

school’s GT program is implemented. It was interesting to learn that in her student teaching

placement, she has eight gifted students. On Wednesday and Friday mornings, these students

leave her general education classroom to meet with the gifted educator. After this discussion, I

reflected on how this affects the overall classroom environment when that many students leave

for a relatively long period of time. What will my classroom look like if a quarter of my students

are pulled out for a relatively long period of time? How do I ensure my gifted students are not

missing any important content when they are pulled out, while still making my instruction

meaningful for students who are not pulled out? As a future educator, I will need to address these

concerns and be sure I have certain procedures and activities in place for when part of my class is

pulled out of the classroom.

Similarly to RTI, my information about PBIS at St. Malachy and Countryside were

comparable. At St. Malachy, the PBIS program, called Tiger Pride, reinforces the 4 R’s, which

require the students to be responsible, reverent, respectful, and ready to learn. Students are able

to earn paws (piece of paper that states which R the student was following) if they exhibit

positive behavior that reflects one of the 4 R’s. Students who receive enough paws at the end of

the month can partake in the prize for the month, like participating in an “out of uniform day”.

The PBIS program at Countryside is quite similar. If students are caught being safe, responsible,

respectful, or ready to learn, they can also receive a paw (piece of paper that indicates the

positive behavior the student was caught doing). At the end of the month, if students have

enough paws, they can partake in an extra activity, such as extra time on the computers or an

extra P.E. class.

Based on my interview questions, I also learned that PBIS does seem to have a positive

impact on the school’s climate as a whole. During my interview with the principal at

Countryside, I asked if their PBIS initiative had changed the school’s climate. The principal

responded that, “PBIS has provided a way for everyone in the building to be speaking the same

language”. This quote made me aware of the importance of school-wide communication when

implementing a program such as PBIS. As a future educator, I think it would be helpful to have

all teachers, staff, and students following the same rules and expectations; this would prevent any

confusion regarding what is and is not expected or tolerated in the school’s climate. After

completing this assignment, I believe that PBIS should be an integral part of every school’s

climate, as it can have positive impacts on the school if implemented in a successful manner.

However, after conducting these interviews and reflecting on the data I collected, I am

curious as to what to do if my future school does not have a school-wide PBIS program in place?

Is it acceptable for me to create my own PBIS program just for my classroom? What if my

school does have a PBIS program in place, but the majority of teachers do not follow the

program, causing it to be unsuccessful throughout the school? I do see the benefits of a school-

wide PBIS program, but in a perfect world, not every program will be successful in every school.

I want to know how I, as a future teacher, can be sure my opinion is heard regarding the PBIS

program without stepping on anyone’s toes.

Overall, this RTI, GT, PBIS assignment allowed me to truly reflect on these topics in

education. I was able to gain valuable information from varying viewpoints in different schools.

While walking away from this assignment, I can confidently state that I am not sure if there is

one right way to implement RTI, GT or PBIS; however, I can say that these are integral

components of a school and each school must implement these in a way that is successful for

their school, teachers, and students.