Teacher Ratings of Intervention Acceptability in the Instructional Support Team Process
Open Access
- Author:
- Fleischer, Andrea H
- Graduate Program:
- School Psychology
- Degree:
- Doctor of Philosophy
- Document Type:
- Dissertation
- Date of Defense:
- October 04, 2004
- Committee Members:
- Joseph Leroy French, Committee Chair/Co-Chair
Robert Leslie Hale, Committee Member
John T Neisworth, Committee Member
James F Nolan Jr., Committee Member - Keywords:
- teacher ratings
intervention acceptability
IST
instructional support team
prerferral intervention
intervention acceptability - Abstract:
- Since the late 1970’s there has been significant growth in school-based pre referral intervention programs that now play a prominent role in many school systems across the country. Such programs are primarily regular education initiatives and are intended to assist students who are experiencing difficulty with school. Many team formats exist but most are characterized by interaction among professionals in the school who seek to develop effective intervention strategies in an effort to reduce the number of inappropriate special education referrals and help students remain in the least restrictive environment; one such approach is the Instructional Support Team (IST) which was the format used in the present investigation. IST was implemented in the Baltimore County, Maryland Public School System in 1998. The model in place parallels that developed for use in Pennsylvania in the early 1990s. The IST is intended to assist teachers in finding solutions to their challenges through classroom-based assessment and collaborative problem-solving to develop interventions. If IST is to be successful, teachers must be willing to accept the interventions. However, it is often not known how teachers view the interventions they are asked to implement. If teachers do not like the interventions, they are likely to implement them improperly or avoid them all together. The purposes of the present study were to examine teacher ratings of intervention acceptability for interventions generated and then implemented as part of the IST process, determine what variables may affect acceptability ratings, and finally determine the best model to predict teacher ratings of intervention acceptability. The participants in this investigation were regular education classroom teachers from kindergarten through fifth grade in Baltimore County, Maryland Schools that have been designated as IST schools. Teachers referred students for instructional support services via the established procedures at each school. IST meetings were held during which the presenting problem was reviewed, initial assessment data were presented, and interventions to address the problem were selected. Teachers were asked to implement interventions for a period of least 30 days. At or around the time of a review meeting held after the 30-day intervention period, teachers were asked to rate the intervention selected at the initial meeting using the Intervention Rating Profile-20 (IRP-20). Supplemental questions were asked to allow teachers to rate additional variables related to providing the intervention. Teachers rated the presenting problem for level of severity, skill, and the effectiveness of the intervention on six point scales. Teachers also indicated the level of support they received to carry out interventions, the amount of time spent implementing the intervention each day, completed a demographic survey, indicated years teaching, and completed a scale to rate the level of implementation of the IST process in their school. Ratings for academic and behavioral referrals were analyzed separately. There was not a significant difference in teacher acceptability ratings for academic referrals compared to behavior referrals. For academic referrals, statistically significant relationships were found between the variable effectiveness, support, and level of implementation with the IST process and intervention acceptability. For behavior referrals, statistically significant relationships were found between the variables effectiveness and support and intervention acceptability. Multiple regression analysis was used to compare a series of increasingly complex prediction models with compact models to identify the model that was most parsimonious. For both academic and behavior referrals, the best model to predict intervention acceptability included the variables effectiveness of the intervention, support, and skill. Relationships between other variables and ratings of acceptability were less salient. Given the current emphasis on pre referral services through the provisions of the No Child Left Behind legislation and the reauthorization of IDEA, it is important for schools to have effective and efficient models with which to service children who experience difficulty. If school-based teams are to be successful in addressing these needs, they must use effective models that are implemented correctly and provide interventions that teachers find acceptable and that are used with fidelity. Data from ecologically valid studies can guide schools in selecting and developing effective models and can identify variables that are related to high ratings of acceptability on the part of personnel who must implement them.