The Pre-Referral Process: Procedures for Supporting Students with Academic and Behavioral Concerns
What is the pre-referral process?
The Pre-referral process is in place to help
teachers find effective teaching strategies for
students who exhibit academic or behavioral
difficulties, and also to reduce the number of
inappropriate referrals to special education.
With the approaches listed below in place the
pre-referral process will help to better serve
diverse learners and join educators.
 Consultative approach – pre-referral
team members make suggestions
based on their area of expertise about
educational procedures and practices
that teachers can implement within the
general education classroom.
 Collaborative approach – members
of the pre-referral team (e.g., parents,
other teachers) assist classroom
teachers with instructional support.
 Linear approach – pre-referral team
members implement the stages of the
process sequentially (e.g., gathering
information, implementing
intervention, evaluating intervention).
What are the stages of the pre-referral
process and what do they involve?
The pre-referral process is divided into six
distinct stages:
Stage 1: Initial concern regarding a student’s
progress
 A teacher, parent, or staff member
may start to have concerns. Once the
concerns are expressed the school will
initiate the pre-referral process in a
timely manner.
Stage 2: Information gathering
 The next step is to gather information
to help assist in the pre-referral
process. Some information that might
be gathered is instructional methods,
strategies, and materials that have
been previously tried or used. The
student’s skill level. The student’s
background knowledge and
experiences, and classroom behavior
management techniques are a few.
Stage 3: Information sharing and team
discussion
 After the information is gathered the
team will meet to begin reviewing the
information collected to date and to
start discussing ideas and
interventions that may help the
student.
Stage 4: Discussion of possible strategies
 During the meeting, the members
brainstorm strategies that they believe
are most likely to meet the needs of
the student. One or more strategies
may be selected for each area of
concern.
Stage 5: Implementation and monitoring of
strategies
 Implementing an appropriate
intervention and monitoring its
effectiveness are critical components
of the pre-referral process.
Stage 6: Evaluation and decision making
 In the final stage the student’s parents
or guardians are always involved. This
is the time to determine whether the
student has made progress. If yes, the
team decides whether the teacher
needs to continue the intervention. If
no, the team determines whether the
strategy should be continued or
modified, or whether the student
should be referred for special
education.
The IRIS Center for Training Enhancements. (2008). The
pre-referral process: Procedures for supporting students
with academic and behavioral concerns. Retrieved on
[February, 16, 2015] from
http://iris.peabody.vanderbilt.edu/module/preref/