Unlocking the Promise of Multitiered Systems of Support (MTSS) for Linguistically Diverse Students: Advancing Science, Practice, and Equity

With its emphasis on early identification, quality instruction, interventions for students at risk of educational failure, and use of data on student response to instruction, multitiered systems of support (MTSS) offer numerous advantages over a remedial approach. Leveraging the promise of MTSS will rely, however, on equitable distribution of the advantages of this approach, especially for culturally and linguistically diverse students (CLD). The articles in this special topic section address CLD student contexts and apply this knowledge to culturally responsive explorations of assessment and instruction with an emphasis on the role of English language proficiency and language of instruction. Recognizing the importance of early identification and progress monitoring, several studies focus on the adequacy of screeners and curriculum-based measurement (CBM) tools for CLD children within MTSS. Across the studies, several important themes emerge in unlocking the promise of MTSS for CLD students, including (a) the need for validated measures for use with CLD, especially those sensitive to levels of English proficiency; (b) the importance of English language proficiency (ELP) in understanding responsiveness to intervention; (c) the language of instruction holds important relationships to performance on screeners, CBM, and achievement outcomes; and (d) English language instruction did not appear to impede performance on outcomes. Implications for advancing practice are also discussed. IMPACT STATEMENT This article provides a synthesis of articles in a special topic section focused on MTSS with CLD students. Key themes across articles highlight the challenges and opportunities to advance the science of MTSS and invite scholars to further examine challenges of MTSS with CLD, including implementation and policy implications.