EVOLUTION,NOT REVOLUTION: SCHOOL PSYCHOLOGISTS’ CHANGING PRACTICES IN DETERMINING SPECIFIC LEARNING DISABILITIES

The profession of school psychology has been impacted by the response to intervention (RTI) model in various ways. RTI data are being used to make decisions regarding academic and behavioral interventions and to make eligibility determinations in comprehensive evaluations conducted by multidisciplinary teams. A survey of almost 400 school psychologist practitioners reveals a changing landscape in terms of school psychologists’ methods of determining eligibility for specific learning disabilities (SLD) in RTI site and non‐RTI site schools. The survey also brings to light differences between numbers of initial evaluations and levels of challenge and job satisfaction. Implications of these changes and future directions for research are discussed.