Early Intervention

In my professional career I have seen so many intervention programs and services come and go, unfortunately.  Teaching in an urban area where research shows low socioeconomic status has a direct effect on reading scores you are often given services.  In the first lines of our text it discussed Reading First which in Cleveland Public Schools was grant funded program for the improvement of reading instruction.  The grant money has since run out and the program no longer exists in our schools.  Our district because of the early intervention model used to staff grade K-3 at 20 students to one teacher.  The thought process was that our students were entering already behind that with less students a teacher could be more effective, that too because of new contract language and funding has gone away as well.   When I started my teaching career the Head Start program was federally funded preschool programs for low socioeconomic students.  That program too has been cut and changed in a number of ways.  The social and emotional needs of my former students often out weighted their academic needs or where part of what was keeping growth at bay.  Counseling programs, social service programs, even guidance counselors have been removed from the schools based on budget restraints.  When I think of which programs are beneficial it leads me to remember all that were and for a number of reasons, funding being one, no longer exist in the capacity they once may have.  This issue to me is a bigger problem!

I have worked in Cleveland where the RTI triangle is actually turned upside down because of the amount of students they have below grade level in reading and math.  Moving to TN I work at a school that is just beginning RTI and they thought they too would have a triangle that was turned upside down.  Having experience in the filed of urban education for 14 years, I knew better.  Once the universal screen was done they saw as most do a triangle that looked just like the average.  The majority of their students are where they need to be.  Having worked in such different areas I was surprised to find the same problems.  The first step of RTI is solid core instruction and I think here is where we need to look deep.  RTI will only be successful when it is implemented the right way.  I am not sure that we are there yet.

What is best for children should not be determined by how much it costs.  I think that many programs that have been beneficial to families and students have changed or disappeared because of money and not because they had no real use.  Utilizing these types of programs can make all the difference in the world for a student and that needs to be the focus not on if they cost too much.