August 30, 2024
A multi-tiered system of supports (MTSS) helps schools ensure that all students receive the help and opportunities they need to succeed. This Spotlight highlights resources designed to help schools and districts understand MTSS and to use them to address issues such as chronic absenteeism and student health and well-being.
Understanding Multi-Tiered Systems of Supports
In this blog post, WestEd experts Kimberly Salomonson, Tori Ballew, Beth Clavenna-Deane, and Paula Hough clarify the following five common misconceptions about Multi-Tiered Systems of Supports and offer resources to inform discussions and decision-making:
- Myth 1: Academic interventions are critical, but MTSS doesn’t support students in other areas.
- Myth 2: MTSS is simply another term for special education.
- Myth 3: MTSS takes away from high-quality core instruction.
- Myth 4: The prescribed MTSS interventions might not work.
- Myth 5: MTSS can be implemented at the site level without district support.
Audiocast: Improving Student Wellness With a Multi-Tiered System of Support
The Santa Clara County Office of Education (SCCOE) recently developed a model to formalize school-based health offerings throughout the 32 local education agencies (LEAs), public charter schools, and early care and education programs it supports countywide.
Based on an MTSS, the SCCOE wellness center model addresses the root causes of mental, physical, and social health issues within the community through a range of preventative, group, and individual services.
Featured speakers:
- Dr. Mary Dewan, County Superintendent of Schools
- Amanda Dickey, Director, Government Relations
- Dr. Chaun Powell, Director, Youth Health & Wellness Professional Learning & Instructional Support Division
A Multi-Tiered Approach to Reducing Chronic Absence in Elementary School
Chronic absence can have lasting negative effects on student achievement, beginning as early as kindergarten. This collection from REL West shows how schools and districts can use data to design and carry out strategies to reduce chronic absence—from building community awareness to providing intensive one-on-one support for students and families.
View the Attendance Matters video collection to
- learn about how a superhero-themed public outreach campaign is supporting a comprehensive approach to good attendance;
- hear about how schools and school-based health centers are working together to do “whatever it takes” to keep kids in school; and
- watch students and teachers demonstrate “Operation Healthy Hands,” a program designed to reduce common childhood illnesses in the early grades.
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