Staying One Chapter Ahead: A Day in the Life of an Academic Interventionist.
- Dustin Rimmey
- Sep 22
- 7 min read
Just as last year, I've changed positions, and the transition has disrupted my desire to write more on my blog (and the podcast). Guess what, Stella has gotten her groove back, and I'll be publishing at least twice a week on the website, and unveiling a new podcast on the first Wednesday in October!
I've transitioned from a regular on-level classroom teacher into the position of an academic interventionist. At my school, the interventionists work with a small cohort of students who have previously failed courses, and we aim to help them get back on track to graduate with their peers. I'm currently working with a group of about 26 students this semester, and the average student needs 8-10 semester credits to graduate.
The worst part of the job is the curricular platform we use. I don't want to put it on blast, because that's not my style. However, it's old, focused on a single way for students to learn (sit and read), and it is not something that will excite kids to engage in their work or keep them motivated. However, I can say that to date we've completed 8 courses in just over a month, and students are near completion of several more!
In this post, I wanted to simply share: what my typical day looks like, the importance of relationships to motivate my students, and what my favorite tools to lean into in this role!
A Day in the Life of an Interventionist
The largest part of my day focuses on everyone's favorite "d" word in education...DATA. Luckily, I've got a planning period to start the day, and when I'm not working with some of the students in my shared classroom, I'm organizing my daily data to set goals for my students. In a series of interlinked Google Sheets. I tend to look at the following metrics:
What percentage of lesson, unit, or course completion is each student at? Since they can work on their courses wherever they've got internet, I need to make sure I know where they're at or what they need help with for their upcoming period with me.
What did their attendance look like yesterday? A majority of my students have been super-truant in the past, and I need to be ready to keep them motivated for success in their other courses, so our work is not all wasted in catching up!
Are they working on comparable assignments in their other classes? I'm a big fan of working smarter, not harder. If they can show on work that they're submitting for another class that they are proficient, or have mastered a concept I am also tracking, I won't make them do it again!
Once I've finished my daily data sync, it's on to ensuring I've got any curricular supplements ready for my students that day. While some students are perfectly happy with the same repetitive lesson and quiz structure on the daily, many of them are struggling to read and/or comprehend some of the written text so adding a new layer is necessary. If you remember the old "stay one chapter ahead" adage, that has been my daily grind for the past two months! We'll explore more about how I'm staying one chapter ahead in the second section.
Once my contact time begins with students, the rest of the day is an honest blur. I remember a day last week, where across my six periods with students I discussed/taught/tutored the following:
Order of Operations in Algebra
Battles of the Revolutionary War
Punnett Squares
The Renaissance's origins
Chemical Bonds
Gerund and Infinitive Phrases
The meaning in poems and short stories
and how to properly format a cover letter...
All of that was before lunch. Which was fun, especially for my ADD, to constantly be shifting gears!
My day ends by taking a deep breath, and building a playlist, Wakelet collection, or list of other concepts I need to brush up on in the next 24 hours to be able to assist students with confidence again the next day!
This is a MASSIVE undertaking, but I think I've found several ways to push my students to not only feel successful, but to take ownership of their educational progress as they climb back up the mountain they've built for themselves to graduate on time. All of the duties I've mentioned above don't even begin to highlight the most important responsibility of my job.
Building Relationships: The Heart of the Role
One of the most rewarding aspects of being an academic interventionist is the relationships formed with students. These connections are vital to implementing effective interventions. Students must feel safe and supported to engage and take risks in their learning. From day one, I've worked harder to build a relationship with each student than at any point in my career. Why? I have a strong belief that one of the reasons these students have failed and/or become truant is because they haven't felt seen or found "their person" at school. I have tried to make sure I am an option for students to feel like both of those boxes are checked for them.
I remember one of the first conversations I had with a student, who told me there was zero chance they'd be successful because "they tried the online curriculum during summer school, and got nothing done." Six weeks later, this is one of my hardest-working students, because they saw that I was willing to put in the work to find a way to bring the curriculum and learning experience to them, instead of having them suck it up and do their online work.
Not only are we talking about their coursework, but every day I'm learning about:
Music and art they've created.
How their favorite team fared in sportsball
Whatever random show or brainrot they're loving
Anime
Games
Anime
New random music
and Anime.
These conversations have been AS important as their coursework, because the students also see me taking a vested interest in their likes, and more importantly, them as people. As an interventionist, I've had to create a nurturing environment where students feel valued more so than in my prior classes, because some of them initially felt like they didn't want to be in the "failure" room. Now, they have ownership of the space, the conversations, and the general vibes, because we all may be working on a million different things, but we are unified in supporting and celebrating the completion of units and courses, because we all want them to graduate alongside their friends, and feel that sense of pride in a job well done!
This relationship-building also has to extend beyond the classroom. While I've sent out newsletters or parent emails in the past, I have stepped up my game in communicating with parents and/or guardians. More than ever before, families must know how close their child is to certain milestones, or if they need some grace and time to get caught up on work. I've had some of the most authentic conversations of my career with families in analyzing how they can help get their student back on track, or making parents feel like they can have an important role and stake in their child's education if they've not been active in the past.
My Favorite Tools of the Moment
I have and will continue to sing the praises of many tools that I love in the classroom, even if I cannot actively use them in my current capacity, based on what students are working on. However, here are my current favorite tools to use to keep myself from feeling overstretched!
I've already spoken at length (literally and figuratively) about my love for Brisk. If you haven't played with the ability to create collections via Brisk Next, you need to SPRINT to play with it. I built about 80% of a support curriculum for a music appreciation class to vet, edit, and personalize in less than 5 minutes. I was able to focus mostly on adjusting what I needed for student needs instead of writing things myself.
Brisk has been one of my favorite tools not only because of its versatility but also because of how responsive they are to user feedback. If you click on any of the brisk links I've shared above, it gets you set up with free premium access for a short period of time.
Class companion was something I fell in love with swiftly last year, and my love continues to intensify! If you're not familiar. It is a customizable writing coach for your students. For all of my students who are taking any classes that require a writing assignment, I can upload a prompt, any materials shared with them, the rubric, it will help coach them into writing a full essay! It is great for students who might quietly need some assistance, or truly struggle to get started writing anything longer than a sentence!
I'm also heavily addicted to its level of analytics and feedback for educators. Here are two quick captures of the data it shared about an essay written for the English class I assist with from time to time:
This is seriously next-level. In speaking with the class as a whole and their teachers, the students felt more comfortable attempting to write, and wanted to do more through Class Companion. Again, click a link, and you get some bonus access!
Wayground! (RIP Quizizz)
For years I have shared my love for quizizz (even though I've spelled it wrong every time)! Now, I have a library chocked full of individualized math, science, and grammar quizzes for my students. They love leaning into Wayground activities as both a formative assessment and a study guide for either a pre-test (to re-activate prior knowledge) or their unit exams.
Why do I love Wayground? Data and accommodations.
You should also check out all of the accommodations you can now link to your students for the duration of a course. Everything you find on a typical IEP you can now give a student those accommodations on Wayground!
There are so many more, that I'll share my uses of Canva, Adobe, and Edpuzzle at the end of the week!
Reflections on my new Journey
A day in the life of an academic interventionist is filled with meaningful experiences, challenges, and triumphs. These dedicated professionals have a significant impact on supporting students who are struggling, equipping them with essential tools and strategies for successful learning.
Through personalized support, close collaboration with teachers, and commitment to ongoing professional growth, academic interventionists profoundly affect their students. Their efforts not only aim for academic achievement but also work to create positive and nurturing environments for all learners.
Ultimately, it is about empowering students to believe in themselves and their potential. And that, in essence, is the most gratifying aspect of being an academic interventionist.
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