This qualitative case study provides insight on the organizational changes and experiences that teachers, administrators and support staff at one elementary school in Rhode Island have had with the implementation of a Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS) Framework. The Burke and Litwin (1992) Causal Model of Organizational Performance and Change…

Social, emotional, and behavioral (SEB) functioning within schools has historically been considered in the context of educational impact. Currently, traditional models in education do not readily take into account changing ecological considerations for students, as they experience heightened population-wide academic and SEB concerns, increasing…

This phenomenological study aimed to research the implementation practices in elementary schools of MTSS for Culturally Responsive SEL and its impact on students, within the first year of returning to school for full days of instruction after a 16-month interruption of in-person learning due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Semi-structured interviews…

Trauma-informed care is a relatively new construct in K-12 education, and districts across the United States are seeking avenues to meet the needs of their students. The COVID-19 pandemic elevated the need for districts to develop appropriate supports to address student and adult trauma. Traumatic events can affect a child's mental, physical,…

There is a need to adapt research-based behavior management interventions so they have utility for virtual instruction. In this study, we investigated whether Class-Wide Function-Related Intervention Teams (CW-FIT) would increase group engagement for a first-grade inclusive class during virtual reading instruction. Results of the single case ABAB…

A long-standing, traditional teacher professional development relationship was expanded to involve school mental health professionals in supporting the implementation of a Multi-Tiered System of Support (MTSS) and fostering social-emotional learning district-wide. The ultimate goal of the collaboration was to foster a balanced focus on…

Disproportionality in exclusionary school discipline is a longstanding challenge in general and special education. To reduce disproportionality in discipline in a way that produces measurable results, federal law provides a mechanism referred to as Coordinated Early Intervening Services (CEIS). Whether a school district has been cited for…

High-quality Tier 1 instruction is frequently conceptualized as the "foundation" for other tiers of intervention within multi-tiered systems of support (MTSS) models (Gersten et al., 2009). However, the vast majority of Tier 2 intervention studies do not account for Tier 1 variables when examining intervention effectiveness (Hill et al.,…

In this article, the authors illustrate how teachers use a strength based, culturally responsive Response to Intervention (RTI) framework to meet the varied needs of a culturally diverse, twice-exceptional student. Using a case-based approach, the authors demonstrate how classroom teachers and specialists collaborate with the student and her…

This quantitative study determined the impact of Persist Nashville's support interventions on persistence to the next semester and academic year of postsecondary education. Using Fall 2022 and Fall 2023 persistence data provided by Persist Nashville, the researchers examined the relationship between persistence and the support mechanisms of Care…

Educational leaders through the United States have prioritized developing integrated tiered systems to assist educators in meeting students' academic, behavioral, and social and emotional well-being learning needs in an integrated fashion (McIntosh & Goodman, 2016). This is an important shift away from traditional reactive models towards…

Tier 1 Instruction provides the essential foundation for all students to succeed, alleviating the need for more intensive support later. This Spotlight will help readers learn from schools implementing multi-tiered systems of supports (MTSS); analyze new laws on math supports for struggling students; evaluate the long-term benefits of early…

We report findings from a recent field test assessing the feasibility of training teachers in implementing restorative practices within a multi-tiered approach to supporting student behavior. First, we provide an overview of our training content, training delivery, and follow-up coaching. Second, we present overall outcomes from our field test…

Concerns continue to exist in public schools nationwide regarding students who are reading below grade level. The purpose of this mixed methods study was to focus on the components of the MTSS Framework as well as the creation, implementation, and monitoring of research-based, tiered interventions. This study evaluates a comprehensive process,…

Postsecondary attainment is often viewed as an accomplishment yielding financial, social, and economic gains. Moreover, education has been a passport to a better quality of life. However, certain populations are often hindered from achieving these aforementioned goals. In particular, Black males are viewed from a deficit perspective, especially…