Misconception #1: MTSS and the Student Support Team (SST) Process are all the same thing.
Truth: A multi-tiered system of supports (MTSS) is not a process but the overarching framework that encompasses supports for the whole child, including academics, social, emotional, behavioral and attendance needs. One element of MTSS is the Student Support Team (SST), a group of educators who partner with families/caregivers through a data-based problem solving process to plan and monitor interventions for individual students at the intensive level. Schools often call this the “SST Process.”
Misconception #2: MTSS is the path to special education.
Truth: MTSS is a preventative framework. Schools strive to design learning experiences and environments to meet all students’ needs, use data to predict when a challenge might occur, and intervene before a student is struggling or the moment a concern arises. The goal of providing interventions is not to find students eligible for special education services but to increase student success by matching interventions to student needs. Interventions should be provided at the first sign of need and should be provided at increasing intensity regardless of potential future eligibility considerations.
Misconception #3: Specific criteria must be met (e.g., teachers must try two different interventions/provide intervention for 8 weeks/have 12 data points) before a student can be considered for a special education evaluation.
Truth: The amount of time in intervention can vary greatly depending on what the skills are, how great the need, and the age/grade level of the student. It may be weeks or years! Teams make sure the intervention is evidence-based and is taught as planned. Progress monitoring data is tracked to measure how the student is growing. Teams set short-term goals that are reviewed at the end of a cycle to make sure the student is getting closer to where they need to be. An intervention is continued with a new short-term goal if it’s working and changed when it’s not. Intervention cycles should be flexible, not linear.
Misconception #4: MTSS is a way to avoid Special Education.
Truth: The Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) clearly states “neither an MTSS framework nor participation in a process based on the child’s response to intervention replaces the right of a child with a disability to be identified as such and to receive special education services (OSEP, 2011). If a Student Support Team or student’s family suspect a disability, MTSS cannot be a reason to delay a special education referral. The Student Support Team will meet to make sure the student has had quality instruction and an evidence-based, culturally and linguistically appropriate intervention that matches the specific need of the student. These decisions must be based in data. For emerging bilingual students, language development data must be part of the decision-making process.
Misconception #5: MTSS is a program for students who struggle.
Truth: MTSS is for everyone! It’s a district and schoolwide system designed to prevent students from struggling and to make sure each students meets their full potential. A student cannot be “in MTSS” because it’s not a program – it’s a framework for schools. Our MTSS systems help us notice kids who might need help with schoolwork, with behavior or mental health. We notice when attendance changes and offer support before it becomes a bigger concern. We notice when our gifted learners are not thriving and intervene. If we can predict it, we can prevent it!
Sources:
Response to Intervention within Colorado Multi-Tiered System of Supports, Colorado Department of Education, 2022.
Specific Learning Disabilities Guidelines, Colorado Department of Education, 2023.
“MTSS Myths and Truths for Educators.” Florida's Problem Solving/Response to Intervention Project, 2023.
“Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS) Myth Busters”, The University of Texas System/Texas Education Agency, 2021.