Parent Survey

Postcard Notification

Dear [PARENT], We’re writing to let you know that you will soon receive a text message with information on how to take a short survey, including a link. The survey asks questions about your child’s school attendance and your experiences communicating with [SCHOOL DISTRICT] about attendance. The survey is voluntary, and all responses will be kept strictly confidential. Your feedback is important, and will help your child’s [SCHOOL DISTRICT] learn more about how to make their attendance policies better. We look forward to receiving your feedback! Once you’ve taken the survey, you will receive a $15 gift card. Please let us know if you are having any trouble opening or filling out the survey or if you need us to send the link to the survey again. Thank you for your time! The Attendance Messaging Project Team [email protected] | 866-XXX-XXXX

[PARENT NAME AND ADDRESS]

Consent Form

Dear Parent:

The Attendance Messaging Project is a new study designed to test an innovative text messaging system that provides information to parents about their child(ren)’s attendance. Your participation in this short, 10-minute survey is important and appreciated, but you do have the right to skip any question that you do not wish to answer.

The purpose of this survey is to understand parents’ perceptions and behaviors related to their child(ren)’s school attendance, to learn about their perceptions and experiences with the study’s text messaging (if relevant), and to obtain background information. Below are a few important points about the survey.

• By participating, you will receive a $15 gift card. The gift card will be delivered to you electronically once you have completed the survey.

• Participation is voluntary: You can choose not to answer any question, and your decision to participate will involve no penalty and will not affect your benefits.

• Participation is private: All your responses will be kept private and will be used only for this study and related research. Your name and the name(s) of your child(ren) will never appear in any public document or revealed to people outside of the research team. American Institutes for Research (www.AIR.org), a non-profit, non-partisan social policy research agency based in Washington, DC, is conducting this research. The study is funded by the U.S. Department of Education’s Institute of Education Sciences.

Information collected for this study comes under the confidentiality and data protection requirements of the Institute of Education Sciences. All information from this study will be kept confidential as 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. Personally identifiable information about individual respondents will not be reported. The study team will not provide information that identifies you, your school, or your district to anyone outside the study team, except as required by law.

• Participation is safe: We do not anticipate any risks from participating in this survey.

• You can ask questions: If you have additional questions, you can contact Seth Brown at [email protected] or 202-403-5959.

Now that we have informed you about the survey, we would like to ask for your consent to continue. If you have any questions or concerns about the study, please contact Anja Kurki at [email protected] or 202-403-5153.

Please select begin to start the survey.

Begin.

Or check the box below if you do not wish to participate in the survey.

I choose not to participate in the survey.

Thank you for your cooperation in this very important effort!

Attendance Messaging Parent Survey

Spring 2018

Paperwork Burden Statement

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 XXXX-XXXX. The time required to complete this voluntary information collection is estimated to average 10 minutes per response, including the time to review instructions, search existing data resources, gather the data needed, and complete and review the information collection. If you have any comments concerning the accuracy of the time estimate(s) or suggestions for improving this form, please write to: U.S. Department of Education, Washington, DC 20202–4537. If you have comments or concerns regarding the status of your individual submission of this form, write directly to: 550 12th street, SW, Washington, DC 20202.

This survey asks questions to help us understand a little about your family life and about [focal child]’s experiences in and around school this year.

1. How are you related to [focal child]?

• Mother

• Father

• Grandparent

• Other guardian

• Other (specify): _______________________

• I am not related to or living with [focal child]  Thank you, you are done with the survey

2. What is the most common way that [focal child] has been getting to school in the morning this school year?

Please select one. If your child has about an equal mix of two or more ways, please select the one that is the most common way for your child to get to school in the morning.

• Walks

• School transportation (school bus)

• Public transportation (public bus or train) with myself, spouse/partner, relative, or another adult caregiver

• Public transportation (public bus or train) on their own

• Driven by myself, spouse/partner, relative, or another adult caregiver

• Carpools with another child

• Other, specify: ______________________________

3. During the month of April 2018, how many days was [focal child] absent from school? It’s OK if you’re not sure, your best guess is fine.

Days

4. From the first day of this school year (2017-18) through April 2018, how many days was [focal child] absent from school? It’s OK if you’re not sure, your best guess is fine. If the school year has ended, please answer about the entire 2017-18 school year.

   Days

5. Do you know whom to contact at [focal child]’s school if you need to discuss [focal child]’s attendance (e.g., change unexcused absences to excused ones)?

• Yes

• No

6. Please indicate your level of agreement with the following statements.

		Disagree Strongly	Disagree Somewhat	Agree Somewhat	Agree Strongly
a.	It is OK for [focal child] to miss school when [focal child] is sick or there’s a family emergency.	1	2	3	4
b.	It is OK for [focal child] to miss school if he/she is spending time with family (e.g., staying with extended family or going on a family vacation).	1	2	3	4
c.	Even when the school hasn’t closed, it is OK for [focal child] to miss school if the weather is bad.	1	2	3	4
d	It is OK for [focal child] to miss school if I have a day off and can stay at home with [focal child].	1	2	3	4
e.	It is OK for [focal child] to miss school so long as he/she is doing something else educational (e.g., going to a museum, reading at home).	1	2	3	4

7. This school year (2017-18), how often have you communicated with staff at [focal child]’s school (e.g., classroom teacher, school administrator)?

Please consider “communication” to include any communication in person, by phone, text, or email.

• Once a week or more

• Almost every week

• About twice a month

• About once a month

• About 3-4 times this school year

• About 1-2 times this school year

• I have not communicated with staff at [focal child]’s school this year

8. During this school year, did you receive any communications (e.g., phone, letter, text message) or speak with anyone from the district or from [focal child]’s school related to school attendance?

• Yes  Continue to 9

• No  Skip to 13

9. How did the district or school staff, including teachers, communicate with you about attendance?

Please select all that apply.

• By email

• By letter

• By phone call made by a person at the school or district

• By “robo-call” (pre-recorded call sent out by the school or district)

• By text message

• In person

• Other (specify): _______________________________

10. What information or requests did the communications (e.g., phone, letter, text message) about attendance contain?

Please select all that apply.

At least one communication …

• provided information about the importance of school attendance

• asked me to commit to an attendance goal

• informed me that my child was absent that day

• informed me how often my child has been absent this year

• informed me about district- or community-provided services to help increase my child’s attendance (e.g., transportation services to school, places to get flu vaccinations)

• asked me to arrange a time to talk with someone at the school about my child’s attendance

• Other (specify): _______________________________

• I don’t know

11. [Only shown to parents who selected ‘text message’ in Question 8] Please indicate your level of agreement with each statement about the text messages you received about attendance.

		Disagree Strongly	Disagree Somewhat	Agree Somewhat	Agree Strongly
a.	The text messages provided useful information.	1	2	3	4
b.	The text messages changed how I think about the importance of attendance.	1	2	3	4
c.	The text messages helped me better keep track of how often my child missed school.	1	2	3	4
d.	The text messages I received were annoying.	1	2	3	4
e.	The text messages came too often.	1	2	3	4
f.	I read most or all of the text messages I received from the school/district.	1	2	3	4
g.	I learned about how regular attendance can affect student success now and later on.	1	2	3	4

12. The text messages you received this year about attendance were part of a program called The Attendance Messaging Project, which [school district name] was trying out this year. How likely is it that you would recommend that [school district name] continue with the program next year?

[Question will only be given to parents who were in one of the treatment arms in the intervention]

Not at all likely									Extremely likely
0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10

13. Not including [focal child], how many children and how many adults currently live with you?

Please only include children that are 0-17 years of age.

		Children (persons 0-17 years old)
		Adults (persons 18 years or older)

14. How many times have you/your family moved within the last 12 months?

• We haven’t moved in the last 12 months

• We moved once in the last 12 months

• We moved two or more times in the last 12 months

15. What best describes your employment status?

• I work one part-time job

• I work multiple part-time jobs

• I work one full-time job

• I am retired

• I am not employed

• Other (specify):________________________

16. What is the highest grade in school that you completed or the highest degree you have received?

• 12th grade or less, with no diploma

• High school graduate (or GED equivalent)

• Some college but no degree

• Associates degree

• Bachelor’s degree

• More than a bachelor’s degree

American Institutes for Research OMB Clearance Request: Parent Survey—10