Date Approved

5-4-2017

Embargo Period

5-8-2017

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

MA Learning Disabilities

Department

Interdisciplinary and Inclusive Education

College

College of Education

Advisor

Kuder, S. Jay

Committee Member 1

Paparo, Nanci

Keywords

Intervention and Referral Services, Pre-referral Interventions

Subject(s)

Learning disabled children--Identification

Disciplines

Special Education and Teaching

Abstract

New Jersey schools are mandated to establish and implement a coordinated system to serve the general education population in order to improve student achievement. This system, known as I&RS (Intervention and Referral Services), is designed to implement pre-referral interventions for at-risk students through a collaborative problem-solving process, which takes place between school administration and staff. A pre-referral intervention web page, containing an overview of the I&RS process, as well as various forms and resources, was created and linked to a school's website for convenience and easy access. Thirty-two teachers at an urban school district in a low socioeconomic community in Camden, NJ were introduced to the I&RS web page and surveyed about their perceptions of the I&RS process.

The data from this study illustrated that the teachers who participated in this survey reported an increase in their understanding of the I&RS process. The data also reflected that teachers view the I&RS process as an effective means of addressing the needs of their struggling students. Additionally, the teachers reported that they would like to receive additional training on the I&RS process. Finally, teacher feedback emphasized the need for direct instruction pertaining to the I&RS process and continued collaboration between I&RS team members in order to create effective intervention plans for general education students who may be at-risk for failure.

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