Recruitment Materials

State the purpose of the study and provide a brief overview of the study design. Ask if the respondent has any questions about the study based on the letter of support and the fact sheet sent from IES/ED. Explain that you have prepared for the interview by reviewing publicly available information (website, program catalogues) and that you may confirm such information during the interview.

This study is NOT a program evaluation or an audit. Rather, it is a basic research study examining factors related to teacher effectiveness.
The primary research question of the study asks how variation in teacher preparation programs’ approaches to clinical practice, pedagogical content knowledge instruction and content knowledge instruction are related to both teacher and student outcomes.
Because there is so little rigorous research in the teacher preparation field, the study team needs to collect original data from teacher preparation programs.
This data collection from teacher preparation programs will help us to: a) understand the variation that exists across states; and b) make our recruitment more efficient by allowing us to have an idea of how to select teachers with meaningful variation in experiences. (However, final teacher eligibility will be determined by teachers’ self-report of their actual experiences.)
Your data will never be linked to your program; all findings will be used to help describe and define the variation across programs in how they organize, deliver, and assess clinical preparation.
The results of this study will be among the few rigorous examinations of this kind of relationship and therefore will be informative for the field of teacher preparation.
When the final report is available, we will send you an email with a link to the report. This may not be for another two and a half to three years.

Determination of focus program

Based on your extant data review, determine the certification program on which the interview will focus. This is especially important if the teacher preparation program has multiple certification programs (e.g., PreK-3, 4-8).

Terms in this questionnaire

Based on your extant data review, clarify the terminology that the program uses for the key terms below, and then try to use the appropriate terminology throughout the interview.

Fieldwork: Planned experiences in school settings that usually take place before student teaching.
Student teaching: Planned experiences in schools in which candidates are leading a class, under the day-to-day supervision of the licensed teacher assigned to that classroom.
Cooperating school: A school in which teacher candidates are placed for fieldwork or student teaching.
Cooperating Teacher: A teacher with whom a teacher candidate is placed for fieldwork or student teaching.
Teacher candidate: A college or university student enrolled in a teacher preparation program.
Program supervisor: Person who supervises teacher candidates for fieldwork or student teaching. May be a university faculty member or not.
Content courses: Instruction in the content of each subject area, e.g., math, ELA, science, social studies.
Pedagogical content knowledge courses: Instruction in the methods for teaching content knowledge.

Review interview structure

Say that the first part of the interview will focus on the clinical practice component of the program and that it will be divided into two major sections: fieldwork and student teaching. The latter sections of the interview cover content courses, pedagogical content knowledge courses, and special populations (EL and SPED students).

Topics for interviews with Teacher Preparation Program Faculty/Administrators

Fieldwork

Amount and integration of fieldwork (e.g., number of required courses, amount of time in field settings, linkage between required courses and fieldwork)
Preview of teaching (e.g., activities expected of all teacher candidates, approaches used to introduce teacher candidates to teaching responsibilities)
Systematic feedback (e.g., frequency of observation and feedback, nature of feedback encouraged/required of supervisors and cooperating teachers by program, topics covered in feedback, approach(es) used to provide additional support to teacher candidates at risk of inadequate progress)
Placement (criteria for selection of schools and teachers, communication with schools, responsibility for selecting schools/teachers)
Consistency of fieldwork experience for all teacher candidates (exceptions to requirements)
Other program elements designed to ensure that teacher candidates have the fieldwork experiences that are the hallmark of this program

Student Teaching

Amount and alignment of student teaching experience in school settings (e.g., number of required weeks, amount of time in host classroom/school)
Range of teaching responsibilities required for all student teacher (e.g., instructional and non-instructional activities expected of all student teachers)
Systematic feedback (e.g., frequency of observation and feedback, nature of feedback encouraged/required of supervisors and cooperating teachers by program, topics covered in feedback, approach(es) used to provide additional support to teacher candidates at risk of inadequate progress)
Placement (criteria for selection of schools and teachers, communication with schools, responsibility for selecting schools/teachers)
Consistency of student teaching experience for all teacher candidates (exceptions to requirements)

Other program elements designed to ensure that teacher candidates have the student teaching experiences that are the hallmark of this program

Content Knowledge

Total number of courses required, including upper level/advanced courses in four core content areas (English Language Arts/ELA, Mathematics, Social Studies, Science)
Topics covered in ELA and Math Content Courses
Other program elements designed to ensure that teacher candidates have the content knowledge this program believes is essential

Pedagogical Content Knowledge

Total number of methods courses required in four core content areas (English Language Arts/ELA, Mathematics, Social Studies, Science)
Topics covered in ELA and Math Content Courses
Other program elements designed to ensure that teacher candidates have the pedagogical content knowledge this program believes is essential

Working with Special Populations: (Student with Disabilities (SWD))

Total number of stand-alone courses required for teacher candidates on teaching SWD students
Total number of integrated courses required for teacher candidates on teaching SWD students
Topics covered in coursework focused on SWD students
Amount and type of experience working with SWD students
Nature of SWD-specific supervision provided to teacher candidates working with SWD students
Other program elements designed to ensure that teacher candidates have the knowledge and skills needed to work with SWD students that this program believes is essential

Working with Special Populations: (English Language Learners (EL))

Total number of stand-alone courses required for teacher candidates on teaching EL students
Total number of integrated courses required for teacher candidates on teaching EL students
Topics covered in coursework focused on EL students
Amount and type of experience working with EL students
Nature of EL-specific supervision provided to teacher candidates working with EL students
Other program elements designed to ensure that teacher candidates have the knowledge and skills needed to work with EL students that this program believes is essential

Teacher Preparation Program Letter of Support from IES

Date

First/Last Name of Administrator

Title of Administrator

Program/University Name

Street Address

City, State, Zip Code

Dear (NAME):

I am writing to encourage your participation in an important national study of teacher preparation sponsored by the U.S. Department of Education. This study is part of an ongoing effort to promote teacher quality and is being conducted by Abt Associates Inc. The goal of the study is to identify preparation methods, particularly related to clinical experiences, which are effective at promoting quality teaching and student achievement.

{INSERT NAME OF PROGRAM} has been identified as a preparation program that we would like to learn more about. Participation in the study should require minimal effort on your part. As Abt Associates Inc. staff will spell out in detail, they simply need (1) a chance to speak with you to gather more detailed information about your preparation program and (2) information on where you have placed your recent graduates or typically place graduates. A senior researcher from Abt Associates Inc. will be contacting you in the near future to describe the study in greater detail and review what is needed from your program. I strongly encourage your participation in this important effort.

The U.S. Department of Education supports this study as a key step in promoting our understanding of effective methods in teacher preparation. If you have any concerns about participating in the study, I urge you to call Dr. Beth Gamse ((617) 349-2808), at Abt Associates Inc. who is the director of the study. Please also feel free to contact me at 202-219-2087 or at [email protected].

I recognize that you are busy preparing teachers for the future. Please accept my appreciation in advance for assisting with this important research effort.

Sincerely,

Amanda DeGraff, Ph.D.

Federal Project Officer

Study Fact Sheet for Teacher Preparation Programs

Study Fact Sheet

Teacher Preparation Programs

Study Purpose: The Institute of Education Sciences at the U. S. Department of Education has contracted with Abt Associates Inc. to conduct a national study of teacher preparation. This study focuses on how variation in key preparation experiences of elementary school teachers affects their instructional practices and the outcomes of their students. The study focuses specifically on the clinical practice component of teacher preparation and how differences in teacher candidates’ clinical experiences might be related to teacher and student outcomes. This effort represents the first large-scale study of whether and how this aspect of teacher preparation translates into greater effectiveness for new teachers when they enter the profession.

Study Benefits: The study has the potential to identify specific types of experiences that help new teachers master the challenges faced by beginning teachers and to contribute to an emerging body of research on the precursors to effective teaching and productive teacher education. Because the study is not an evaluation of individual programs, but rather of variation in clinical practice across multiple programs, its findings will be widely applicable. As such, it is designed to contribute to the current national debate about how best to prepare our future teachers to be effective classroom leaders.

Study Design and Schedule: The study will compare outcomes for first-, second-, and third-year teachers and their students in a sample of approximately 100 schools across multiple districts and states. It will purposefully include teachers who have had a wide range of clinical preparation experiences as part of their training. The study will use an experimental design in which students in a grade are randomly assigned to teachers who have had different preparation experiences related to clinical practice. Any data collected from undergraduate elementary education programs will not be reported at the individual program level; all information about teacher preparation practices will be reported in the aggregate, as in the following type of sentence: “Fifty percent of preparation programs included in the study report that their students had experience in classrooms before student teaching.”

Fall 2011

Identify priority states for the study, based on evidence of (a) stable rates of new teacher hiring over the last few years, and (b) large numbers of school districts with multiple elementary schools that have three or more classrooms for each elementary grade.

Spring 2012

Identify the undergraduate elementary education teacher preparation programs from which these districts typically hire (approximately 300 – 400 programs).
Review available documentation on these preparation programs and interview program directors to understand the range of variation in clinical preparation experiences and to learn about other program elements (e.g., pedagogical content knowledge, content knowledge, preparation for teaching special populations).
Recruit a sample of first-, second-, and third-year elementary teachers who represent a broad range of clinical experiences (expected to represent approximately 20 school districts in several different states).

2012-2013 School Year

Follow selected teachers for one school year: survey teachers about their background and full range of educational experiences; conduct observations of instruction; and assess the reading and math performance of students in these teachers’ classrooms.

2014

Expected release of study report.

For information about the study:

Beth Gamse, Project Director

Abt Associates Inc.

(617) 349-2808

[email protected]

Mark Dynarski, Principal Investigator

Pemberton Research

(609) 443-1981

[email protected]

Amanda DeGraff, Research Scientist

Institute of Education Sciences

(202) 219-2087

[email protected]

[email protected] toll-free 855-678-5720

District Letter of Support from IES

Date

Name

Address 1

Address 2

City, State Zip

Dear Dr. [Last Name]:

I am writing to describe an opportunity for your district to participate in an important national endeavor related to teacher preparation sponsored by the U.S. Department of Education and being conducted by Abt Associates Inc. This effort will examine how different teacher preparation programs’ approaches to field-based, or clinical, practice affect beginning teachers’ classroom instruction and their students’ academic outcomes. Your district’s participation would help provide valuable evidence about the success of various preparation experiences, and help inform practitioners, policy makers and researchers.

Specifically, this effort is designed to learn how different approaches to clinical practice affect new teachers’ classroom instruction and the performance of those new teachers’ students. While it is commonly understood that the competence and capability of teachers is one of the strongest indicators of students’ academic success, the connections between teacher preparation and new teachers’ effectiveness are much less clear. Your district’s participation in this activity would contribute to a better understanding of what matters for new teachers and their students, and, ultimately, to improving teacher hiring decisions nationwide.

This effort will involve districts in eight states that have deliberately been selected to represent diverse locales, demographics, and policy contexts. Based on extensive review of district characteristics as well as of teacher preparation programs in your state, [District] has been identified as one of a limited number of districts being considered. We strongly encourage your support and participation. A senior member of the Abt Associates team will follow up in the next few days to tell you more, schedule a conversation to learn more about your district, and answer any questions you may have. In the meantime, if you have any questions about this activity, please feel free to contact me at 202-219-2087 or at [email protected], or Dr. Beth Gamse (617-349-2808 or at [email protected]), at Abt Associates.

S incerely,

Amanda DeGraff, Ph.D.

Federal Project Officer

Study Fact Sheet for Districts and Schools

Overview

The U.S. Department of Education has contracted with a study team led by Abt Associates Inc. to conduct a national study of how different teacher preparation programs’ approaches to preparing their graduates affects beginning teacher’s classroom instruction and their students’ academic outcomes. Participation in this study is voluntary for all participants, including schools, teachers, and students, and stringent privacy and confidentiality provisions will be used to protect the privacy of information collected.

Study Design & Eligibility Criteria

The study will compare classroom instructional practices, and student learning outcomes of new elementary school teachers who graduated from different clinical practice experiences based on the undergraduate teacher preparation program attended. Recruitment of districts and schools will obtain participation agreement for about 100 elementary schools in about eight different states.

Schools are eligible to participate if they have at least one K-5 grade with two teachers who are in their 1^st, 2^nd, or 3^rdyear of teaching, both of whom teach reading and mathematics to their students, and who have each graduated or received certification/licensure from teacher preparation programs that have different approaches to prospective teachers’ clinical preparation experiences. The study team is conducting extensive reviews of selected teacher preparation programs based on both existing documents and interviews to better understand how programs differ in their clinical preparation of teacher candidates. However, to verify teachers’ eligibility, the study will ask potential teacher participants to answer a targeted set of questions about their teacher training experiences.

The study team will work closely with each participating school to create similar classes of students assigned to the two teachers. This process has been successfully done in hundreds of schools around the country for other studies, and it typically involves assigning or re-shuffling class rosters right before school starts in Fall 2012.

Data Collection Activities

Schools: The study will collect data during the 2012-2013 school year, and will coordinate all data collection based on individual school schedules. The planned data collection will consist of the following:

Teachers: Teacher Background Form (to confirm eligibility), Classroom Observations (one Reading and one Math Lesson ), and a short Teacher Survey
Schools: Will be asked to submit a roster of students to be randomly assigned by the study team to participating teachers.
Students: Study team members will administer a math and reading assessment in the fall of 2012 and again in spring of 2013 and student administrative records will be collected to provide data on student characteristics.

Use of Data

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 district or individual. We will not provide information that identifies you or your district to anyone outside the study team, except as required by law. Any willful disclosure of such information for nonstatistical purposes, without the informed consent of the respondent, is a class E felony.

Benefits to Study Participants

Participants will be making an important contribution to the largest and most comprehensive study ever conducted of teacher preparation on classroom practice and students’ outcomes. This study will provide rigorous evidence about the effectiveness of different approaches to clinical practice certain practices in teacher education, and has the potential to contribute valuable evidence-based research to benefit all students, educators, and policy-makers.

Study Contacts

Beth Gamse	Mark Dynarski	Amanda DeGraff
Project Director	Principal Investigator	Federal Project Officer
Abt Associates Inc	Pemberton Research	IES/US Department of Education
(617)349-2808	(609)443-1981	(202)219-2087
[email protected]	[email protected]	[email protected]
Study Website: StudyofTeacherPreparation.com Study Email: [email protected] Study Phone Number: 855-678-5720

School Letter of Support from IES

Date

First Name, Last Name

Address 1

Address 2

City, State Zip

Dear Principal [Last Name]:

I am writing to describe an opportunity for your school to participate in an important national endeavor related to teacher preparation sponsored by the U.S. Department of Education and being conducted by Abt Associates Inc. This effort will examine how different teacher preparation programs’ approaches to field-based, or clinical, practice affect beginning teachers’ classroom instruction and their students’ academic outcomes. Your school’s participation would help provide valuable evidence about the success of various preparation experiences, and help inform practitioners, policy makers and researchers.

Based on extensive review of district characteristics as well as of teacher preparation programs in your state, [District] was identified as one of a limited number of districts being considered and has agreed to participate. We are now in the process of identifying schools within your district. We hope you will consider participating in this important effort. It is unlikely we would select for participation more than a few teachers from your school and we will ensure that the disruption to your school, teachers, and students will be minimal.

A senior member of the Abt Associates team will follow up in the next few days to tell you more, schedule a conversation to learn more about your school, and answer any questions you may have. In the meantime, if you have any questions about this activity, please feel free to contact me at 202-219-2087 or at [email protected], or Dr. Beth Gamse (617-349-2808 or at [email protected]), at Abt Associates.

S incerely,

Amanda DeGraff, Ph.D.

Federal Project Officer

Teacher Background Form

You may complete this form online at http://www.studyofteacherpreparation.com/ or on paper; if the latter, please return to Abt Associates in the Federal Express package provided (which may be with your principal) or by e-fax to1-617-386-8012.

If you have questions about this form, please contact the study toll-free at 1-855-678-5720 or [email protected], or the Project Director, Dr. Beth Gamse, at 1-617-349-2808 or [email protected].

Teacher name: (first and last):

District name: _________________________________ School name:

Date: __________ / __________ / 20____ (month/day/year)

1. Did you enter the teaching profession after completing a university-based teacher preparation program for initial certification or licensure as part of a bachelor’s degree program in education or a related field?

 Yes (Please continue)

 No (Please stop here and return the form)

2. What was the name of the college or university at which you did your teacher preparation? (Please enter name below)

3. What was your program or program concentration (e.g., Elementary Education, Elementary Education with a Special Education or ESL Certification, Early Childhood Education)? (Please enter name below and include any specializations)

4. For which grade levels did your preparation program prepare you to teach? (check all that apply)

 Pre-K  K  1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9 10  11  12

5. When did you…?

a) Attend your teacher preparation program? 20 ___ – 20 ____

b) Graduate with your teaching degree? 20 ___

6. Including the current school year, for how many years have you worked as a lead teacher, sometimes called the teacher of record? (Enter 01 if the current school year is your first year as the teacher of record)

___ ___ (# of years)

7. Please indicate whether you completed all of the coursework, fieldwork/field experiences and student teaching requirements of your preparation program.

Program component	Did you meet all requirements?	If no, why not?
Coursework	 Yes  No 	 Waiver/Exception  Other (specify):
Fieldwork/Field Experience (i.e., experiences in K-12 school settings that occur prior to student teaching)	 Yes  No   NA – Program did not have this component	 Waiver/Exception  Other (specify):
Student Teaching/ Internship	 Yes  No   NA – Program did not have this component	 Waiver/Exception  Other (specify):

Program component

Did you meet all requirements?

If no, why not?

Coursework

 Yes

 No 

 Waiver/Exception

 Other (specify):

Fieldwork/Field Experience (i.e., experiences in K-12 school settings that occur prior to student teaching)

 Yes

 No 

 NA – Program did not have this component

 Waiver/Exception

 Other (specify):

Student Teaching/

Internship

 Yes

 No 

 NA – Program did not have this component

 Waiver/Exception

 Other (specify):

8. Please indicate whether you participated in additional activities in fieldwork, coursework, or student teaching above and beyond the requirements of your preparation program, and briefly describe these activities.

Program Component	Did you participate in additional activities above and beyond the requirements of your program?
Coursework	 No  Yes (describe):
Fieldwork/Field Experience (i.e., experiences in K-12 school settings that occur prior to student teaching)	 No  Yes (describe):
Student Teaching/ Internship	 No  Yes (describe):

9. Are you or will you be the lead teacher for a class in the 2012-13 school year?

 Yes

 No

10. Do you plan to teach this class for the entire 2012-13 school year?

 Yes

 Not sure (e.g., family/medical reasons)

 No

11. Please provide your contact information below:

Home or cell phone number:

Home email address:

Thank you very much for completing this form.

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 program, district or individual. Any willful disclosure of such information for nonstatistical purposes, except as required by law, is a class E felony.

Parent Consent Form – ACTIVE

Study of Teacher Preparation

Please read the following statement.

Your child’s school is participating in a study on preparation of beginning teachers. Your school district has given Abt Associates permission to conduct this study.

To help us with the study, we would like your child to take part in a test of math and reading skills. The test will be given during a regular school day in the fall of 2012 and again in the spring of 2013. This test will have no effect on your child’s grades. This test will help us learn more about teacher preparation. You will not receive results of your child’s test scores.

We would also like to collect information from your child’ school records. We will be asking for information such as gender, date of birth, race/ethnicity, grade, retention status, free or reduced price lunch eligibility, English language learner (ELL) status. We will also ask for data on individual education plans or 504 plans, state/district student test scores, and attendance.

Participation in the study is voluntary. If you do not want your child to participate, this will not affect the instruction or other services your child will receive at school.

Only the researchers conducting the study will have access to the study data. Principals, district officials, school staff, and other teachers will not have access to the data.

The results of the data for all schools and classes in the study from this district will be combined when presented. In this way, the confidentiality of students, teachers, and schools participating in the study will be protected. A report with the study results will be submitted to the U.S. Department of Education at the end of the study period.

I have read and understood the description of the Teacher Preparation Study, being conducted by Abt Associates. I understand that the information will be used ONLY for the purpose of the study. Study information will be kept strictly confidential, to the extent provided for by law.

 Yes, I agree to allow my child to participate in the Teacher Preparation Study. I allow the researchers conducting this study to collect test and school records information from my child and the school/district. I allow my child to take part in a test of math and reading skills.

 No, I do NOT agree to allow my child to participate in the Teacher Preparation Study. I do not allow researchers conducting this study to collect test or school records information from my child and the school/district. I do not allow my child to take part in a test of math and reading skills.

Print YOUR CHILD’S Name: _________________________________________________________________________

First Last

Print YOUR Name: _________________________________________________________________________________

First Last

Your Signature: _________________________________________________Date: __________________

Please return this form to your child’s teacher by [specify date].

If you have any questions about the study, please contact Dr. Beth Gamse, Abt Study Director, at 855-678-5720 (toll-free call). For questions about your rights or your child’s rights in the study, please call Dr. Teresa Doksum, at Abt Associates at 877-520-6835 (toll-free call).

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 program, district or individual. Any willful disclosure of such information for nonstatistical purposes, except as required by law, is a class E felony.

Parent Consent Form – PASSIVE

Study of Teacher Preparation

Please read the following statement.

Your child’s school is participating in a study on preparation of beginning teachers. Your school district has given Abt Associates permission to conduct this study.

We would also like to collect information from your child’ school records. We will be asking for information such gender, date of birth, race/ethnicity, grade, retention status, free or reduced price lunch eligibility, English language learner (ELL) status, whether they have an individual education plan or 504 plan, state/district student test scores, and attendance.

Participation in the study is voluntary. If you do not want your child to participate, this will not affect the instruction or other services your child will receive at school.

Only the researchers conducting the study will have access to the study data. Principals, district officials, school staff, and other teachers will not have access to the data.

If you do not want your child to participate in the Teacher Preparation Study -- please complete the information below – sign this form and return it to your child’s teacher by (specify date).

I DO NOT WANT MY CHILD TO BE PART OF THE TEACHER PREPARATION STUDY.

Print YOUR CHILD’S Name:______________________________________________________________________

First Last

Print YOUR Name:_______________________________________________________________________________

First Last

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

Signature Date

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 program, district or individual. Any willful disclosure of such information for nonstatistical purposes, except as required by law, is a class E felony.

Abt Associates Inc. Appendix B. Recruitment Materials ▌pg. B-8

File Type	application/msword
Author	Amanda DeGraff
Last Modified By	Amanda DeGraff
File Modified	2012-03-26
File Created	2012-03-26