STRETCh Gifted RtI Model

Standardized achievement tests can be useful to establish learning levels and to identify strengths, however diagnostic information on specific skills will still be needed to plan appropriate curriculum.

Currently we are using the RTI process with our struggling students as well as our gifted students. With struggling students we move them in and out of tiers based upon their progress. The problem we are having is that when gifted students are not showing progress and we move them out of a special service and only provide differentiation within the classroom, their parents have an issue. Isn't the idea of RTI the flexibility of moving students from one tier to another based on their progress and need? How do we explain this to the parents?

A major shift with RTI is that there is less emphasis on the "label" and more on the provision of appropriate service. If we are indeed basing our decision on data, then parents should eventually welcome the fact that we know what their child needs and we are addressing these needs with appropriate services.