RTI stands for Response to Intervention. I have had a lot of exposure to RTI in the last month. I first was asked to join my school’s I&RS (Intervention and Referral Services) team. Then, I read a chapter in my graduate course about RTI, as well as an article. I then took it upon myself to look further into RTI and see what other sources are saying about the matter. One of the issues of RTI is that there is not enough evidence to genuinely support whether it is effective or not. I do believe the RTI model needs to be altered to be more specific and also needs to be implemented in order to be effective.
I read the article “Special Education is Broken,” by Christina A. Samuels because the title caught my eye. I was pleased to see that the author continued to discuss the RTI model. I quickly realized that Samuels did not have a positive attitude towards the RTI model. This is consistent with the opinions of the authors from the other article from my graduate course. I am coming to the realization that RTI is an issue in the field of exceptionality. It needs to be revised and/or taken more seriously within schools.
Another issue that the article discusses is the amount of money spent on education. Samuels explains that the last check for national spending for special education occurred over 20 years ago. Costs for special education do not consider: the population growth of students with autism or impairments, the increase of inclusion classrooms, or interventions used outside of the formal structure of special education. I think that Samuels brings up good points, but I do not see where she is getting her evidence from. As I read the article, I wished to read more concrete statements.
Following is the link for the article: https://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2019/01/09/special-education-is-broken.html
Current Issues in the Field of Human Exceptionality 