Evaluation of Preschool Special Education Practices Efficacy Study

appendix g

teacher background and experiences survey

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OMB No.: 1850-0916

Expiration Date: xx/xx/xxxx

Teacher Background and Experiences Survey

Conducted for the U.S. Department of Education

Spring 2020/Spring 2021

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. The valid OMB control number for this information collection is 1850-0916. The time required to complete this information collection is estimated to average 10 minutes, including the time to review instructions, search existing data sources, gather the data needed, and complete and review the information collection. If you have any comments concerning the accuracy of the time estimate or suggestions for improving this form, please write to: 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, 550 12th Street, SW, Washington, DC 20202.

ABOUT THIS SURVEY

• Thank you for taking the time to complete this brief survey about your teaching background and experiences working with preschool children in inclusive classrooms as part of the EPSEP pretest.

• The questions in this survey can be answered by marking an “X” in a box or by providing a number. A few questions include an “Other (specify)” option, where you may need to write in a brief response.

• If you are unsure how to answer a question, please give the best answer you can rather than leaving it blank.

• Your answers will be completely confidential; no information that identifies you, your school, or your students will be reported. Information collected for this study comes under the confidentiality and data protection requirements of the Institute of Education Sciences (The Education Sciences Reform Act of 2002, Title I, Part E, Section 183). Responses to this data collection will be used only for refining the data collection protocols. We will not provide information that identifies you or your district to anyone outside the study team, except as required by law.

• This pretest is voluntary, but your response is critical for helping us refine the data collection protocols. There are no direct risks or benefits to participating. You may skip any questions you do not wish to answer; however, we hope that you answer as many questions as you can. Your answers to questions will not affect your job or any hiring decisions now or in the future and will only be shared with the Mathematica study team (they will not be shared with anyone from your school or district). This study has received IRB approval from Health Media Labs. If you have any questions about this pretest or your rights as a research volunteer, please contact Brian Roff at Mathematica toll free by phone at (833) 741-0984 or by email at EPSEP@mathematica-mpr.com.

SECTION A: TEACHING BACKGROUND

A1-A4 Based on Academic Language Teacher Survey	ROUND TO NEAREST WHOLE NUMBER INCLUDE CURRENT SCHOOL YEAR
A1. For how many years have you taught in your current school?	| | |
A2. For how many years have you taught in preschool classrooms at ANY public school?	| | |
A3. For how many years have you taught preschool children in ANY setting (for example, public school, early care and education, Head Start)?	| | |

A4. What is the highest degree you have attained?

MARK ONE ONLY

1 □ Less than a high school diploma

2 □ High school diploma or equivalent

3 □ Vocational certificate

4 □ Associate’s degree

5 □ Bachelor’s degree

6 □ Master’s degree

7 □ Educational specialist or professional diploma (at least one year beyond a master’s level)

8 □ Doctorate (Ph.D., Ed.D., M.D., J.D.)

A5-A10 Developed for EPSEP by Mathematica

IF ANY DEGREE (AA, BA, MASTER’S OR HIGHER) ANSWER A5:

A5. Please indicate below which of the following best describes the area of study that your degree is in (If you have multiple degrees, please include all of them in your response).

MARK ONE OR MORE BOXES

1 □ Degree(s) in Early Childhood Education (ECE) (please include Child Development, Child Psychology, and Family and Child Development as ECE)

2 □ Degree(s) in Special Education (please include Early Childhood Special Education in this category)

3 □ Degree(s) in some other subject

IF AREA OF STUDY IS SPECIAL EDUCATION (2) OR OTHER SUBJECT AREA (3) ANSWER A6:

A6. Did you complete any course work in early childhood education or early childhood special education?

1 □ Yes

0 □ No

ASK ALL:

A7. Do you have a Child Development Associate (CDA) or Early Childhood Education Certificate-TCAT, or some other state early childhood certificate that does not require a degree?

1 □ Yes

0 □ No

A8. Do you have a professional or state teaching credential in Early Childhood Education (such as the Colorado Early Childhood Professional Credential Level I, II, or III; or Tennessee Early Childhood Training Alliance (TECTA) certificate; or Kentucky Interdisciplinary Early Childhood Education (IECE) certificate)? These are credentials that do require a degree.

1 □ Yes

0 □ No

A9. Do you have a teacher or educator license? (Please include Teacher Practitioner or Professional license as well as Practitioner Occupational or Professional Occupational)

1 □ Yes

0 □ No

A10. What is your role in the preschool classroom?

MARK ONE ONLY

1 □ Lead teacher (general education teacher)

2 □ Lead teacher (special education teacher)

3 □ Assistant or associate teacher (general education)

4 □ Assistant or associate teacher (special education)

5 □ Paraprofessional, teaching assistant, or classroom aide

6 □ Other (specify)

SECTION B: TEACHING EXPERIENCE

B1. During the past year (please include summer and fall 2019 and spring 2020), did you receive any professional development on the following topics?

Spring 2021 version: During the past year (please include summer and fall 2020 and spring 2021), did you receive any professional development on the following topics?

Based on Academic Language Teacher Survey	RECEIVED PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT ON THIS TOPIC IN PAST YEAR
	MARK ONE PER ROW
a. Teaching preschool children with disabilities in inclusive classrooms	1 □ YES 0 □ NO
b. Strategies for promoting preschool children’s social and emotional competencies	1 □ YES 0 □ NO
c. Strategies for managing and guiding preschool children’s behavior	1 □ YES 0 □ NO
d. Strategies for promoting preschool children’s language development	1 □ YES 0 □ NO
e. Strategies for promoting a positive classroom environment for all preschool children	1 □ YES 0 □ NO
f. Conducting screenings and assessments for preschool children and using information from them	1 □ YES 0 □ NO
g. Using a curriculum in your preschool classroom	1 □ YES 0 □ NO

Based on Academic Language Teacher Survey

B1.1 Thinking about all of the professional development you received in the topics listed in the previous question, how many hours in total would you say you received?

1 □ 1 - 3 hours

2 □ 4 - 7 hours

3 □ 8 – 12 hours

4 □ 13 – 19 hours

5 □ 20 or more hours

B2. Did you receive professional development during the past year (that is summer and fall 2019 and spring 2020) in any of the following ways? Please mark all that apply.

Spring 2021 version: Did you receive professional development during the past year (that is summer and fall 2020 and spring 2021) in any of the following ways? Please mark all that apply.

Based on Embedded Instruction for Early Learning Teacher Survey

MARK ONE OR MORE BOXES

1 □ Workshops, seminars, in-service trainings, or staff development

2 □ Live or online courses for credit at a university

3 □ Professional conferences

4 □ Coaching (that is, an ongoing interaction with someone other than your supervisor, who has expertise in specific areas and provides ongoing professional development, performance feedback, and works with staff to improve practice. Supervisors may do these things as well, but we are interested in whether staff have coaches who are different from their supervisor.)

5 □ On-site consultation (that is, use of a school psychologist, behavioral specialist, or therapist to provide in-class support)

6 □ Teacher inquiry groups/communities of practice (that is, specialized peer support groups that typically meet to discuss a specific topic or focus on a practice. The group is often made up of people from different schools and expertise. For example, this may be a community that meets on a regular basis to discuss a particular practice, such as reflective teacher practice group, or dealing with behavioral issues.)

7 □ Novice teacher formal mentoring / induction programs (that is, the use of an experienced peer or trusted advisor who provides feedback and support to a novice or early career teacher on an ongoing basis)

8 □ Some other formalized or structured professional development (specify)

0 □ Did not receive any professional development during the previous year

B3. Thinking about all the professional development you received during the past year (that is, summer 2019, fall 2019, and spring 2020), overall how useful was it for supporting your classroom practices? Would you say …

Spring 2021 version: Thinking about all the professional development you received during the past year (that is, summer 2020, fall 2020, and spring 2021), overall how useful was it for supporting your classroom practices? Would you say …

Based on Baby FACES 2018 Teacher Survey

MARK ONE ONLY

1 □ Very useful

2 □ Somewhat useful

3 □ Not too useful

4 □ Not at all useful

0 □ Did not receive any professional development during the previous school year

B4. Beyond the professional development experiences reported above, what other strategies did you use to gather information to support your teaching during the past year? Please mark all that apply.

Based on Embedded Instruction for Early Learning Teacher Survey

MARK ONE OR MORE BOXES

1 □ Talking with a colleague (such as more experienced teachers)

2 □ Talking with an administrator (such as a principal)

3 □ Talking with a supervisor (such as an early childhood coordinator)

3 □ Talking with parents (to see if there are strategies from home life that can be integrated into the classroom)

4 □ Accessing information on the internet

5 □ Watching educational videos

6 □ Reading books

7 □ Reading journal articles

8 □ Other (specify)

0 □ None of the above

B5. Please focus now specifically on coaching. A coach is a person, other than your supervisor, who has expertise in specific areas and provides ongoing professional development, performance feedback, and works with staff to improve practice. Supervisors may do these things as well, but we are interested in whether staff have coaches who are different from their supervisor.

B5-B7 Based on Baby FACES 2018 Teacher Survey

Do you currently have a coach who works with you?

1 □ Yes GO TO QUESTION B6

0 □ No go to question b9

B6. How often do you meet with your coach? Would you say…

MARK one only

1 □ Daily

2 □ Several times a week

3 □ Once a week

4 □ Every other week

5 □ Monthly

6 □ Quarterly

7 □ More than once a year

8 □ Once a year

9 □ Less frequently than once a year

B7. Coaches have different approaches or ways of supporting teachers in improving their practice. What methods does your coach use when working with you? Does he or she …

	MARK ONE FOR EACH ROW
	YES	NO	DON’T KNOW
a. Discuss what they observe in your classroom with you?	1 □	0 □	d □
b. Provide you written feedback on what they observe in your classroom?	1 □	0 □	d □
c. Have you watch a video of yourself teaching?	1 □	0 □	d □
d. Have you observe or watch a video of an experienced teacher?	1 □	0 □	d □
e. Model good teaching practices?	1 □	0 □	d □
f. Suggest trainings for you to attend?	1 □	0 □	d □
g. Provide trainings to you?	1 □	0 □	d □
h. Review child assessment data with you?	1 □	0 □	d □
i. Share data with you about your teaching practices?	1 □	0 □	d □
j. Help you set goals and develop a plan of action related to your teaching practices?	1 □	0 □	d □
k. Help you reflect about your teaching practices?	1 □	0 □	d □
l. Are there any other ways your coach works with you? (SPECIFY)	1 □	0 □	d □

B8-B9 Based on Academic Language Teacher Survey

B8. Overall, how much do you feel the resources and feedback provided by your coach have contributed to your teaching effectiveness?

MARK ONE ONLY

1 □ A great deal

2 □ Somewhat

3 □ A little

4 □ Not at all

B9. To what extent do you agree with the following statements?

	MARK ONE FOR EACH ROW
	STRONGLY DISAGREE	SOMEWHAT DISAGREE	SOMEWHAT AGREE	STRONGLYAGREE
a. I am adequately trained to teach preschool children with disabilities in my classroom	1 □	2 □	3 □	4 □
b. Inclusion of preschool children with disabilities in my classroom has worked well	1 □	2 □	3 □	4 □
c. Most of the preschool children with disabilities that I teach are capable of learning the material I am supposed to teach them	1 □	2 □	3 □	4 □

B10-B10.1 Developed for EPSEP by Mathematica

B10. Which of the following are challenges for you in providing effective instruction to preschool children with disabilities in your classroom?

	CIRCLE ALL THAT APPLY
a. Embedding instructional opportunities for preschool children with disabilities into ordinary classroom activities and routines	A
b. Balancing the provision of effective instruction to both preschool children with disabilities and those without disabilities	B
c. Lack of clear policies and procedures for providing instruction to preschool children with disabilities	C
d. Lack of training in instructional strategies for supporting the social-emotional development of preschool children with disabilities	D
e. Lack of training in instructional strategies for supporting the behavioral development of preschool children with disabilities	E
f. Lack of training in instructional strategies for supporting the communication/language development of preschool children with disabilities	F
g. Lack of adequate resources for meeting the needs of preschool children with disabilities	G
h. Lack of agreement among staff about how to teach preschool children with disabilities	H
i. Lack of family engagement or support	I
j. Lack of collaboration with other staff that is necessary to support preschool children with disabilities	J
None of these are challenges	X

B10.1 And which of the challenges that you noted above do you consider to be the biggest challenge? Please write in the letter below.

Letter of biggest challenge ____________ (Only one letter please)

B11. Since the start of this school year, have you collected progress monitoring data on children in your classroom? By progress monitoring data, we mean data that is used to assess children’s performance and evaluate the effectiveness of instruction. These might include checklists of activities or behaviors or documentation on individual children over the period of some time.

B11-B15 Based on Baby FACES 2018 Teacher Survey

1 □ Yes GO TO B12

0 □ No GO TO NEXT SECTION

B12. Since the start of this school year, how often on average have you collected progress monitoring data on preschool children with disabilities in your classroom?

MARK ONE ONLY

1 □ Daily

2 □ Several times a week

3 □ Once a week

4 □ Every other week

5 □ Monthly

6 □ Quarterly

7 □ Less often than quarterly

B13. Since the start of this school year, how often on average have you collected progress monitoring data on preschool children without disabilities in your classroom?

MARK ONE ONLY

1 □ Daily

2 □ Several times a week

3 □ Once a week

4 □ Every other week

5 □ Monthly

6 □ Quarterly

7 □ Less often than quarterly

B14. Since the start of this school year, have you used progress monitoring data to make decisions about instruction for children in your classroom?

1 □ Yes

0 □ No

B15. Please indicate whether you feel each of the following are challenges to using progress monitoring data for individualizing instruction and lesson planning.

	MARK ONE FOR EACH ROW
	YES	NO	DON’T KNOW
a. Not having the technology I need to collect and work with progress monitoring data	1 □	0 □	d □
b. Not having enough time to collect the progress monitoring data I need	1 □	0 □	d □
c. Not knowing how to accurately collect the progress monitoring data	1 □	0 □	d □
d. Lack of understanding of what the progress monitoring data mean	1 □	0 □	d □
e. Not knowing how I can use progress monitoring data to individualize instruction or improve the strategies I use in my classroom	1 □	0 □	d □

SECTION C: THE IEP_M PROGRAM (for IEP_M teachers only)

C1-C3 Developed for EPSEP by Mathematica

C1. Do you feel like there has been an improvement in the social skills, problem behavior, or engagement of children in your classroom since you started implementing IEP_M?

1 □ Yes GO TO QUESTION C2

0 □ No GO TO QUESTION C3

C2. In which of the following ways, if any, has the behavior of the children in your classroom changed since you started implementing IEP_M?

MARK ONE OR MORE BOXES

1 □ Children are better at resolving conflicts with each other

2 □ Children are more likely to play or work cooperatively with their peers

3 □ Children are more likely to show kindness to others who are upset

4 □ Children are less likely to act aggressive toward people or objects

5 □ Children are less likely to act impulsively

6 □ Children are less likely to be withdrawn

7 □ Children are more likely to participate in classroom activities

8 □ Children are more likely to persist with tasks

9 □ Children are more likely to ask for help if they experience difficulty with a task\

10 □ Other (specify)

0 □ There have been no changes in the behavior of the children in my classroom since I started implementing IEP_M

C3. Do you find that you don’t have time to do things you used to do that were beneficial for you or for the children you teach because of the time you need spend on IEP_M?

1 □ Yes

0 □ No

Thank you for your participation!

Prepared by Mathematica Policy Research G1 March 2019