Responsiveness-to-Intervention Symposium

December 4-5, 2003 * Kansas City, Missouri

The National Research Center on Learning Disabilities sponsored this two-day symposium focusing on responsiveness-to-intervention (RTI) issues. The speakers, discussants, and participants assembled represented the wide diversity of individuals with a vested interest in LD determination issues. Advocates, instructional staff, researchers, and state-level education officials brought their collective and considerable expertise to the discussions.

W. David Tilly III of Heartland Area Education Agency in Johnston, Iowa, presented this invited paper during the symposium. For links to other papers and materials, visit the main Symposium 2003 page.

How Many Tiers Are Needed for Successful Prevention and Early Intervention?
Heartland Area Education Agency's Evolution from Four to Three Tiers

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Phonemic Segmentation | Oral Reading

About the Speaker

Report Text

Figures & Tables

Results of a Three Tiered Model Implementation:
The Heartland Early Literacy Project (HELP)

Results: Nonsense Word Fluency (NWF) Raw Score Gains

In addition to the phonemic awareness gains, kindergarten students' fluency in reading phonetically regular nonsense words has improved (Figure 3). Growth in both nonsense word fluency and phonemic segmentation fluency is encouraging since the initial emphasis of professional development across all participating buildings was with Kindergarten and first-grade teachers.

Figure 3: Nonsense Word Fluency Raw Score Gains for Kindergarten Students.

Figure 3: Nonsense Word Fluency Raw Score Gains for Kindergarten Students

Note. This graphic was generated by the University of Oregon DIBELS website and modified

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The symposium was made possible by the support of the U.S. Department of Education Office of Special Education Programs. Renee Bradley, Project Officer. Opinions expressed herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the position of the U.S. Department of Education.