Getting it right from the start (GIRFTS): Effect of an early years’ school intervention on student oral language and reading outcomes.

12 months (repeated) of a response to intervention (RTI) approach to improve oral language and reading for Grade 1 primary school students. The RTI approach involves Tiers 1 and 2. **Tier 1** Tier 1 comprises of an evidence-based approach to oral language/reading instruction applied to all Foundation and Grade 1 students in the classroom for 12 months. Grade 1 teachers undergo 6 weeks of professional learning for these strategies (6 professional learning sessions, ~1 hour each). Teachers learn the evidence-base for oral language and reading instruction by completing the Science of Language and Reading short course (run by La Trobe University, developed by A/Prof Pamela Snow and A/Prof Tanya Sherry). Tier 1 teaching strategies will be embedding into regular classroom teaching of Grade 1 students for 12 months, rather than being administered according to a dosing and frequency schedule. This is because these practices are universal and can be incorporated onto the core instruction of all students in the classroom and the planning of lessons. For example, a strategy can be 'encourage all students to answer questions in full sentences' - this can be implemented throughout classroom teaching. With the support from the ISP, teachers will plan small very short-term goals to incorporate these practices into their teaching. These rapid cycles of review can be as short as 1 week. This helps teachers to gradually integrate their learnings of Tier 1 instruction into practice. The following year, Tier 1 oral language/reading instruction is implemented for another 12 months to a new cohort of Grade 1 students. **Tier 2** In term 2, Grade 1 students will be screened to identify those at-risk for language and reading difficulties and who will benefit from Tier 2 intervention. Based on the data from the screening assessment an appropriate Tier 2 intervention will be selected. The screener will be chosen by the school with support from the ISP. An example of a screener is the year 1 phonics screening check which is a 7 min assessment done one on one between a student and teacher. The specific details of the screening assessment will depending on the screening product chosen by the school. Tier 2 interventions will be targeted to small groups of these students and provide ability-based opportunities for them to learn and consolidate specific oral language and/or reading skills. We have conducted a systematic review of the literature to identify effective school-based Tier 2 interventions shown to improve oral language and/or reading outcomes for students during pre-school or early primary school (Goldfeld, S., et al. (in press). Tier 2 Oral Language and Early Reading Interventions for Preschool to Grade 2 Children: A Restricted Systematic Review. Australian Journal of Learning Difficulties). This publication found that the most effective interventions were typically characterised by the following procedural components: group size of approximately 3–5 students, meeting at least four times per week for sessions lasting approximately 30 minutes, with an overall duration of around 3 to 6 months. The Tier 2 intervention will be chosen by the school with support of the ISP. The intervention chosen will depend on the needs of the Tier 2 students. Tier 2 intervention will commence in Term 3 and progress monitoring will be undertaken at the end of Term 3 to identifiy which students can return to Tier 1 and which students require Tier 2 for Term 4. All Tier 2 students continue Tier 1 intervention throughout the year with the rest of the class. Tier 2 interventions are completed in addition to and alongside Tier 1 interventions. The process of identifying and supporting Tier 2 students is repeated in the following year for 12 months to the new cohort of Grade 1 students. The Tier 2 intervention chosen in the second year of implementation will depend on the needs of the Tier 2 students in that year and is chosen by the school. **Teacher professional learning** To support fidelity of Tier 1 and Tier 2 implementation, teachers receive 6 professional learning sessions focused on evidence-based approaches to classroom oral language/reading instruction and key principles of RTI. This commences in week 2, Term 1 and consists of: -4 sessions of the Science of Language and Reading short course (La Trobe University) for 4 consecutive weeks (2 options, online webinar or in person facilitated by ISP at each school) -2 sessions about RTI and in-practice examples (online only, Zoom teleconference). Teachers also receive support from an Implementation Support Partner (ISP) to reinforce their learning, support the implementation of classroom strategies and support the selection of screening and progress-monitoring tools and data interpretation. The ISP works with the school 1 day a week for the duration of the intervention. ISPs are speech pathologists or literacy support teachers who have been identified by the education sector organisations as being suitable and qualified for the ISP role. Teacher surveys and teaching records will be reviewed to assess intervention fidelity. Together teachers and ISPs aim to: -map baseline oral language/reading/assessment/intervention practices at the school -interpret and analyse data to determine oral language needs of students -implement Tier 1 practice improvement (based on learnings from professional development) -selection of screeners -identify Tier 2 students -identify suitable and evidence-based Tier 2 intervention -progress monitoring of students In the second year of implementation, professional learning is offer again and ISP support continues for another 12 months.