Use of Response to Intervention in Social, Emotional and Behavioral Domains: A Meta-Synthesis

Abstract

The use of Response to Intervention (RTI) was formalized with the passage of revisions to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) in 2004. This reform bill provided Special Education programs direction on an emerging approach to assess and recommend students for special education services, RTI. The intent of RTI was to address concerns with the previous model of Special Education qualification for learning disabilities based on discrepancies in IQ achievement. The discrepancy model gave clear criteria for identifying students with special needs, but quickly became known as the “wait to fail'' model. Rather than delaying identification of students with special needs until the point they were failing, RTI provided a method for early identification of struggling students, and research-based academic interventions to address problems prior to Special Education referral.