Tier 3 Interventions in MTSS (Multi-Tiered System of Supports)

A well-structured three-tiered system is essential for supporting all students, not just those who struggle. The MTSS framework ensures that every student has the opportunity to achieve academic, social, and emotional success, along with college and career readiness. What supports do you offer for students who need intensive help to reach these goals? Let’s explore the crucial role of Tier 3 interventions within MTSS.

How the MTSS Intervention Process Works

Before we address Tier 3 Interventions, let's do a quick review of the MTSS intervention process. MTSS is a responsive data-based system structured to support all students and to identify students who need additional support academically, socially, emotionally, or with attendance. Data-based instruction and interventions are provided, reviewed, and modified based on student progress monitoring and response to intervention.

Reviewing MTSS: Tier 1, Tier 2, and Tier 3

• Tier 1 Universal Support: All students receive research-based differentiated core instruction in the classroom. Instruction is implemented with fidelity, emphasizing grade-level standards and school-wide behavioral expectations. A solid Tier 1 core instruction practice is typically sufficient to meet the needs of 80% of students. This means that 80% or more of the students meet or exceed grade-level expectations as measured by a standardized summative assessment without needing additional layers of support.
• Tier 2 Strategic Support: Students identified through universal screening as lacking specific academic skills or as at-risk behaviorally are provided additional research-based interventions in addition to core instruction. It is typical for 10-15% of students to need targeted skill development to become proficient.
• Tier 3 Intensive Support: Students who have not demonstrated progress with targeted group interventions at Tier 2 require more intensive interventions. Tier 3 interventions are individualized and occur with smaller student-teacher ratios, and may involve wrap-around support for behavioral or attendance needs. It is typical for 3-5% of students to require this level of intensive support. 
  

What Are MTSS Interventions?

In MTSS/RTI, interventions are targeted instructional programs, activities, lessons, strategies, or tools used to improve a specific skill.

Intervention plans always need to include the actual intervention that will be used to help students reach their goals.

Identifying Students for an MTSS Intervention

Universal screening is the process of assessing all students to identify students in need of more individualized support (Hughes & Dexter, 2008).  Academic and behavioral screening data help determine:

• If core instruction is effective
• Which specific students or groups of students need additional support
  

Universal screening generates objective information for parents and educators to proactively determine students whose needs are not being adequately addressed and increase efficiency of resource allocation.

📘 Read more in this article: 5 MTSS Screening and Tiering Strategies That Close the Gaps

Selecting and Implementing an MTSS Intervention

Teachers spend a lot of time and effort discussing student needs, creating plans, providing differentiated support, and documenting the work; however, without the right intervention plan, the work becomes a documentation process instead of the intended problem-solving practice.

The key components of successful intervention plans are:

• What skill was targeted?
• What specifically was done?
• By whom?
• How frequently?
• For how long? 

Branching Minds provides technology tools and professional services that help you meet the needs of all students, including those with Tier 3 intervention plans. 

Create and monitor high-quality Tier 3 plans using the Branching Minds Intervention Library.

📕 Check out our Guide to Finding Evidence-Based MTSS Interventions 

What Are Tier 3 Interventions?

Tier 3 support provides individualized, intensive interventions for students with significant academic or behavioral challenges. These interventions are tailored to the student’s needs and involve multiple stakeholders – teachers, families, support staff, and even wrap-around service providers from the community.  

What Do Tier 3 Interventions Include?

Tier 3 interventions extend beyond the classroom, offering strategies to improve outcomes during core instruction, and often include support for families at home. These plans may involve:

• Individualized problem-solving by a multidisciplinary team. Teams typically meet every 6 weeks.
• 120-135 minutes per week of direct support, depending on the student’s specific needs
• Frequent progress monitoring, at least weekly.
• Wraparound services for additional family support, such as transportation needs, health or counseling services. 

Example Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS)/ Response to Intervention (RTI) model for elementary schools 

Example summary of a Response to Intervention (RTI)/ Multi Tiered System of Supports (MTSS) model for secondary schools

Tier 3 Intervention Examples

Students with intensive academic or behavioral challenges who have not responded to Tier 1 and Tier 2 supported interventions are reviewed by the MTSS Team. The team then customizes a plan to the student's unique needs. The intervention plan includes the input of various stakeholders and requires implementation of the intervention with fidelity across many different settings. Additionally, the MTSS Team at Tier 3 can make use of specialized problem-solving tools.

Tier 3 Academic Intervention Examples

📗Learn more with this Guide for Tier 3 Behavior Intervention

Utilizing Tier 3 Interventions in MTSS: Guiding Decision Making at Tier 3

Decision Making at Tier 3 is more intensive and individualized than it is at other levels. In the sections that follow, considerations during each step of a Tier 3 self-questioning process are discussed.

Step 1: Who Is Experiencing a Problem and What Specifically Is the Problem?

Tier 3 services are designed to address the needs of students who are experiencing significant problems and/or are unresponsive to Tier 1 and Tier 2 efforts. Schools should establish norms for determining how students enter into Tier 1, 2, or 3 levels of support..Iit is important to clearly describe what the problem is in objective, observable terms so that all stakeholders involved know they are talking about the same issue.

Step 2: What Intervention Strategies Can Be Used To Reduce the Magnitude or Severity of the Problem?

There are many available intervention strategies from which one could choose. For example, several websites provide teacher-friendly intervention resources (e.g., Intervention Central,  Free Reading, What Works Cleaning House).

To assist in the development and selection of an intervention for a specific problem, it may be important to conduct an analysis of the problem’s context and function. 

The intervention plan should specify timelines for implementing objectives and for achieving desired goals. The end goal of this stage is a clearly delineated intervention plan. (For examples of evidence-based intervention strategies, see the What Works Clearinghouse a resource developed by the Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education.)

Step 3: Did the Student’s Problem Get Resolved as a Result of the Intervention?

The best way to determine whether a student is making progress toward the desired goals in MTSS is to collect ongoing progress monitoring data along with information about the implementation fidelity of the intervention plan itself. The intervention process does not end until the problem is resolved. So, continuous progress monitoring and evaluation are essential parts of an effective MTSS process.

📗 Resource: The Ultimate MTSS Progress Monitoring Guide and Toolkit 

FAQs on Tier 3 Interventions

What Is the Difference Between Tier 2 and Tier 3 Interventions?

Tier 2 support involves small groups of students with specific skill deficits who work with a teacher or interventionist to target that skill using an evidence-based instructional practice or program. Tier 2 instructional methods are similar to those used for the Tier 1 core instruction.

Tier 3 intervention is more intensive and typically requires additional staff members . Group size is smaller, with 1-3 students, and progress monitoring is more frequent. 

What Is the Purpose of Progress Monitoring in Tier 3?

At the intensive Tier 3 level, progress monitoring must be frequent and specific enough to determine if the student is making sufficient progress toward the goal. If not, the support team will be responsive and adjust or change the intervention to ensure progress. 

Is Tier 3 Intervention for Special Education?

Tier 3 interventions are available to all students who need them, regardless of special education status. However, when a student is not responsive to Tier 3 interventions, the support team may suspect a disability and request evaluation for special education services. Students with a special education plan (Individualized Education Plan or IEP) receive mandated, specially designed instruction overseen by special education staff.  

Why It Matters: Identifying, Supporting, and Progress Monitoring Students in Need of Tier 3 Interventions

Tier 3 supports impacts the smallest population, but it is the population with the greatest needs. Students with intensive academic, behavioral, social, and attendance challenges deserve equitable support implemented with fidelity.