Welcome to the RtI site of Gibraltar Area Schools!  

Hello, my name is Donna McMurray and I am the K-12 RtI Coordinator for Gibraltar School.   I schedule many of the district and state assssments. 

Our district test is the STAR test that is taken by all students kindergarten through 12 grade.  These are given 3 times per year in order to collect data on the progress of our students.

When students who need extra support are identified, they begin the RtI process.  Please read the information following to see what our Multi-level System of Supports do for our students. 

If you have any further questions, please contact me at (920) 868-3284 ext. 282 or at  dmcmurray@gibraltar.k12.wi.us.

What is RtI?  

Response to Intervention integrates assessment and intervention within a school-wide, multi-level prevention system to maximize student achievement and reduce behavior problems. 

With RtI, schools identify students at-risk for poor learning outcomes, monitor student progress, provide evidence-based interventions and adjust the intensity and nature of those interventions based on a student's responsiveness. It may also be used as part of the determination process for identifying students with specific learning disabilities or other disabilities.  It is also a multi-level instructional framework aimed at improving outcomes for ALL students. 

RtI is preventitive and provides immediate support to students who are at risk for poor learning outcomes.The components of RtI are screening, progress monitoring, multi-level prevention system and data based decision making to drive instruction decisions, evaluate effectiveness of interventions and disability identification.

We begin the school year with the first universal screening given during the week of September 17th for all students kindergarten thru senior year.  The universal screener used for the purpose of identifying students who are at risk is the STAR test.  Results of this test will be used at grade level data meetings to determine those students who need interventions.  Intervention teams will meet to discuss concerns and implement a plan of action. A data wall has been created in room 133 to chart student achievement across all grades.  Please stop by if interested in seeing the school's testing outcomes. I continue to add information about RtI as the school year progresses.

Multi-Level Supports in the Classroom
     
Multi-level supports, or tier components, are a critical tool in RtI success. What is accomplished at each tier for each student is decided at the SIT (student intervention meeting) in which the classroom teacher, support staff and interventionist look at the available data.

Tier I components include high quality curriculum and materials, standards-based programs (common core), effective instructional strategies, universal assessment measures, appropriate use of instructional time, use of data to guide instruction and instructional strategies, flexible grouping and differentiation.  This intervention takes place in the classroom through curriculum differentiation and is driven by the needs of the student and the goal to which the student needs to reach in order to be on the same level as his/her peers.

Tier II components are a combination of the above but with targeted small group intervention in the classroom, additional instruction beyond the classroom, frequent progress monitoring and charting of progress.

Tier III components also combine Tier I and Tier II but core skill focus is targeted in individual or very small group intensive intervention that is additional to classroom instruction, takes place daily for 30 minutes and has more frequent monitoring of progress that is charted for discussion at SAIL(student alternative interventions for learning) meetings.

The RtI Data Analysis Teaming Process

For Gibraltar to implement RtI approaches, team meetings are a vital part of creating curricular improvements, designing interventions and deciding which students will benefit from additional tiered instruction. RtI teams use a problem-solving process to analyze data from school-wide universal screening at the Tier I level (STAR) to assist teachers in planning and implementing instructional strategies and will differentiate on the basis of student's varing skill levels.

RtI data meetings are held three times per school year after the entire student body has taken the STAR universal screener (September, January, May).  The data teams consist of grade level teachers, support teachers (ELL, reading specialist, advanced learner coordinator, special education teachers). The meetings focus on student achievement benchmark data and those students who demonstrate core skill interventions in math and english/language arts.  It is from these grade level meetings that a core group of students needing intervention at either Tier II or Tier III are identified.

The SIT team then meets to outline concerns, goals and time frames for core skill interventions. Progress monitoring is begun and follow-up meetings are scheduled.