Response to Intervention and the Pyramid Model

Abstract

Response to Intervention (RtI) is a systematic decision-making process that has gained widespread popularity as a problem-solving framework for organizing hierarchies of evidence-based interventions in the context of ongoing progress monitoring. Initially applied to literacy instruction, RtI is being incorporated into an expanding breadth of domains, including early intervention and the prevention of social-emotional delays and the occurrence of challenging behaviors. In this article, we describe RtI and its relationship to the “Pyramid Model” (L. Fox, G. Dunlap, M. L. Hemmeter, G. Joseph, & P. Strain, 2003) for promoting social, emotional, and behavioral development of young children. The 2 approaches have close parallels and are considered to be highly compatible. The discussion examines this congruence, identifies challenges in need of resolution, and emphasizes the exciting promise offered by the emergence and implementation of the 2 problem-solving and decision-making frameworks.