It’s an understatement to say that school has changed since many of us were kids. From the use of technology in the classroom to the recovery from a global pandemic, K-12 education looks very different today than it did 20 or even 5 years ago. Among these changes is a growing focus on the whole child. It’s now generally accepted that student success is about more than just traditional academics. As schools seek ways to give students the holistic support they need to thrive, using a multi-tiered system of support (MTSS) approach provides a framework to support students academically, as well as behaviorally, socially, and emotionally.

Using MTSS to Support the Whole Child

Often depicted as a pyramid with three layers, MTSS provides a proactive, preventative, and equity-based structure for schools to deliver increasingly targeted interventions to students. These interventions should be dynamic, data-driven, and evidence-based to ensure that each student’s needs are met. MTSS also promotes progress monitoring, community collaboration, and continual improvement to refine interventions and improve outcomes.

The potential benefits of MTSS are many, both for students, as well as the broader school community:

• Improving educational outcomes for all students, including those at risk of underachievement
• Addressing the whole child, from academic needs to overall well-being
• Preventing academic failure through early identification and intervention 
• Increasing teacher efficacy by providing strategies and tools to meet diverse learner needs
• Fostering inclusivity and equity by giving all students access to the supports they need
• Building collaboration among educators, specialists, families, and students
• Promoting a positive school culture that values every student’s growth and development

Implementation is the Key to MTSS Success

MTSS has the potential to transform educational experiences and outcomes for all students, ensuring that each child receives the personalized support they need to succeed. However, while these outcomes are compelling, the road to a successful MTSS implementation can be bumpy. 

To implement MTSS effectively, schools need to provide the necessary resources, training, and time for teachers and staff to engage in this collaborative, data-driven approach. As they navigate teacher shortages and budget cuts, though, these realities can stand in the way of realizing the full potential of MTSS. Without adequate resources and dedicated time to provide more intensive tier 2 and 3 interventions, MTSS simply isn’t sustainable. 

This is where flex periods can help. Flex periods are more than just a scheduling tool. They can be a catalyst for transformative educational practices like MTSS.

How Flex Periods Can Help

By nature, flex periods provide a dynamic and flexible approach to supporting student needs. They can be used in any number of ways to provide opportunities for activities that are important but don’t fit in the typical instructional day. 

For example, many middle and high schools use flex periods to provide a variety of offerings, including enrichment, clubs, study halls, and other opportunities. Additionally, nearly all schools who have adopted flex periods also leverage the time for academic support and interventions, which is at the core of the MTSS model.

Here are four ways schools can use flex periods to overcome logistical obstacles and set the stage for MTSS success.

1. Targeted Academic Interventions

Flex periods can be used to offer targeted academic support to students who need it most. By identifying students who are struggling in specific areas, teachers can use this time for small group instruction, one-on-one tutoring, or specialized programs designed to address gaps in learning. This targeted approach ensures that interventions are timely and relevant, directly addressing the challenges students face. One of the biggest challenges in MTSS at the secondary level is getting all the students who need the same support at the same time when they’re otherwise spread across different class periods. Flex periods allow teachers to group students and provide targeted supports during the school day.

2. Resilience Building & Social-Emotional Learning

Schools can allocate flex periods to programs and activities dedicated to supporting students’ overall well-being alongside their academic progress. Flex periods can be used to teach skills encompassing resilience building, mindfulness, self-awareness, stress management, goal setting, and more. When students are able to select from a variety of flex period options—whether opting into academic supports, extracurriculars, or finding time to get caught up on work—they also develop agency and are empowered to tend to their own self-identified social-emotional needs.

3. Peer Tutoring and Collaboration

By using flex periods for peer tutoring, schools can provide opportunities for students to support each other and, in doing so, grow individually. This not only aids students in need of academic support but promotes a collaborative learning environment. Peer collaboration can be further developed by encouraging students to work together on projects that promote teamwork and problem-solving skills. Additionally, students who are successful after tier 1 instruction can be recruited to provide tier 2 supports to other students, freeing up staff to focus on tier 3 needs.

4. Goal Setting & Progress Monitoring

Educators can use flex periods for individual or small group meetings with students to review academic progress, set goals, and discuss strategies for improvement. Using flex periods in this way carves out time for focused attention on students’ needs and makes it possible to continually refine interventions and supports as needed to keep students on track to meet their goals.

Flex periods provide the versatility to group students in a variety of ways, including “homeroom” or “advisory” groups, or more dynamic groups centered around content themes or personalized needs. The beauty of flex periods is that they truly are flexible, so you can modify them as needed to address changing needs and priorities.

Learn More about Flex Periods

By adopting flex periods, schools can create a responsive, flexible MTSS framework that meets the needs of all students and fosters a positive and inclusive school culture. However, getting started with flex periods can be challenging and time-consuming if you’re relying on manual processes. Securly Flex is flex period planning and scheduling software that significantly streamlines the process, so you can implement flex periods much quicker and easier.

Want to see what’s possible with Securly Flex? Schedule a no-obligation demo.
Want to learn more about flex periods? Read this Flex Periods 101 article or visit www.securly.com/flex.