Progress Monitoring

Progress monitoring is a set of assessment procedures for determining the extent to which students are benefiting from classroom instruction and for monitoring effectiveness of curriculum. A fundamental assumption of education is that students will benefit from high-quality instruction. That is, typically, students will learn and achieve the skills and content taught in the classroom. For students who are not responsive to classroom instruction, alternative interventions can be provided and again the students' response to that instruction can be monitored. Progress monitoring is a valid and efficient tool for gauging the effectiveness of instruction, determining whether instructional modifications are necessary, and providing important information for eventual classification and placement decisions.

Information about progress monitoring is rapidly expanding. The National Center on Student Progress Monitoring, sponsored by the U.S. Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP), provides an array of free, web-based progress monitoring resource materials at www.studentprogress.org

Progress monitoring in an RTI setting: In an RTI model, progress monitoring serves various functions at each tier.

At Tier 1: Screening of all students is used to determine those who may be at risk. Students determine to be at risk may receive additional instruction in Teir 1. For those students, progress monitoring displays individual student growth over time, to determine whether the student is progressing as expected in the generally effective curriculum. Curriculum-based measurement, a method of progress monitoring, assesses the different skills covered in the annual curriculum in such a way that each weekly test is an alternate form. Scores earned at different times during the school year can be compared to determine whether a student's performance is increasing, decreasing, or staying the same. Results of Tier 1 progress monitoring inform decision making about classroom instruction at the class level (average performance of all students combined and their rate of growth help determine how to create curricular and instructional change so all students reach proficiency on a skill) and at the individual student level. Predetermined cut points identify students in need of more extensive and intensive intervention in Tier 2 and beyond.

At Tier 2 and beyond: The main purpose or progress monitoring is to determine whether the intervention is successful in helping the student learn at an appropriate rate. The following research-based recommendations are made to aid in timely decision making:

Assess student progress using CBM twice per week
Chart results and analyze student progress regularly
Use preset rules to determine when a student is not adequately responding to an intervention

In special education: Progress monitoring provides systematic, reliable, and multiple data points that can inform eligibility determination decisions and subsequent development of specially designed instruction. As part of an individualized education program, progress monitoring also provides information about student progress toward short-term objectives and annual goals.