Web-Based Teacher Survey #2

AMSTI Principal Interview Protocol
Name of Principal: ______________________
Name of School: ________________________
Interviewer Name: _______________________
Date of Interview: _______________________
The principal interview should be administered to the principals of AMSTI schools in
which at least one teacher is observed and interviewed, and another one or two teachers
are only interviewed. Ideally, the interview should occur subsequent to the teacher
observation and interviews, so that the interviewer can interview the principal in the
context of greater knowledge about the instructional practices, student response, and
additional training and technical assistance needs of teachers observed and/or
interviewed. If this is not possible, however, the principal interview can occur prior to
the teacher observations and interviews. The interviewer should begin by providing a
very brief description of the overall AMSTI study, the purpose of the principal interview,
and assurance of confidentiality procedures.

INTERVIEW INTRODUCTION
Thank you for agreeing to be interviewed. We are conducting brief interviews with
principals of AMSTI schools as part of a comprehensive research study of AMSTI. As
you may know, the AMSTI study involves collecting data from state staff, AMSTI
trainers, teachers, principals, and students. The principal interviews are intended to
provide us with information, from the principal’s perspective, about how AMSTI is
working at the school level. It is not, in any way, concerned with you or your school’s
performance relative to AMSTI. This interview is different from a survey about AMSTI
that you were asked to complete several months ago. The interview should take between
10 - 20 minutes.
Your responses to the interview are completely confidential. Data from the interviews
we are conducting with the AMSTI principals will be combined for each region and
comparisons made (1) among regions and (2) between AMSTI and non-AMSTI schools.
We would like to ask you to sign two copies of a data collection consent form. I will
leave one copy with you.
Do you have any questions before we begin?

INTERVIEW QUESTIONS
1. How many 5th grade science or math teachers or 7th grade science or math
teachers are in this school? Did all of them attend the AMSTI summer institute in
2006? If not, which teachers (in terms of grade and subject) did not attend the
AMSTI summer institute in 2006?
2. How do your see your role with regard to the implementation of AMSTI in your
school?
3. To what extent were school staff who attended the summer institute adequately
prepared to implement AMSTI?
4. What has been your school’s overall experience in implementing AMSTI? What
has been successful? What has been challenging?
5. How have you divided responsibilities regarding the implementation of AMSTI
with your lead teachers? What have been some of their major successes? What
have been major challenges?
6. Has your school been provided any on-site technical assistance, support, or
coaching from the university-based Master sites?
a.
b.
c.
d.

What type of support has been provided?
Has the support been provided when teachers need it?
How has this technical assistance or support been helpful?
What additional assistance and support was/is needed?

7. How would you assess the availability and usefulness of AMSTI materials for use
by your school staff?
8. To what extent have teachers, who were trained in AMSTI, implemented the
program? In what ways have teachers experienced success using AMSTI? What
has been challenging for teachers?
9. In what ways has technology been integrated into AMSTI instruction? What has
been done to facilitate the use of technology in the AMSTI lessons? What, if any,
challenges have the teachers had incorporating technology into the AMSTI
lessons?
10. To what extent have teachers drawn from AMSTI methods to teach other lessons?
11. What, if any, feedback have you received from other teachers and parents about
AMSTI?

12. What overall suggestions can you offer to the AMSTI state-level program
managers about meeting your school’s needs?
13. Do you have any additional comments, questions, or concerns about AMSTI or
this evaluation?