TFS Supporting Statement Part C

PART C. JUSTIFICATION OF SURVEY ITEMS

The TFS will have four hardcopy questionnaires. Below, organized by section of each questionnaire, the items are described in terms of the broad education issues in need of measurement. Items are further grouped under subtopics.

TEACHER FOLLOW-UP SURVEY – QUESTIONNAIRE FOR CURRENT TEACHERS (other-than-first-year teachers)

I. Assignments at Your Current School

This section filters out teachers that are not currently teaching so that they are deemed out of scope. It asks current teachers to classify their current position (e.g., regular teacher, long-term substitute, etc.) and whether they are full-time or part-time.

II. Information About Changes from Last School Year to this School Year

This section asks teachers if they are teaching in the same school as the previous year, and if not, asks them to provide information about the new school. It asks teachers who moved to rate various reasons that may have affected their decision to move and then to choose the most important reason for leaving. Teachers are then asked to rate the current years’ teaching position compared to last years’ teaching position. Finally, they are asked to rate their overall satisfaction with being a teacher at their current school.

III. Background Information

This section asks teachers their sources of income, citizenship status, marital status, change in marital status, and the number of people that they support.

TEACHER FOLLOW-UP SURVEY– QUESTIONNAIRE FOR CURRENT TEACHERS (Version for first year teachers)

I. Assignments at Your Current School

This section filters out teachers that are not currently teaching so that they are deemed out of scope. It asks current teachers whether they are full-time or part-time, to describe the grades that they teach, their main teaching assignment, they way in which their classes are organized, and their Highly Qualified Teacher status.

II. Information about the 2007-08 School Year

This section asks former teachers when they began teaching, about their experience with a master or mentor teacher, whether or not they entered teaching through an alternative certification program, the specific criteria for completing the alternative education program, and their rating of the effectiveness of that program.

III. Information about Changes from Last School Year to This School Year

This section asks teachers if they are teaching in the same school as the previous year and, if not, asks them to provide information about the new school. It asks teachers who moved to describe their move from last year’s school to their current school. They are asked to rate various reasons that may have affected their decision to move to another school. Then they choose the most important reason for moving and whether or not there had been a change in the principal or school head in their school since the previous school year.

IV. Your Current School: Conditions and Experiences

This section asks teachers to compare their current teaching position with last year’s teaching position. They are asked to rate their overall satisfaction with being a teacher and whether or not they were working with a master or mentor teacher during the current school year.

V. General Employment Information

This section asks teachers their income from their school system and other sources, and whether or not they are currently receiving a pension from a retirement system.

VI. Background Information

This section describes the teachers’ work history prior to becoming a K-12 teacher, what kind of work they did, their duties and the number of years that they worked in that field, their citizenship status, the household income, their current marital status, change in marital status, the number of people that they support and the number of dependents that they have.

TEACHER FOLLOW-UP SURVEY - QUESTIONNAIRE FOR FORMER TEACHERS (other-than-first-year teachers)

1. Employment Status

This section filters out teachers who are still teaching and deems them out of scope for the Former Teacher Questionnaire. The remaining respondents are classified as former teachers and are asked basic employer descriptor questions such as their occupation, duties, employer’s type, income and retirement incentives.

II. Information on Leaving the Teaching Profession

This section asks former teachers the reason why they were laid off or contract not renewed. They are asked to rate various reasons that may have affected their decision to leave the teaching profession. Then they choose the most important reason for leaving teaching.

III. Your Impression of Teaching and of Your Current Job

This section asks former teachers who are working in a position in the field of education, but not as a K-12 classroom teacher, or who are working in an occupation outside of education to compare their current position relative to teaching.

IV. Background

This section describes the teachers’ citizenship status, their current marital status, change in marital status, and the number of people that they support.

TEACHER FOLLOW-UP SURVEY– QUESTIONNAIRE FOR FORMER TEACHERS (Version for first year teachers)

I. Employment Status

This section filters out teachers who are still teaching and deems them out of scope for the Former Teacher Questionnaire. The remaining respondents are classified as former teachers and are asked basic employer descriptor questions such as their occupation, duties, employer’s type, income and retirement incentives.

II. Information on Leaving the Teaching Profession

This section asks former teachers the reason why they were laid off or contract not renewed. They are asked to rate various reasons that may have affected their decision to leave the teaching profession. Then they choose the most important reason for leaving teaching and whether or not they applied for a teaching position the year after they left and, if not, what factors influenced their decision not to apply.

III. Your Impression of Teaching and of Your Current Job

This section asks former teachers who are working in a position in the field of education, but not as a K-12 classroom teacher, or who are working in an occupation outside of education to compare their current position relative to teaching.

IV. Information on Your Teaching Position in the 2007-08 School Year

This section asks former teachers when they began teaching, about their experience with a master or mentor teacher, whether or not they entered teaching through an alternative certification program, the specific criteria for completing the alternative education program, and their rating of the effectiveness of that program.

VI. Background

This section describes the work history of the former teacher prior to becoming a teacher. It asks what kind of work they did, the number of years in that occupational field, their citizenship status, their family income, their current marital status, change in marital status after they left teaching, and the number of people that they support.