Response-to-Intervention: Separating the Rhetoric of Self-Congratulation from the Reality of Specific Learning Disability Identification

Abstract

The policies underlying the specific learning disability (SLD) regulations in the 2004 reauthorization of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) are analyzed. The analysis focuses on the Response-to-Intervention (RTI) provision (“if the child responds to scientific, research-based intervention”) as a diagnostic model, revealing that it is conceptually flawed, practically inadequate, and politically rather than scientifically motivated. It is argued that RTI is best described as a model for providing remedial reading (prereferral) services for students experiencing early reading failure. To achieve a reliable and valid diagnosis of SLD under IDEA, it is argued that a comprehensive psychometric assessment is required. With a model that combines RTI and cognitive assessments, it is possible to provide an identification process that closely aligns with the best current conceptualizations of SLD.