Don't Tell Parents About (RTI) Co-Create and Collaborate With Them
When a student has been identified to benefit from the RTI framework potentially, it is essential to establish contact with the child’s parents. The RTI process can benefit greatly from parental support. Parents are the number one influencer of their children. So, if you want a partner that will support a collaborative vision then working with families are the key to a student’s success. Inversely, parental resistance can prevent a child from succeeding through the RTI framework and may result in them falling behind.
Informing Parents Sooner Rather Than Later
RTI or MTSS on State Websites as of February 2019
Schools can further accelerate the student’s proficiencies in the subjects they are falling behind in through additional support by parents. Informing parents of what steps they can take to help their child’s learning at home is crucial to their growth. The Pritchard Committee works very hard at equipping parents to understand educational spaces in their full complexity. When parents understand school systems, policies, and procedures they are more likely to positively support their schools. In the case of (RTI), parents should know in the beginning how teachers are supporting their children. The harm is when parents are out-of-the-loop and teacher supports have been put in place without the consent of parents. When sharing ideas with parents ensure you are positively framing the student’s ability to acquire these proficiencies and make sure its a collaborative discussion. Maintaining an open conversation with parents about a student’s current learning and the next steps to take gives the student the best possible chances of succeeding.
RtI2’s data gathering through universal screening, data-driven decision making, problem-solving teams, and are focused on the Common Core State Standards
Successful Communication
In contacting parents, it is vital to maintain a respectful and positive tone. They should be informed of their child’s successes and highlight their strengths as well as their struggles in a particular subject such as reading, writing, or math. Personal meetings are great ways to inform parents about the schools’ Response to Intervention support system cycle. Keep parents informed of their child’s success, progress, and short-falls throughout the six-week cycle. By framing this with a positive future outlook, we can mitigate resistance from parents.
Overcoming Resistance
While parents want the best for their children so do teachers. This is why it is imperative that parents are consulted often and a collaborative plan is created. Parents can reinforce ideas and solutions at home and therefore less likely to be resistant. Once again, it is crucial to ensure we can convey our message as well as possible, maintaining a positive outlook for the future of the student sends a message to their parent that you care. Through this, we can move past this resistance and develop an open conversation with the parents to be able to advance the student’s knowledge cooperatively.
References:
https://www.understood.org/~/media/acc8e8c166c7432582494ece864cb16c.pdf
https://www.prichardcommittee.org/
https://www.cde.ca.gov/ci/cr/ri/mtsscomprti2.asp
https://rti4success.org/blog/mtss-new-rti-depends-where-you-live