to determine learning disabilities, and have concern that it could be used to delay or deny services to children with learning disabilities. Some also argue that there are many unanswered questions about RTI implementation, and that proponents have tended to gloss over or ignore criticisms of the RTI approach. Several major research efforts have supported these contentions through findings suggesting that RTI does not produce reliable sets of responders and non-responders. If RTI does not produce reliable sets of responders/nonresponders, it would be difficult to use this approach to determine learning disabilities. Technology application to RTI Technology is becoming increasingly important in improving instructional practices and student achievement. Tools that educators can utilize within their classrooms include weblogs, wikis, RSS aggregators, social bookmarking, online photo galleries, audio/visual casting, Twitter, and social networking sites. Many of these tools can be used for team-based learning and in facilitating students' use of higher forms of thinking such as analysis, evaluation, and synthesis. Properly integrated technology can increase student learning in areas such as motivation, collaborative learning, critical thinking, and problem solving. Some techniques that have been found to work in education include: identifying similarities and differences; summarizing and note taking; reinforcing effort and providing recognition; assigning homework and practice; utilizing graphic representations of concepts; cooperative learning; providing objectives and feedback; generating and testing hypotheses; providing cues and questions; and using advanced organizers. Technology-rich environments can also be effective for at-risk students, and can motivate students to stay in school and hopefully lessen the achievement gap. Computer Assisted Instruction (CAI), has been studied for its effects on lower achieving students. The effectiveness has been attributed to it being non-judgmental and motivational, while giving immediate and frequent feedback, individualizing learning to meet the students' needs, allowing for more student autonomy, and providing multi-sensory components. A review of 17 different studies found that CAI positively affected scores in mathematics and literacy for all grade levels and significantly improving scores for students labeled "at-risk". Technology can also effectively help teach basic literacy skills such as phonemic awareness, alphabetic principle, word recognition, alliteration, and comprehension. Today the use of specialized educational software applications can help support and enhance students' literacy skills. Presentation software such as PowerPoint can be used to enhance young children learning experience. The use of pictures, colors, sounds, animation, slide designs, or slide transitions can be easily implemented into a literacy lesson, and such software