Special Education Teacher/Provider Questionnaires

Q	Spring 2011 Kindergarten Special Education Teacher Questionnaire A
	Prepared for the U.S. Department of Education National Center for Education Statistics by: Westat 1600 Research Boulevard Rockville, Maryland 20850-3129

L A B E L

Use a black or blue ball point pen or #2 pencil to complete this questionnaire.

According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, no persons are required to respond to a collection of information unless it displays a valid OMB control number. The valid OMB control number for this information collection is 1850-0750. Approval expires 03/31/2012. The time required to complete this information collection is estimated to average 30 minutes per response, including the time to review instructions, search existing data resources, gather the data needed, and complete and review the information requested. If you have any comments concerning the accuracy of the time estimate or suggestions for improving the survey instrument, please write to: U.S. Department of Education, Washington, D.C. 20202‑4537. If you have comments or concerns regarding the status of your individual response to this survey, write directly to: National Center for Education Statistics, 1990 K Street, N.W., Room 9086, Washington, D.C. 20006-5650.

The collection of information in this survey is authorized by Public Law 107-279 Education Sciences Reform Act of 2002, Title I, Part C, Sec. 151(b) and Sec. 153(a). Participation is voluntary. You may skip questions you do not wish to answer; however, we hope that you will answer as many questions as you can. Your responses are protected from disclosure by federal statute (PL 107-279, Title I, Part C, Sec. 183). All responses that relate to or describe identifiable characteristics of individuals may be used only for statistical purposes and may not be disclosed, or used, in identifiable form for any other purpose, unless otherwise compelled by law. Data will be combined to produce statistical reports. No individual data that links your name, address, telephone number, or identification number with your responses will be included in the statistical reports.

INTRODUCTION

Dear Special Education Teacher/Related Services Provider,

This questionnaire is an important part of a major longitudinal study of children’s early educational experiences beginning with kindergarten and continuing through grade 5. The Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 2010-2011 (ECLS‑K:2011) is collecting information from the special education teachers/related service providers of sampled children who have Individual Education Programs (IEPs) to investigate the relationship between the children’s academic progress and various school, classroom, teacher, and home characteristics. This questionnaire collects information about your background and your work in this school with children with disabilities.

Taking part in the study is voluntary. You may stop at any time or choose not to answer a question you do not want to answer. However, only you can provide this information. Although we realize you are very busy, we urge you to complete this questionnaire as completely and accurately as possible. The information you provide is being collected for research purposes only and will be protected from disclosure to the fullest extent allowable by law. Information from multiple individuals will be combined to produce statistical reports; no information that identifies you will be included in any reports or provided to students, their parents, or other school staff.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR HELP.

MARKING DIRECTIONS

PLEASE READ CAREFULLY AND USE A SOFT LEAD (#2) PENCIL TO COMPLETE THIS QUESTIONNAIRE. DO NOT USE A FELT-TIP PEN.

MARKING BOXES

It is important that you mark an “X” in the box next to your answers and print clearly.

Shown below is the correct way to mark your answers, along with examples of incorrect ways.

Correct Mark:

Incorrect Marks:

Light and thin, outside the box, thick or scrawled.

      

How to Change an Answer:

Completely black out the box of the incorrect answer and mark an “X” in the box next to the correct answer.

      

PRINTING ANSWERS IN BOXES:

Print entire answer in box. Answers should be printed clearly and should not touch or cross any of the box lines. Do not cross zeroes or sevens. That is, do not write a zero with a line through it like this – 0, and do not write a seven with a line through it like this – 7.

Write digits like this:

1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  0

Write words like this:

John Smith

1. What is your gender? MARK ONE.

Male

Female

2. In what year were you born? WRITE IN YEAR BELOW.

1 9

ENTER YEAR

3. Are you Hispanic/Latino? MARK ONLY ONE.

Yes

No

4. Which best describes your race? MARK ONE OR MORE TO INDICATE WHAT YOU CONSIDER YOURSELF TO BE…

American Indian or Alaska Native

Asian

Black or African American

Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander

White

5. What is the highest level of education you have completed? MARK ONLY ONE.

Did not complete high school

High school diploma or equivalent/GED

Some college or technical or vocational school

Associate’s degree

Bachelor's degree

Master's degree

An advanced professional degree beyond a master’s degree (e.g., Ph.D., MD)

Don’t know

6. What is the highest level of education completed by your own parents? MARK ONLY ONE.

Did not complete high school

High school diploma or equivalent/GED

Some college or technical or vocational school

Associate’s degree

Bachelor's degree

Master's degree

An advanced professional degree beyond a master’s degree (e.g., Ph.D., MD)

Don’t know

7. Counting this school year, how many years have you worked in your current school, including part time? WRITE THE NUMBER OF YEARS TO THE NEAREST HALF YEAR (FOR EXAMPLE, 2.5, 3, 3.5).

YEARS

8. Counting this school year, how many total years (including part-time) have you been working with children receiving special education or related services? WRITE THE NUMBER OF YEARS TO THE NEAREST HALF YEAR (FOR EXAMPLE, 2.5, 3, 3.5).

YEARS

9. Counting this school year, how many total years (including part-time) have you been working with children in any schools? This would include other assignments such as teaching in a regular classroom or otherwise providing services to children. WRITE THE NUMBER OF YEARS TO THE NEAREST HALF YEAR (FOR EXAMPLE, 2.5, 3, 3.5).

YEARS

10. Which of the following credentials, licenses, or certificates do you have for working with children with disabilities? MARK YES OR NO ON EACH ROW.

			Yes		No
a. Emergency credential
b. Provisional or temporary credential
c. Disability-specific credential or endorsement
d. Special education credential or endorsement (for more than one disability category)
e. General education credential
f. Speech/language therapy state license or certification
g. Physical therapy state license or certification
h. Occupational therapy state license or certification
i. Social work license or certification
j. School psychology license or certification
k. Clinical psychology license or certification
l. Certificate of Clinical Competence
m. Other professional license, credential, or endorsement
(PLEASE SPECIFY)

11. Have you taken the exam for National Board for Professional Teaching Standards certification? MARK ONLY ONE.

Not taken

Taken and passed

Taken and have not yet passed

Taken and awaiting test results

Not applicable

12. Have you ever taken a college course in the following areas? MARK YES OR NO ON EACH ROW.

	Yes	No
a. Early childhood education
b. Early childhood special education
c. Elementary education
d. Child development
e. English as a Second Language (ESL) or teaching English language learners
f. General special education
g. Learning disabilities
h. Mental retardation
i. Orthopedic impairments
j. Serious emotional disturbance
k. Deafness and hearing
l. Blindness and vision
m. Communication disorders
n. Infants and toddlers with disabilities
o. Physical therapy
p. Occupational therapy
q. School psychology
r. Classroom management

13. Did any of the college courses mentioned in item 12 address issues related to the following? MARK YES OR NO ON EACH ROW.

	Yes	No
a. Response to Intervention
b. Early Intervening Services

14. Which of the following best describes your current position in this school? MARK ONLY ONE.

Special education teacher

Special education teacher consultant

General education teacher

Special education classroom aide

Speech-language pathologist

Physical therapist

Physical therapy assistant or aide

Occupational therapist

Occupational therapy assistant or aide

School psychologist

School counselor

School social worker

Other (PLEASE SPECIFY) 

15. How do you classify your main assignment at this school, that is, the activity at which you spend most of your time during this school year? MARK ONLY ONE.

Regular full-time teacher/service provider

Regular part-time teacher/service provider

Itinerant teacher/service provider (i.e., your assignment requires you to provide instruction/related services at more than one school)

Long-term substitute (i.e., your assignment requires that you fill the role of a teacher on a long-term basis, but you are still considered a substitute)

Teacher aide

Other (PLEASE SPECIFY) 

16. During this school year, where have you worked with children with IEPs? MARK YES OR NO ON EACH ROW.

			Yes		No
a. In a general education classroom
b. In a special education classroom
c. In a non-classroom space (e.g., office, therapy room, small work space, mobile van, etc.)
d. Other (PLEASE SPECIFY)
e. I do not work directly with children who have IEPs

17. Please indicate the extent to which you agree or disagree with each of the following statements on working with children.

MARK ONE ON EACH ROW.

	Strongly disagree	Disagree	Neither disagree nor agree	Agree	Strongly agree
a. I really enjoy my present job.
b. I am certain I am making a difference in the lives of the children I work with.
c. If I could start over, I would choose this career again.
d. I am satisfied with my class size/caseload.

18. During this school year, how many children with IEPs have you worked with or provided services for, on average, each week? (Include children you work with directly, as well as children for whom you consult with the general education teacher and/or another special education teacher/service provider) MARK ONLY ONE.

1-10

11-20

21-40

More than 40

Don’t know

Date questionnaire completed:

				2011
MONTH		DAY		YEAR

12