Science of Reading: The Podcast

While Tier 1 instruction is the foundation of a successful Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS), it is also the element we most often overlook. On this episode of Science of Reading: The Podcast, Sarah Brown, Ph.D., consultant and co-author of Effective Universal Instruction: An Action-Oriented Approach to Improving Tier 1, joins host Susan Lambert, Ed.D., to explore why this is and what it takes to give Tier 1 the attention it deserves. Together, Sarah and Susan also discuss common misconceptions about Tier 1; why a strong Tier 1 directly determines how targeted and intensive your interventions can be; and how to use data to assess whether your Tier 1 is truly working.
Show notes:
Vote for Science of Reading: The Podcast to win the Signal Listener's Choice Award—voting ends Oct. 15: amplify.com/signalaward
Download our free companion MTSS ebook! 
Learn more about building a sustainable, data-informed MTSS.
Read Effective Universal Instruction by Sarah Brown, Kim Gibbons, and Brad Niebling.
Read Routines for Reading Results by Sarah Brown
Learn more about System Impact Consulting.
Connect with Sarah Brown on LinkedIn.
Listen to Season 3 of Amplify’s Beyond My Years podcast.
Subscribe to Susan’s new Science of Reading Substack.
Join our Science of Reading community Facebook group.
Connect with Susan Lambert.
Quotes:
"Our labels don't define our students' skills and abilities. The quality and intensity of our instruction is really what matters." —Sarah Brown
"We are running ourselves ragged trying to provide intervention for too many students." —Sarah Brown
"Tier 1 instruction really deserves the same love and attention as your interventions and other tiers." —Sarah Brown
"MTSS is a framework, not a roadmap, which means it doesn't look the same in every school." —Sarah Brown
Timestamps*:
0:00 Introduction: Tier 1: The MTSS foundation, with Sarah Brown
3:00 Sarah Brown's background and path to MTSS
6:00 Defining Tier 1 instruction
10:00 What an effective Tier 1 looks like
14:00 Why a strong Tier 1 enables targeted intervention
17:00 Using data to assess your Tier 1
21:00 Common misconceptions about Tier 1
22:00 What Tier 1 intervention looks like
27:00 Common themes in Tier 1
38:00 Effective Universal Instruction and closing thoughts
*Timestamps are approximate, rounded to nearest minute

What does it actually take to move a Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS) from concept to practice? That's what University of Florida's Fien Endowed Professor of Special Education and University of Florida Literacy Institute Assistant Director Matthew Burns, Ph.D., explores with host Susan Lambert, Ed.D., on this new episode of Science of Reading: The Podcast. Together, Matt and Susan also discuss the real difference between an MTSS and Response to Intervention (RTI), and why the two get conflated so often; why strong core instruction is the foundation upon which everything else depends; and three trouble spots that can derail an MTSS: data use, team meetings, and intervention matching.
Show notes:
Sign up for our Literacy Data and MTSS Week.
Learn more about the International MTSS Association and its Journal for MTSS.
Connect with Matthew Burns on LinkedIn.
Listen to Season 3 of Amplify’s Beyond My Years podcast.
Subscribe to Susan’s new Science of Reading Substack.
Join our Science of Reading community Facebook group.
Connect with Susan Lambert.
Quotes:
"I would argue a well-embedded MTSS should be almost invisible." —Matthew Burns
"Without good core instruction, nothing else matters." —Matthew Burns
Timestamps*:
2:00 Introduction: Putting an MTSS into practice, with Matthew Burns, Ph.D.
4:00 What an MTSS is, and clearing up confusion with RTI
9:00 Common pitfalls in MTSS implementation
12:00 What effective professional learning communities look like
17:00 The history of the MTSS and curriculum-based measurement
21:00 Awareness vs. true understanding of MTSS use
23:00 Why core instruction has to come first, and how to target intervention
30:00 The International MTSS Association
36:00 Integrating academic and behavior support
*Timestamps are approximate, rounded to nearest minute

MTSS explores the Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS), from foundational concepts to practical implementation. To kick things off, Joan Schumann, Ph.D., founding executive director of the International MTSS Association, joins host Susan Lambert, Ed.D., to provide an overview of an MTSS—what it is, what it isn't, and its core elements. Together, Joan and Susan discuss the core beliefs that make or break an MTSS implementation, what a prevention-oriented mindset looks like in a school, and why early access to intervention is central to the MTSS framework. 
Show notes:
Sign up for our Literacy Data and MTSS Week.
Learn more about the International MTSS Association and its Journal for MTSS.
Connect with Joan Schumann on LinkedIn.
Subscribe to Season 3 of Amplify's Beyond My Years podcast.
Subscribe to Susan's new Science of Reading Substack.
Join our Science of Reading community Facebook group.
Connect with Susan Lambert.
Quotes:
"You cannot implement the [MTSS] framework if you don't believe all kids can learn." —Joan Schumann
"If we all start engaging in these small shifts and calls for change, it'll be just like the Science of Reading, only it'll be the science of learning." —Joan Schumann
"Don't underestimate the power of starting small, or raising a question in a meeting, or challenging a belief that you hear. I think it's through these small acts of courage that you can have a big impact."
Timestamps*:
0:00 Introduction: MTSS 101, with Joan Schumann, Ph.D.
4:00 Joan's background and journey in education
9:00 An overview of MTSS
10:00 The core belief at the heart of MTSS
17:00 MTSS as a prevention-oriented system
19:00 Rethinking school structure
25:00 Common MTSS misconceptions
28:00 How MTSS and special education relate
33:00 Breaking down the core elements of MTSS
36:00 MTSS beyond literacy
38:00 The International MTSS Association
46:00 Final thoughts
*Timestamps are approximate, rounded to nearest minute

Host Susan Lambert gives you a first look at Season 11 of Science of Reading: The Podcast, which will focus on using a Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS). Along with her expert guests, Susan will take a close look at what MTSS really means, how its different components work, and what it takes to implement and scale it successfully in a real school or classroom. Check out the trailer to get a glimpse of the season's conversations on Tier 1, screening, intervention, progress monitoring, and data teaming, and see clips of the guests you can look forward to hearing from!
Show notes:
Get ready for the new podcast season with Literacy Data and MTSS Week, a free week of webinars. 
Subscribe to the new Science of Reading Substack.
Listen to Season 3 of Beyond My Years.
Join our community Facebook group. 
Connect with Susan Lambert.

In our latest Science of Reading: Essentials episode, Susan Lambert, Ed.D., draws on expert voices from across the podcast to show how assessment can be one of the most exciting and empowering tools an educator has at their disposal. Featuring Jan Hasbrouck, Ph.D.; Stephanie Stollar, Ph.D.; Kate Winn; Kymyona Burk, Ed.D.; Kajal Patel Below; Gina Biancarosa, Ed.D.; and Melissa Farrall, Ph.D., this episode covers the three types of assessment every educator needs—universal screening, diagnostic assessment, and progress monitoring—and how they work together; what the Oral Reading Fluency measure actually measures, why it matters, and how it's often misunderstood; and why assessing comprehension is so complex, and what teachers can do about it. 
Show notes: 
Check out all of our Science of Reading Essentials episodes.
Sign up for our upcoming Assessment Webinar Series. 
Listen to Season 3 of Amplify’s Beyond My Years podcast.
Listen to the full episodes:The right assessment and the right data with Dr. Jan Hasbrouck
Assessment as your best friend, with Kate Winn and Stephanie Stollar, Ph.D.
Language is always an asset, with Kajal Patel Below
Understanding assessment, with Melissa Farrall, Ph.D.
Reimagining comprehension assessment, with Gina Biancarosa, Ed.D.
A proactive response to the adolescent literacy crisis, with Kymyona Burk, Ed.D.

Subscribe to Susan’s new Science of Reading Substack.
Join our Science of Reading community Facebook group.
Connect with Susan Lambert.
Quotes:
“If you don’t have a question about your students, you don’t need to do more assessment. This should not be a compliance activity.” —Stephanie Stollar
“We never want to do one iota, one second, one minute of extra assessment that we don’t have to do unless it answers a key question that makes us better teachers.” —Jan Hasbrouck
“About 90% of all reading challenges are due to difficulty recognizing the words.” —Melissa Farrall
“We don’t want more testing. We want the right kind of testing.” —Kymyona Burk
“Once you ask a question, you can change what it is that someone has understood from what they read.” —Gina Biancarosa
“When we love the kids, we want to do the best for them.” —Kate Winn
“Ideally, kids would be assessed in their home language.” —Kajal Patel Below

Timestamps*:
0:00 Science of Reading Essentials: Assessment
3:00 Why educators have complicated feelings about assessment
4:00 The three key questions every assessment should answer
6:00 Universal screening
8:00 Screening multilingual and English learners
11:00 Diagnostic assessment
12:00 Progress monitoring
15:00 Why alignment across all three tools matters
16:00 Teacher-administered and curriculum-based assessments
18:00 Oral Reading Fluency (ORF): what it is and why it matters
24:00 Why ORF is widely misunderstood
28:00 The challenges of assessing comprehension
38:00 Key takeaways and next steps
*Timestamps are approximate