The effects of response to intervention implementation on special education referral and identification rates

Special education referral and identification rates have risen dramatically over the last thirty years. In fact, several studies report an increase of nearly 200% (Cortiella, 2008; Vaughn, Linan-Thompson, & Hickman, 2003).;During the last several years a new model of identifying students with learning difficulties has received much attention. This model is the Response to Intervention (RtI) model. The RtI model identifies students with learning difficulties early on instead of waiting for a discrepancy between potential and achievement, as is the case with the discrepancy model for identification (Fuchs & Fuchs, 2005). There is much research on how an RtI model succeeds in targeting students with learning problems, but there have been few studies on how this model directly impacts special education referral and identification rates (Fletcher, Coulter, Reschly & Vaughn, 2004). In particular, the relationship between RtI implementation and the identification rates of students with specific learning disabilities (SLD) has been largely unexplored.;Toward that end, this study explored the effects of RtI implementation on overall special education and referral rates, and specifically examined the relationship between RtI implementation and SLD identification. In addition, it carefully examined the relationship between RtI implementation and identification rates of emotional disturbance (ED), and other health impairment (OHI). The study examined the archived data of special education referral and identification rates from one rural school district in South Central Pennsylvania. The years that examined were the 2001-2002 school year through the 2007-2008 school year. These years were chosen to provide adequate comparison data between when the district did not implement an RtI model (the years 2001-2002 through 2003-2004) to when it did implement an RtI model (2004-2005 through 2007-2008). In addition, to examine the integrity of the RtI model, the studied district completed a questionnaire. The study used a mixed-methods, post-hoc time series design to examine a possible relationship between RtI implementation and special education referral and identification rates.;The results of this study revealed an increase in overall special education referral and identification rates when comparing pre-RtI implementation years to post-RtI implementation years. This increase did not prove to be statistically significant. There was a statistically significant decrease in the identification rates of SLD when comparing pre-RtI implementation years to post-RtI implementation years. In addition, there was a slight decrease in the identification rates of OHI and ED when comparing pre-RtI implementation years to post-RtI implementation years. This decrease was not statistically significant.;The analysis of the qualitative data suggested that the integrity of RtI implementation could have an impact on special education referral and identification rates. However, there was not enough data to suggest that a lack of integrity of RtI implementation caused the increase in special education referral and identification rates.