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Session Title: Evaluation of Statewide Special Education Initiatives Current Practices and Future Policies?
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Panel Session 825 to be held in Centennial Section A on Saturday, Nov 8, 9:50 AM to 10:35 AM
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Sponsored by the Special Needs Populations TIG
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| Chair(s): |
| Joanne Farley,
University of Kentucky,
joanne.farley@uky.edu
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| Discussant(s):
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| Brent Garrett,
Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation,
bgarrett@pire.org
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| Abstract:
Special Education initiatives, like Response to Intervention (RTI), prescribe organized and deliberate changes at the individual as well as institutional level. In order for the evaluations of statewide system change initiatives to be influential and useful, it has to provide reflective and corrective feedback. Such feedback mechanism not only allows administrators to modify decisions but also help evaluators explain observed student intervention outcomes. However, there are many challenges and issues with regard to evaluation of statewide initiatives. The purpose of the panel is to start dialogue on the issues with regard to evaluation of such initiatives and have a discussion on effective evaluative practices. This panel includes a discussion about issues with regard to evaluation of RTI, especially monitoring progress of implementation. The panel will also present the evaluation of Vermont's Pilot Project on RTI including formative and summative evaluations, methodologies and preliminary findings.
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Evaluation of a Statewide Implementation of Response To Intervention
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| Chithra Perumal,
University of Kentucky,
vet077@yahoo.com
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'Implementation is defined as a specified set of activities designed to put into practice an activity or program of known dimensions (National Implementation Research Network).' Implementation fidelity refers to the extent an agency implements a program or practice as intended. Education programs such as Response To Intervention (RTI) prescribe changes not only in the classroom, but also at the administration and leadership levels. Understanding if certain critical activities have occurred and to the degree to which they have been implemented is crucial. This will allow evaluators to provide feedback but also be to explain the observed student outcomes. Ideally, the evaluations should be able to link implementation outcomes and intervention outcomes. This presentation discusses the challenges of evaluating RTI implementation statewide and will also discuss an evaluation approach of the TN State Improvement Grant evaluators to assess the impact of RTI.
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Vermont's Pilot Project on Responsiveness to Intervention (RtI)
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| Patricia Mueller,
Evergreen Educational Consulting,
eec@gmavt.net
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The Vermont Department of Education's work in four pilot schools began in 2006. During the spring 2008, an evaluation research team convened to assess the degree to which the VT RtI model has improved educational outcomes for all students.
This presentation will provide a preliminary review of evaluation findings. Evaluation questions focused on impact at the classroom level (e.g., change in practice, increase in student achievement), the systems level (e.g., change in referral rates to special education), and changes in roles and relationships (e.g., staff roles and responsibilities, influence on leadership). Summative questions included assessment of the factors that contributed to scaling up the RtI model and any unintended effects of model implementation. Methodology included interviews with teachers, administrators, paraeducators, parents and school board members. Classroom observations were also conducted to assess fidelity of implementation of the model and to triangulate the interview data with student outcome data.
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