Progress Monitoring

Lisa Yount, PS/RtI Project | March 26, 2026

A collaborative project between the Florida Department of Education and the University of South Florida

Problem Solving & Response to Intervention Project

Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS)

Tier 1

Tier 2

Tier 3

A collaborative project between the Florida Department of Education and the University of South Florida

Problem Solving & Response to Intervention Project

Session Outcomes

By the end of this session, you will be able to:

1. Explain the purpose of progress monitoring
2. Distinguish progress monitoring from formative assessments
3. Describe progress monitoring across the tiers
4. Identify key characteristics of progress monitoring assessments
5. Use progress monitoring to guide decisions

A collaborative project between the Florida Department of Education and the University of South Florida

Problem Solving & Response to Intervention Project

A collaborative project between the Florida Department of Education and the University of South Florida

Problem Solving & Response to Intervention Project

A collaborative project between the Florida Department of Education and the University of South Florida

Problem Solving & Response to Intervention Project

Formative Data

• Real-time feedback to inform day-to-day instruction
• Collect anytime
• Curriculum-embedded or teacher-created measures
• Inform teaching/reteaching, grouping, and supports within core instruction

A collaborative project between the Florida Department of Education and the University of South Florida

Problem Solving & Response to Intervention Project

Progress Monitoring Data

• To evaluate response to intervention
• Collected at regular intervals
• Uses standardized, equivalent measures that allow for valid comparison over time
• Supports data-based decisions about intervention effectiveness and tier movement

A collaborative project between the Florida Department of Education and the University of South Florida

Problem Solving & Response to Intervention Project

Why Monitor Progress?

• Know if intervention is effective
• Observe rate over time
• Make tier decisions
• Maintain or adjust: intensify, fade, redesign, etc.
• Improve system effectiveness

A collaborative project between the Florida Department of Education and the University of South Florida

Problem Solving & Response to Intervention Project

Tier 1 Progress Monitoring

• Universal screening assessment
• Are most students on-track to meet end-of-year expectations? Who’s not?
• Consider adjustments to core instruction, identify who may need added support
• Review patterns by class/grade/subgroup to detect core-strength gaps

A collaborative project between the Florida Department of Education and the University of South Florida

Problem Solving & Response to Intervention Project

Tier 2 Progress Monitoring

• Assessments match skills being taught
• Is the intervention closing the gap at the rate needed? What are next steps?
• Monitors response to small group, Tier 2 intervention
• Consider group response first before looking at individual student

A collaborative project between the Florida Department of Education and the University of South Florida

Problem Solving & Response to Intervention Project

Tier 3 Progress Monitoring

• Assessments match skills being taught
• Is the intervention closing the gap at the rate needed? What are next steps?
• Monitors response to individualized, intense intervention
• More frequent progress monitoring with more frequent decision making

A collaborative project between the Florida Department of Education and the University of South Florida

Problem Solving & Response to Intervention Project

Characteristics of Strong Progress Monitoring Measures

• Equivalent forms
• Sensitive to small changes
• Growth expectations (ROI)
• Supports reliable decision making

A collaborative project between the Florida Department of Education and the University of South Florida

Problem Solving & Response to Intervention Project

Frequency of Data Collection

Frequency increases with intensity

• Tier 1 – 3 times/year
• Tier 2 – more frequent than Tier 1
• Tier 3 – more frequent than Tier 2
• Matched to student need/skill, intensity, and it has to make sense
• Data collection only matters if it leads to data review and decision making

A collaborative project between the Florida Department of Education and the University of South Florida

Problem Solving & Response to Intervention Project

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Waiting too long, or not long enough, to make decisions
• Using a measure that doesn’t match the target skill/behavior
• Not considering intervention fidelity when RtI is less than expected

A collaborative project between the Florida Department of Education and the University of South Florida

Problem Solving & Response to Intervention Project

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Confusing formative data with progress monitoring
• Collecting data without decision rules
• Skipping group response and going straight to individual student data

A collaborative project between the Florida Department of Education and the University of South Florida

Problem Solving & Response to Intervention Project

Mistake: Confusing formative with progress monitoring data

A collaborative project between the Florida Department of Education and the University of South Florida

Problem Solving & Response to Intervention Project

Mistake: Collecting data without decision rules

A collaborative project between the Florida Department of Education and the University of South Florida

Problem Solving & Response to Intervention Project

Mistake: Collecting data without decision rules

A collaborative project between the Florida Department of Education and the University of South Florida

Problem Solving & Response to Intervention Project

Mistake: Skipping group response and going straight to individual student data

A collaborative project between the Florida Department of Education and the University of South Florida

Problem Solving & Response to Intervention Project

Mistake: Skipping group response and going straight to individual student data

A collaborative project between the Florida Department of Education and the University of South Florida

Problem Solving & Response to Intervention Project

Mistake: Skipping group response and going straight to individual student data

A collaborative project between the Florida Department of Education and the University of South Florida

Problem Solving & Response to Intervention Project

Reflection

• What are the strengths of your current progress monitoring practices?

• What’s the biggest barrier to using progress monitoring data effectively?

• What’s one small change we could make now that would strengthen your progress monitoring-to-decision cycle?

A collaborative project between the Florida Department of Education and the University of South Florida

Problem Solving & Response to Intervention Project

Reading

• Targets: decoding, fluency, comprehension, etc.
• PM examples: CBM, DIBELS skill-aligned probes (e.g., ORF/accuracy checks, comprehension indicators (Maze)

Apply Across Content Areas

Behavior

• Targets: replacement behavior, engagement, on-task, etc.
• PM examples: Direct Behavior Rating, counts (frequency, duration, latency), point card trend

​

Math

• Targets: computation fluency, number sense, problem-solving routines
• PM examples: CBM, brief probes aligned to focus skill; error pattern review over time

A collaborative project between the Florida Department of Education and the University of South Florida

Problem Solving & Response to Intervention Project

Thank you, and please connect with us!

A collaborative project between the Florida Department of Education and the University of South Florida

Problem Solving & Response to Intervention Project

flpsrti

floridapsrti

Florida PS/RtI Project

floridarti.usf.edu

rti@usf.edu

@flpsrti #flpsrti