Abstract
Supporting students in education to ensure they learn is one of the most important aspects of the school environment. Classroom teachers may implement a variety of strategies; however, some seek additional support through the Student Success Team. Referrals for special education assessment may be requested during these meetings. The decision to assess is usually based on the teacher’s documentation, where data or interventions may or may not have been provided. The number of students referred and entering into special education has consistently increased over the past several decades. Traditional methods of eligibility determination are based on determining a discrepancy between cognitive abilities and academic achievement. Researchers have scrutinized these methods as invalid and inaccurate; not distinguishing between children with biologically based or environmentally based deficits. Federal law allows for the use of response to instruction and intervention (RtI²) model when considering if a child has a learning disability. RtI² models and other prereferral processes show promise in distinguishing between students who may have a learning disability and those who struggle due to inadequate instruction. This project redeveloped the existing prereferral process at one school site by addressing two key areas. First, the documentation forms and data gathering tools for the Student Success Team (SST) were created to address the need for specific assessment and intervention data. Second, the ‘Tool Kit for Student Success’ created a fluid document which houses support materials from staff development and workshops designed to support students with varying needs. Staff development was provided to orient the staff to the redeveloped process and the use of the ‘Tool Kit’. Results showed a great increase in specific documented data provided by staff at SST meetings.