Why MTSS?
Decades of research have shown that tiered intervention systems are the most efficient and effective way to improve student performance in a variety of areas. Tiered interventions work because they are a systematic way to catch problems early, and quickly connect students to exactly what they need.
Whether you are concerned about reading, math, language, behavior, social skills, or anything at all, there are common factors that impact how well students will respond – MTSS gives you tools to improve all of them.
It’s a system.
If your school has solid MTSS in place, your teachers will be using quick and easy screening tools to find which students are at-risk for concerns, and not have to wait for them to fall behind their peers. Your teams will be able to quickly interpret the data to figure out what specific deficit is causing the student to struggle. Once identified, they will have easy access to tools that can be used to effectively intervene and get students back on track. Finally, they will know how to monitor student progress, and make adjustments if students don’t respond.
I like to think of MTSS as an organization system for your school’s resources. MTSS can be a small or large program because you can start with a single issue like reading and later add in other areas where students need help.
Sometimes it feels like we are digging through piles of messy jumbled data, not knowing what we are looking for or what to do when we find it. When a school has MTSS in place, team members don’t waste time figuring out what to do for each individual student—they have a plan ready to go before they even spot the problem.
The time you invest to organize your school’s resources can save hours of stress later on, and give teachers confidence that their efforts are really impacting student success.