Teacher Survey,Teacher Log, Principal Survey

APPENDIX C

TEACHER ACTIVITY LOG AND ACCOMPANYING LETTER

This page has been left blank for double-sided copying.

U NITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

INSTITUTE OF EDUCATION SCIENCES

National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance

Month XX, 2016

Teacher Firstname Lastname

Title

School Name

Address Line 1

City, ST XXXXX

Dear Teacher Name:

I am writing to request your help with an important new U.S. Department of Education study that will examine how teachers use data to help improve student learning. Your school is one of 104 participating in this study, which seeks to provide valuable information on teacher perceptions and use of data-driven instruction (DDI). The study is being conducted by our contractor, Mathematica Policy Research and its partner organizations.

As part of the study, we are requesting that teachers in the study schools complete daily logs of their instructional activities for each of two consecutive days. [We will also ask for you to complete another set of two logs in the spring of 2016.] These voluntary logs will help us learn about the instructional practices of teachers in study schools and how teachers use data to inform instruction.

Information reported directly by teachers is extremely important to the success of the study. On behalf of the U.S. Department of Education, I encourage your participation to ensure the information gathered by the survey is accurate and complete.

The teacher log for a given day can be completed online in about 15 minutes. In appreciation for your time and effort, Mathematica will send you a $15 check (or $30 for a set of two logs completed on consecutive days). All information you provide is strictly confidential – your individual responses will not be shared outside the research team, and teacher log data will be presented only in aggregate form and will not identify any individual or school.

Please use the information below to access the DDI teacher log.

Go to https://DDI-Log.org/teacher

At the login screen, enter the following:

Login ID: [username]

Password: [password]

This letter will be followed by an email from Mathematica in the coming days that will include a link to the website as well as your login information. We request that you complete the first teacher log by [date]. [Mathematica will then send you a second email in spring 2016, requesting that you complete the second teacher log.]

If you would like to update your email address or if you have any questions, please contact the DDI survey team’s help desk toll free at 866-XXX-XXXX, or by email at DDI-SurveyHelp@mathematica-mpr.com. You can always contact the Mathematica survey director, sheaviside@mathematica-mpr.com or the study project director, Phil Gleason at pgleason@mathematica-mpr.com. We greatly appreciate your assistance with this important study.

This survey is authorized by the Education Sciences Reform Act of 2002, Title I, Part E, Section 183, which prohibits disclosure of individually identifiable information as well as making the publishing or communicating of individually identifiable information by employees or staff a felony. Per the policies and procedures required by the Education Sciences Reform Act of 2002, Title I, Part E, Section 183, responses to this data collection will be used only for statistical purposes. The reports prepared for this study will summarize findings across the sample and will not associate responses with a specific school, district, or individual. Any willful disclosure of such information for nonstatistical purposes, except as required by law, is a class E felony.

Sincerely,

Erica Johnson

Federal Project Officer

Public Burden Statement

According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, no persons are required to respond to a collection of information unless such collection displays a valid OMB control number. Public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 30 minutes per response. The obligation to respond to this collection is voluntary. Send comments regarding the burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to the U.S. Department of Education, Washington, DC 20202. If you have comments or concerns regarding the content or the status of your individual submission of this form, write directly to:  U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, 555 New Jersey Avenue, NW, Washington, DC  20208.

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

EVALUATION OF DATA-DRIVEN INSTRUCTION

TEACHER LOG

We are interested in the amount of time you spend on activities during a given teaching day.

This log includes activities in the following sections:

1. Math instruction

2. English language arts or reading instruction

3. Collaborative planning (time spent interacting or working with other teachers or coaches)

4. Individual planning (“prep time”)

It also includes a set of time periods: before school, instructional blocks (or class periods) 1 through 7, and after school.

How to complete this log:

1. Complete this log on [insert date]. Complete all sections for the same day.

2. For each of the four sections, please indicate whether you engaged in any activities during each of the time periods

3. Within each time period where you checked yes for the section, please record the total number of minutes for the period, and the number of minutes spent doing each of the specific activities in the corresponding time period. Shaded cells do not need to be completed.

This survey is authorized by the Education Sciences Reform Act of 2002, Title I, Part E, Section 183, which prohibits disclosure of individually identifiable information as well as making the publishing or communicating of individually identifiable information by employees or staff a felony. Per the policies and procedures required by the Education Sciences Reform Act of 2002, Title I, Part E, Section 183, responses to this data collection will be used only for statistical purposes. The reports prepared for this study will summarize findings across the sample and will not associate responses with a specific school, district, or individual. Any willful disclosure of such information for nonstatistical purposes, except as required by law, is a class E felony.

Section A. Math Instruction

	Instructional Block or Class Period
Area of Activities	Before School	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	After School
A. Math Instruction		Y N	Y N	Y N	Y N	Y N	Y N	Y N
TOTAL MINUTES IN EACH TIME PERIOD
1. Type of Instruction
a. Whole class instruction
b. Small group, differentiated instruction
c. Small group, same instruction
d. Individual student, differentiated instruction
e. Individual student, same instruction
f. Administering a quiz, test, or other assessment
g. Other (specify): _______________________________
2. Instructional Content
a. Providing additional instruction on topics already taught but where students were not meeting goals
b. Working with students to set individualized learning goals or to track progress against their own goals
3. Change in Instruction
a. Following the usual lesson plan or teacher’s guide
b. Using a new instructional approach (that you had not used before this school year) to teach a difficult or complex concept to students
4. Class Observation
A school leader, coach, or another teacher observed you teaching

Section B. English Language Arts / Reading Instruction

	Instructional Block or Class Period
Area of Activities	Before School	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	After School
B. ELA/Reading Instruction		Y N	Y N	Y N	Y N	Y N	Y N	Y N
TOTAL MINUTES IN EACH TIME PERIOD
1. Type of Instruction
a. Whole class instruction
b. Small group, differentiated instruction
c. Small group, same instruction
d. Individual student, differentiated instruction
e. Individual student, same instruction
f. Administering a quiz, test, or other assessment
g. Other (specify): _______________________________
2. Instructional Content
a. Providing additional instruction on topics already taught but where students were not meeting goals
b. Working with students to set individualized learning goals or to track their progress against their own goals
3. Change in Instruction
a. Following the usual lesson plan or teacher’s guide
b. Using a new instructional approach (that you had not used before this school year) to teach a difficult or complex concept to students
4. Class Observation
A school leader, coach, or another teacher observed you teaching

Section C. Collaborative Planning

(Include activities with other teachers during or outside of common planning periods)

	Instructional Block or Class Period
Area of Activities	Before School	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	After School
C. Collaborative Planning	Y N	Y N	Y N	Y N	Y N	Y N	Y N	Y N	Y N
TOTAL MINUTES IN EACH TIME PERIOD
1. Jointly planning lessons, assignments, assessments, or other aspects of instruction
2. Setting common learning goals for grades or subjects that you teach
3. Jointly analyzing data to understand student needs
4. Examining student progress toward meeting common learning goals
5. Receiving training or coaching on how to analyze and interpret student data
6. Receiving training or coaching on how to implement evidence-based teaching strategies (best practices)
7, Planning how to integrate evidence-based teaching strategies (best practices) into your teaching
8. Jointly modifying lesson plans based on data
9. Reviewing progress implementing instructional plans and their results with students
10. Other (specify): _______________________________

Section D. Individual Planning

	Instructional Block or Class Period
Area of Activities	Before School	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	After School
D. Individual Planning	Y N	Y N	Y N	Y N	Y N	Y N	Y N	Y N	Y N
TOTAL MINUTES IN EACH TIME PERIOD
1. Observing another teacher teaching
2. Grading student quizzes, tests, or other assignments
3. Reviewing student performance on quizzes, tests, or other coursework to identify student needs
4. Reviewing interim assessment data to identify student needs
5. Reviewing other data to identify student needs
6. Revising lesson plans to allow more time for topics or skills on which students are struggling
7. Reviewing or adjusting students’ small group assignments
8. Planning differentiated instruction
9. Identifying struggling students in need of pull-out or other intensive intervention supports
10. Receiving individual coaching or support on data use
11. Receiving individual coaching or support on other aspects of teaching
12. Administrative duties
13. Other (specify): _______________________________