High School Longitudinal Study of 2009 (HSLS:09) Second Follow-up Cognitive and Usability Testing

Attachment III: Eligibility Screening Questions

Thank you for inquiring about the interviews for this study about young adults and their plans for the future. I will first need to ask you a few questions to determine if you are eligible to participate. This screening for potential participants will take 3 to 5 minutes. Both this screening and the interview are voluntary; you may choose not to answer any question you don’t want to. If you are eligible, the interview will be recorded so that we can review your ideas and comments. We will prepare a report that does not single out any one person but summarizes what we have heard from various individuals as a whole. In accordance with federal requirements, we will keep the recording only until our report is finished. No names will be mentioned in the report.

1. What is your age?

If 20–22, go to Q3

If no – terminate screener; ineligible

2. Are you…

• Male

• Female

• Transgender, transsexual, or gender non-conforming?

• Other ________________________?

3. Do you think of yourself as…

• Straight

• Gay or lesbian

• Bisexual

• Other_________________________________?

4. Are you of either Hispanic or Latino origin?

• Yes

• No

5. What is your race? (You may select one or more.)

• American Indian or Alaska Native

• Asian

• Black or African American

• Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander

• White

6. Have you completed high school?

• No

• Yes, high school diploma

• Yes, GED or other high school equivalency

7. Have you taken any classes since high school such as a 4-year, 2-year, or vocational-technical program?

• No, never enrolled in a post high school education program

• Yes, currently enrolled in a post high school education program

• Yes, post high school education program, but left before completing

• Yes, completed a post high school education program

8. (If you have some post high school education) What type of post high school program have you enrolled in?

• 4-year baccalaureate degree program or

• 2-year post high school degree program or

• Vocational or technical training

9. Which of the following best describes you?

• Employed full-time

• Employed part-time

• Not employed but looking for work

• Not employed and not looking for work

10. What is your name?

__________________________________________________

11. What is the best telephone number to reach you (include area code)?

___________________________

12. Is it ok to leave a voice message at this number?

• Yes

• No

13. Is it ok to send a text message to this number?

• Yes

• No

14. What is your e-mail address?

____________________________________________

Thank you for answering our questions. We will let you know in the next few days whether we can use your help. Once the participants have been selected, they will be contacted by phone to notify them of the date, time, and location of the interview. Upon completion of the interview, you will receive $40.

Attachment IV: Scheduling and Device Determination

Thank you again for your interest in our study. [I am calling back about the research study on young adults and their plans for the future.] You have been selected to participate in the study, if you would still like to take part.

You may recall, the purpose of the study is to obtain your feedback on some of the questions that will be used in an NCES national study. For some of the interviews we are asking the participants to access questions on a smartphone or tablet, such as an iPhone or Android phone or tablet. Do you have a smartphone or tablet with a data plan [IF NEEDED: internet access is part of the plan], that you would be willing to use during the interview?

YES – SMARTPHONE

I Phone

Android

YES- Tablet

Brand_________________

NO-Not willing to use my device/no data plan

NO- Do not have smartphone/tablet

Have you used a smartphone or tablet in the past

Yes

No

Points to cover:

• The interview takes about 90 minutes.

• The interview needs to be in person. We’ll have an interviewer in

  • [AREA] at

  • [LOCATION] on

  • [DATES].

• To thank you for your time and participation, you will receive $40 cash/gift card following the interview.

• Your participation is completely voluntary and you do not have to answer any questions you do not feel comfortable answering.

• Do you have any questions?

Attachment V: Interview Protocol

WELCOME participant and thank them for their time.

INTRODUCE SELF: (Name/ RSS Employee.)

READ OR PARAPHRASE: This study is being carried out by Research Support Services (RSS) and RTI International on behalf of the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), which is part of the U.S. Department of Education. We will be conducting a national study and want to get feedback on some of the questions that will be used in it and asking the questions on a [phone/tablet/computer].

During the interview, I will have you complete the survey using [your/our] [phone/tablet/computer] while I look over your shoulder to watch what and how you are entering. I will be making notes as you proceed, these notes don’t mean you did anything wrong; they are just issues I have to keep track of. The interview will also be recorded so that I can concentrate on what you are saying and entering. Sometimes I may describe how you are entering the data so I can remember when I go back and listen to the recording. The recording will be destroyed once the project is completed.

You should complete the survey as if I wasn’t here, but if there is anything you don’t understand or is frustrating to you, you should let me know so we can talk about it afterwards. I might also stop you to ask you about what you are thinking or doing or ask you to skip through some questions that aren’t as important to answer.

I can assure you that everything you say will only be used for research purposes and may not be disclosed, or used, in identifiable form for any other purpose except as required by law (ESRA 2002, 20 U.S.C., § 9573). You will not be identified by name in any report we produce.

Once we start, the interview will last about 90 minutes. When we are done, I will give you $40 to thank you for your time and participation.

Do you have any questions?

WRITE DOWN QUESTIONS:

PLEASE READ AND SIGN THE “CONSENT TO PARTICIPATE IN RESEARCH” FORM.

IF CONSENT WAS GIVEN, START RECORDER.

There are no right or wrong answers. It is your experiences, views, and opinions that I am interested in. Remember you will help us by describing anything you find confusing or difficult to understand in the questions or any issues that come up as you answer them. Also, the survey is designed to be given to someone who we already have some information about, so for example, normally a person’s high school name would be pre-loaded. Since we are only testing questions, we are going to ‘pretend’ that the data on those screens is right.

Interviewer: [Load interview] Have R start instrument. Note questions where there were issues with entry, confusion or comments.

Initial observations

O1. Did R appear to read first long page of instructions

O2. Any issues with hitting Next / previous

INSTRUCTION: When R gets to first screen with prefilled data or “HIGH SCHOOL NAME” remind respondent that we are pretending it’s his/her information.

O3. Any issues with pop up menu/scrolling?

Screen investigation

04. Did R touch help? When/how often?

05. Did R touch Completion button?

06. Throughout self-administration, observe and record any question where R back tracks and changes answer. Probe later.

07. Throughout self-administration, observe and record any question that R tries to get past without providing an answer.

08. Does R appear to have any difficulty with font size?

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