PREL Staff Focus Group

Appendix F
PREL Staff Focus Group Guide

PREL Staff Focus Group Discussion Guide
Facilitator Instructions
Thank you for meeting with us today. The purpose of our visit is to learn more about your
experiences with Pacific CHILD. Your point of view as professional reading specialists is
extremely valuable to us. We are especially interested in learning more about how you feel the
training and coaching sessions are going so far, and how you feel about teachers’ progress in
implementing the principles of Pacific CHILD in the classroom.
Please keep in mind:
•

There are no right or wrong answers to the questions we have prepared. Our questions
are designed to stimulate discussion about your experiences with the teachers in the
Pacific CHILD Program.

•

We will take notes during the focus group. We will not share these notes with anyone
outside of the BPA evaluation team. Your comments will be kept anonymous and will
not be traceable to you.

•

Your specific comments will not be shared with the teachers you support or any of the
school or district administrators or any other PREL staff.

•

Your participation in this focus group is completely voluntary and you don’t have to
answer any questions that you don’t want to answer.

Discussion Questions:
1. ICE BREAKER
Why don’t we begin with each of you telling us your first name, the entity where you
coach, the number of schools and the number teachers that you work with as a reading
specialist. Please also tell us about your previous experience working with the Pacific
CHILD program
(Probe: years of teaching experience, years of experience as a reading specialist,
experience with providing support to ELL teachers, length of experience with Pacific
CHILD).

2. TEACHERS' NEED FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
How would you describe the professional development needs of the teachers you work
with?
Examples of probing questions.
•
Prior to Pacific CHILD, had the teachers you worked with received any
professional development specific to working with ELLs?

•
•

Did teachers express a need or value for this kind of professional development?
Please provide specific examples.
In your assessment, which aspects of working with ELLs do the teachers seem to
need to work on the most?

3. TRAINING INSTITUTES
Tell us about your experiences leading the summer and mini-institutes. How do you
think the sessions went?
Examples of probing questions.
•
How would you rate the attendance at the institutes?
•
How would you rate the level of engagement/participation by those teachers who
attended?
•
How useful do you think teachers found these sessions?
•
Can you think of any ways that the summer and mini-institutes could better meet
the needs of the teachers at the schools where you coach?

4. PACIFIC CHILD PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT SESSIONS
How have the Structured Learning Team meetings been going so far?
Examples of probing questions.
•
How would you rate the attendance at the Structured Learning Team meetings?
•
How would you rate the level of engagement/participation by those teachers who
attend the Structured Learning Team meetings?
•
Do teachers collaborate with one another outside of your bi-weekly meeting
time? If so, how can you tell that collaboration is going on outside the meetings?
What signs of collaboration are evident?

How well do you feel the professional development sessions met the needs and
expectations of the teachers you work with?
Examples of probing questions.
Is there anything that you feel the teachers you work with need that you’re not
able to give them?
•
Please give specific examples (e.g. communication with teacher-availability,
content of coaching sessions, etc)
•
Does participation in the Pacific CHILD program mean extra duty for teachers?
•

Have you modified the Structured Learning Team model to meet the needs of your
teachers? Please give specific examples.
Have you modified your coaching practices in any way to better meet the needs of your
teachers? Please give specific examples.
Are there any factors or barriers specific that have affected your ability to mentor
teachers or provide them with on-site support?

Examples of probing questions.
•
What are logistical factors affecting teachers' attendance or engagement at
regular PD sessions (e.g. schedule conflict, lack of a proper venue to meet)?
•
What are motivation and support factors affecting teachers' attendance at
regular PD sessions (e.g. lack of appreciation for the program, perceived lack of
support from school/district)?

5. APPLICATION OF THE PACIFIC CHILD COMPONENTS
Now that they have had some experience with the Pacific CHILD model, how do you
think the program has impacted or will impact the teachers’ ability to work with ELLs?
Examples of probing questions.
•
How well do you feel teachers are able to enact the Pacific CHILD components
in the classroom?
•
How do you rate your teachers’ skill development over time?
•
Can you give us some specific examples that demonstrate how well your teachers
are enacting the Pacific CHILD components?
•
Have you notice any changes in teachers' attitudes? For example, do they seem
to feel more confident about meeting the needs of ELLs? Do they seem to be
more motivated to work with ELLs than before? Do they ask better
questions/show more cultural awareness than before?
What would you say are the greatest barriers to a teacher’s adopting Pacific CHILD
model in her classroom?
6. SCHOOL AND DISTRICT LEVEL SUPPORT
How well do you feel the school and district level administrators support the Pacific
CHILD program?
Examples of probing questions.
•
How well do the principals understand and support the role of reading
specialists?
•
Have administrators posed any obstacles or barriers for you to work with
teachers?

7. PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT SUPPORT FOR READING SPECIALISTS
What kind of professional development support have you received as a reading
specialist?
Examples of probing questions.
•
Did you attend the 3 days of training prior to the annual summer institute?
•
Did the training meet your needs and expectations?
•
What were the strengths and weaknesses of the training?
•
Did you attend the 1-day training sessions prior to each of the mini-institutes?
Please tell us about it.

•

Do you feel like the training you received provided you with the tools you needed
to provide better support to teachers in P-CHILD?

8. OVERALL EXPERIENCE
Looking back at your experience as a reading specialist so far, how would you describe
your overall level of success with the program?
Examples of probing questions.
•
Do you feel the teachers are making progress?
•
Is the Pacific CHILD program meeting their needs?
•
Do you feel the program is helping them meet the needs of their students?

Can you recommend any changes in the role of reading specialists based on your
experiences so far? Please give specific examples.
Can you recommend any changes to the Pacific CHILD program based on your
experience so far? Please give specific examples.

THANK YOU