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This chapter provides an overview of the current state of reading performance for adolescents. First, a review of empirical findings investigating different theoretical models is provided. Second, a summary of research regarding intensive reading interventions for adolescents that provide 80 or more instructional sessions is described. Finally, we summarize findings from both longitudinal studies of middle-school students with reading difficulties and reading and behavior interventions to address comorbidity of reading difficulties with challenging behavior.

Tiered systems may hold particular benefit for students with intensive intervention needs, as this continuum of supports is ideally comprised of evidence-based practices. In this chapter, we explore three intensive interventions: functional assessment-based interventions (FABI), First Step to Success, and Read 180 as they feature a range of practices and programs to meet students' academic, behavioral, and social needs. We define and describe each intervention, including information on essential features necessary for drawing valid inferences: treatment integrity, social validity, as well as student performance. We also provide examples of supporting evidence, featuring treatment-outcome studies documenting intervention effectiveness. We close with clarifications and considerations for meeting the multiple needs of students requiring intensive intervention efforts.

In this chapter, we describe the policy and practical decisions one school district and school had to make to implement a progress monitoring and Response to Intervention (RtI) model in an historically low-achieving school with a substantial population of students at risk tfor academic failure – characteristics that are common to many public schools across the nation. We contrast the lofty goals and theoretical orientations of RtI described in a burgeoning literature in special and general education with the “real life” burdens of capacity, resources, time, and school culture in a struggling school.

The primary purpose of this chapter is to describe intensive multicomponent reading interventions for use in Response to Intervention (RTI) implementation within elementary and middle schools. In early elementary grades, RTI has a focus on prevention through effective classroom instruction and increasingly powerful early interventions to meet student needs. By contrast, in middle school, the focus of RTI shifts to remediation and the provision of interventions with the power to help more students to be able to read on grade level. First, we provide an overview of RTI and explain the notion of treatment validity within RTI implementation. Next, we describe a kindergarten study that illustrates how the intensity of delivery may impact expected outcomes at Tier 2 and then summarize research on extensive interventions for the primary grades. Then we summarize remedial interventions for older students and examine the percent of older students whose reading could be normalized by focusing on a newly developed intensive middle school remedial intervention that incorporates code- and meaning-focused instruction in a peer-mediated format. Finally, we will discuss RTI challenges and implementation issues.

Alternative Education Placements (AEPs) are unique and complex settings that serve students with varieties of needs and strengths, though in practice such settings may be used most frequently to serve students with serious challenging behavior. Although research supports a number of individual interventions for students with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD), including intensive, individualized interventions, less is known about adapting such interventions for AEPs, and especially about the potential for AEPs to adopt a flexible, positive, multitiered framework for behavior and school climate. Emerging evidence suggests that Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) can be integrated into alternative education settings with careful planning. This chapter provides (1) an overview of AEPs, (2) a description of six steps recommended for integrating PBIS into AEPs, and (3) a brief overview of recent literature regarding PBIS in AEPs.

This chapter explains how special education is an integral part of the US system of public education; detailing the critical rationale for distinctions and specializations as well as how both general and special education might improve in the future delivery of an evidence-based educational system. Particular attention will be given to the importance of maintaining a structure that protects special education's particular purpose for a specific population, with the conceptual framework that preserving and enhancing special education's special and specialized identity are critical to adequate service delivery for the most vulnerable populations of students, families, and communities.

Tier 2 intervention is defined by the application of brief, efficient, and accessible supports for students who are at risk for social-emotional and behavioral concerns. Historically, Tier 2 interventions have been delivered in accordance with a standard protocol, with each student receiving the same general strategy in an undifferentiated manner. Yet, research has suggested the potential value of an adaptive Tier 2 approach, wherein brief assessments are conducted to determine which intervention (or adapted version of one particular intervention) is best suited to a student's individual needs. Within this chapter, we provide an overview of procedures related to adaptive Tier 2 intervention and discuss different approaches one might take to this practice. We conclude with a discussion of directions for future research in this area if adaptive Tier 2 intervention is to be widely adopted, implemented, and sustained within schools.

The limited evidence of effectiveness of existing teenage pregnancy strategies which focus on sex education, together with growing evidence that factors such as poor school ethos, disaffection, truancy, poor employment prospects and low expectations are associated with teenage pregnancy, has increased interest in interventions which target these “wider” social determinants. This paper aims to identify promising interventions and priorities for future research and to make recommendations for policy and practice in the UK.

This paper discusses the evidence regarding the potential of interventions which target determinants of teenage pregnancy relating to school disaffection and low expectations, drawing on recent systematic reviews and trials to consider future directions for research, policy and practice.

High‐quality research evidence illustrates the potential of two approaches to address determinants of teenage pregnancy relating to disaffection and low expectations. These are school‐ethos interventions, which aim to facilitate a positive and inclusive school‐ethos, strengthen school relationships and reduce disaffection; and targeted, intensive youth work interventions, which aim to promote positive expectations, vocational readiness and self‐esteem through vocational and life‐skills education, volunteering and work experience.

Two forms of intervention which address key social determinants of teenage pregnancy – school‐ethos interventions and targeted youth work interventions – require more attention from researchers and policy‐makers.

This paper calls for a shift in the research and policy agenda. In addition to interventions that aim to address proximal, individual factors, such as sexual health‐related knowledge, there should be a more complementary focus on socio‐environmental as well as targeted individual‐focused interventions aiming to address the wider social determinants of teenage pregnancy.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of mindfulness awareness practice (MAP) on mid-level health-care managers’ leadership.

In total, 11 mid-level health-care managers in eastern Canada took part in an intensive weekend retreat and a follow-up webinar on mindfulness awareness. Perceived stress and leadership effectiveness were assessed pre- and post-intervention (i.e. four and eight weeks). A control group (n=10) also completed the same measures twice. Additionally, informants (n=28) provided assessments of participants’ leadership pre- and post-intervention. Follow-up interviews were carried out with eight participants 12-16 weeks post-intervention.

In comparison to controls, retreat participants showed significant increases in mindfulness and corresponding decreases in stress that were sustained across eight weeks post-retreat; retreat participants reported significant positive changes in their leadership effectiveness that were corroborated by informants. Qualitative data, however, suggest that sustaining a mindfulness practice presents significant challenges to middle managers in a health care setting.

The findings are useful to management working in health services that are plagued by increasing demands and changes. Despite the small sample and lack of random assignment, the pilot data support the efficacy of MAP in improving leadership.

Little empirical research supports the claim that MAP enhances leadership. The present study employed a mixed methods approach to address this gap and demonstrates the potential benefits of MAP among mid-level managers.