Academic progress can be impeded by many factors including, but not limited to, socio-emotional issues, circumstances in the home environment, and medical conditions. Additionally, slipping grades may indicate a student's weakness in one discipline or skill area, such as reading or math, which begins to manifest itself in all subjects. Without appropriate identification and intervention, many of these students fall through the cracks to end up as dropout statistics.
In the last decade, RTI (Response to Intervention) has become a preferred method of academic intervention in the United States to provide early, effective assistance to children having difficulty learning. RTI seeks to prevent academic failure through early intervention, frequent and specific progress measurements, and increasingly intensive (tiered) research-based instructional intervention for students who continue to have difficulty. Put simply, RTI helps all children learn and succeed in the classroom by adjusting instruction to accommodate each child's learning needs.
Critical components of the current RTI model are quality, research-based instructional practices and consistent evaluation of academic progress for all children. ODYSSEYWARE supports RTI and other intervention efforts in the following ways:
- Differentiated instruction through course customization and authoring tools.
- High academic standards with courses correlated to state guidelines.
- Measurable results through formative and cumulative assessments.
- Data-driven decision making through automatic grading and reporting.
- Student-centered, on-level learning through regulated pacing.
ODYSSEYWARE has proven to be a viable academic solution for students with special circumstances around the world. Students like Christina Perez from Canterbury High School in Montgomery, Alabama, whose mother, Andrea, became a believer in ODYSSEYWARE when she experienced her daughter's success.
She wasn't one that liked to go to school. She loves to go to school now. Her reading has improved tremendously. She was at a third grade reading level when she got here, and she is at a ninth grade level within six or seven months. That's a miracle. And her math is through the roof.
Data management and reporting tools help teachers identify students like Christina, who are in need of intervention to ensure their academic success. ODYSSEYWARE also works in conjunction with RTI efforts of teachers and administrators to help students advance by providing data to aid decision making and facilitate monitoring student progress.
Assessment tools and the learning loop incorporated into the curriculum help teachers and administrators support students in need of intervention for academic or behavioral reasons. Once these students are identified, our curriculum simplifies adherence to the standards set forth in 2004 by The Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEIA) — clear standards, useful measurement, and sound instructional practices that support the enhancement of performance for all students including those with disabilities through a common system in which teachers and specialists can work together.
