{"id":17646,"date":"2017-03-16T09:00:14","date_gmt":"2017-03-16T13:00:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/blog\/?p=17646"},"modified":"2017-04-04T13:21:22","modified_gmt":"2017-04-04T17:21:22","slug":"how-to-avoid-having-a-related-service-downgraded-to-rti","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/blog\/how-to-avoid-having-a-related-service-downgraded-to-rti\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Avoid Having a Related Service Downgraded to RTI"},"content":{"rendered":"<div style=\"padding-bottom:20px; padding-top:10px;\" class=\"hupso-share-buttons\"><!-- Hupso Share Buttons - https:\/\/www.hupso.com\/share\/ --><a class=\"hupso_pop\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hupso.com\/share\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/static.hupso.com\/share\/buttons\/gallery\/share-button-gray.png\" style=\"border:0px\" alt=\"Share\" \/><\/a><script type=\"text\/javascript\">var hupso_services=new Array(\"Twitter\",\"Facebook\",\"Google Plus\",\"Pinterest\",\"Linkedin\",\"StumbleUpon\",\"Digg\",\"Reddit\",\"Bebo\",\"Delicious\");var hupso_icon_type = \"labels\";var hupso_background=\"#FFFFFF\";var hupso_border=\"#FFFFFF\";var hupso_image_folder_url = \"\";var hupso_twitter_via=\"wrightslaw\";var hupso_url=\"\";var hupso_title=\"How%20to%20Avoid%20Having%20a%20Related%20Service%20Downgraded%20to%20RTI\";<\/script><script type=\"text\/javascript\" src=\"https:\/\/static.hupso.com\/share\/js\/share.js\"><\/script><!-- Hupso Share Buttons --><\/div><p>My district recently tried to wriggle out of its legal obligation to provide my child with his documented related service by moving him &#8220;up&#8221; to Response to Intervention (RTI).<\/p>\n<p>Here\u2019s how I was able to guard against this maneuver.<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright\" style=\"border: 1px solid #000000;\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/images\/bs\/woman.boy.study.jpg\" width=\"557\" height=\"374\" \/><\/p>\n<p><strong>RTI Basics<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>As a problem-solving approach, RTI has a lot going for it. The idea is to provide intense, short-term interventions to address a specific challenge or problem, such as addition fluency (math) or \u201ccalling out\u201d in class (behavior).<\/p>\n<p>Here are the basic steps of the process.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Begin by taking baseline data in the area(s) where the child needs help.<\/li>\n<li>Provide an intervention.<\/li>\n<li>Take more data and compare. Is the child making progress?<\/li>\n<li>Adjust the intervention as needed.<\/li>\n<li>Continue to monitor the effect of the intervention and make adjustments.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Sounds good!<\/p>\n<p>But as a framework to ensure that a child receives needed related services, it\u2019s hit or miss.<\/p>\n<p>The legal structure of RTI is more loosey-goosey than the IDEA or Section 504. As Perry Zirkel wrote in <em><a href=\"http:\/\/www.rtinetwork.org\/learn\/ld\/the-legal-dimension-of-rti-part-ii-state-laws-and-guidelines\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">The Legal Dimension of RTI: Part II. State Laws and Guidelines<\/span><\/a><\/em> (2012), RTI provisions, in \u201cthe vast majority of states, \u2026 do not have the full force of law.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>If a district is out of compliance in providing a related service, as described in the child&#8217;s IEP or 504 plan, the parent can use dispute resolution strategies to resolve the problem. These dispute resolution strategies include state complaints, civil rights complaints, and impartial special education due process hearings.<\/p>\n<p>But none of these options are available to the parent whose child receives the related service through RTI.<\/p>\n<p><strong>RTI v. Related Services<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Here is how the downgrade attempt played out at our recent 504 program review meeting.<\/p>\n<p>A service provider falsely claimed that she provided direct occupational therapy services to my child all year. She informed the committee that:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>the child did not respond positively to the services she (pretended to have) provided all year;<\/li>\n<li>the child does not have any academic or behavioral issues that need to be addressed;<\/li>\n<li>the child has attention issues so her services cannot address his needs;<\/li>\n<li>a recent normed evaluation showed a discrepancy between the child&#8217;s self-rating (normal), and the teacher\u2019s rating (which showed a \u201cprobable difference\u201d in one quadrant and a \u201cdefinite difference\u201d in a second quadrant)<\/li>\n<li>the solution to this discrepancy is to disregard the teacher\u2019s rating . . .<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>. . . therefore (according to the service provider), the child no longer needs this service.<\/p>\n<p><strong>BUT, the service provider said, she could still provide the service through RTI. She said <em>she would be able to provide the service more effectively through RTI than through the 504 plan<\/em>.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>I taped the meeting, so I\u2019m able to share her remarkable rationale. She stated:<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><em>The RTI process works better because what happens is, teachers are able to get to me very directly, and I can respond immediately. So it\u2019s a more responsive and immediate service. I can respond seven days a week if needed. So, it\u2019s driven by his functioning in the classroom. It\u2019s immediate.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Since I knew we would have <strong>no<\/strong> legal recourse under RTI if the services were not delivered going forward, I didn&#8217;t buy it. But I didn\u2019t think it would be productive to share my opinion openly.\u00a0 I needed some more veiled language.<\/p>\n<p><strong>OSEP Warns Schools About the Misuse of RTI<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>I was aware that the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) had published a &#8220;Dear Colleague Letter&#8221; to schools about the <span style=\"color: #000080;\"><a style=\"color: #000080;\" href=\"http:\/\/www2.ed.gov\/policy\/speced\/guid\/idea\/memosdcltrs\/osep11-07rtimemo.pdf\">misuse of RTI by school districts<\/a><\/span>.<\/p>\n<p>Here\u2019s <a href=\"http:\/\/www2.ed.gov\/policy\/speced\/guid\/idea\/memosdcltrs\/osep11-07rtimemo.pdf\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">what OSEP had to say<\/span><\/a> (the term &#8220;LEAs&#8221; means school districts):<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><em>It has come to the attention of OSEP that, in some instances, local educational agencies (LEAs) may be using Response to Intervention (RTI) strategies to delay or deny a timely initial evaluation for children suspected of having a disability \u2026. The use of RTI strategies cannot be used to delay or deny the provision of a full and individual evaluation.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>I had a hunch that alluding to this guidance would get the district&#8217;s attention.<\/p>\n<p>I asked these questions during the meeting when the provider pushed for the downgrade to RTI :<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Is it either\/or? \u00a0<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Is it a choice between RTI versus a related service provided in the context of a 504 plan?<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Flurried whispering ensued between the district\u2019s lawyer and the service provider.<\/p>\n<p>And then the provider turned a big smile on us and pronounced: \u201cWe can provide the service through RTI, but put a quarterly consult on the plan!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>And this I accepted gracefully, because after all, some documented services are better than no documented services.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>My district recently tried to wriggle out of its legal obligation to provide my child with his documented related service by moving him &#8220;up&#8221; to Response to Intervention (RTI). Here\u2019s <a class=\"more-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/blog\/how-to-avoid-having-a-related-service-downgraded-to-rti\/\">Continue Reading \u2192<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":21702,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5,352],"tags":[31,1420,225,62,1297],"class_list":["post-17646","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-idea-2004","category-response-to-intervention","tag-evaluations","tag-osep-letters","tag-related-services","tag-rti","tag-section-504"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17646","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/24"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=17646"}],"version-history":[{"count":13,"href":"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17646\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":20549,"href":"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17646\/revisions\/20549"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/21702"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17646"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17646"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=17646"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}