Note to reviewers: This instrument provides the broad range of topics to cover in telephone interviews for the Adulthood Preparation Subjects (APSs) Study of Dosage and Cultural Relevance (APS Study). The instrument will be tailored for each site, depending on the respondents available for data collection. |
NOTE TO INTERVIEWER: Based on your current understanding of the program and previous conversations with grantee staff, use this topic guide to identify relevant topics for each data collection activity. To do this, first, identify topics in Table 1 we have not already collected information about. Then, use the identified topics to develop program-specific questions.
Here is more information on the roles found in Table 1:
Program leaders and managers: Individuals responsible for the overall direction and management of the program, with a high-level understanding of the program’s mission. These individuals may also oversee program implementation and provide support to facilitators and other frontline staff.
Program facilitators: Staff responsible for serving youth enrolled in the program; this can include frontline staff at a partner agency, if appropriate.
Community members: Parents of youth participants; staff from community organizations that partner or collaborate with the PREP program; community leaders who have participated in efforts to make cultural adaptations to curricula or provided guidance in choosing supplemental materials
Youth: participants of the PREP program who have received instruction in APS content
*Please note that this consent does not apply to youth participants as they have separate caregiver consent and youth assent forms. Introduction and consent for youth participants follows this section for adult participants.
Thank you for taking the time to speak with us today. We are from Mathematica, an independent research firm, and we are here to learn about your reactions to the adulthood preparation subjects (APSs) that are implemented as part of programming through [Grantee Organization Name]. My name is [Name] and my colleague is [Name].
We are speaking today on behalf of the PREP Studies of Performance Measures and Adulthood Preparation Subjects (PMAPS) project. This project is sponsored by the Administration for Children and Families within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. As part of this project, we are hoping to learn more about the APSs. We also hope to learn more about ways to adapt and improve APS topics and content to meet the needs of youth and be culturally relevant for them.
We will ask you some questions about each APS, which are adolescent development, educational and career success, financial literacy, healthy life skills, healthy relationships, and parent-child communication.
Your participation in the conversation is voluntary. We can skip any questions you don’t want to answer, or you can stop at any time. There are no right or wrong answers to these questions; we just want to hear your perspectives based on your experience. We will use the information you share with us to write a summary of what we learned, but we will not attribute any of your comments to you in our reports. Do you consent to participate in this interview?
We expect this discussion to take about [60 minutes for facilitators and community members; 90 minutes for program leaders and managers]. We value the information you will share with us and want to make sure we capture it all by recording it. Only the team that is working on the study will have access to them. We will destroy the recording and the transcription at the end of the study.
Do we have your permission to record the discussion?
*Please note: Read the ground rules for focus groups only. If this is an interview with program leaders or managers or with facilitators, please skip this section and go to the OMB statement section.
Before we start, we want to agree on some ground rules about how our time together should go.
This will be an informal discussion. There are no right or wrong answers to the questions. We are interested in learning everyone’s perspective.
There may be times in the discussion when you have different opinions than other people do, and that is okay. We want to hear all opinions.
There will be no formal breaks, so please feel free to step away whenever you need to.
We would like one person to talk at a time so we can understand everyone clearly, but we hope each of you will share your thoughts at some point.
We also ask you to respect each other’s privacy and not share what we talk about here with anyone else.
There is a lot we look forward to asking you about, so I may change the subject or move the discussion ahead from time to time, just to keep the conversation moving. Please don’t take it personally; it’s only to make sure we cover all our questions today.
Do you have any questions before we start, or any ground rules you think should guide our time together?
Now, I am going to read a statement:
An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. The OMB number and expiration date for this collection are OMB #0970-0531, Expiration: 09/30/2025. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to Alicia Meckstroth at [email protected].
Do you have any questions before we get started?
*Please note that we intend to speak to all youth through focus groups, but if scheduling requires, we will have interviews with individual youth instead. All youth participants in a focus group or interview must have a signed consent form from their parent or guardian to participate in the focus group or interview. Before you proceed, please confirm each youth present has the signed consent form. After you read the text below, youth participants will decide if they would like to participate and sign the assent form.
Thank you for taking the time to speak with us today. We are from Mathematica, an independent research firm, and we are here to conduct a focus group/interview to learn about your experiences with [Grantee Organization Name]. My name is [Name] and my colleague is [Name].
If this is a focus group, read:
A focus group is a group discussion we will lead with youth who have participated in programming through [Grantee Organization Name].
If this is an interview, read:
An interview is a conversation we will have with you about your participation in programming through [Grantee Organization Name].
During the focus group/interview, you will be able to share your thoughts about APSs and how much you like them. You can also share ideas about how the topics could be better.
We will keep everything you tell us private. That means no one except us will see your answers, like teachers, parents, or guardians, unless required by law. If the study team learns that any youth participating in the focus group has been hurt or is in danger, or if anyone tells the study team that they plan to seriously hurt themselves or someone else, then, by law, the study team must report that to the appropriate legal authorities.
We will not ask you about your own behavior. Your parent or guardian has agreed to let you be in the discussion.
The only risk to you during this discussion is that you might not be comfortable answering some questions. If that happens, you do not have to answer the questions. You can also stop taking part in the discussion any time you want to, and you will not get in trouble.
We expect this discussion to take no more than 60 minutes. We appreciate the information you will share with us and want to make sure we capture it all by recording it. Only the study team will have access to the recording. We will destroy the recording and our notes at the end of the study.
We will combine your answers with answers from other youth and we will summarize this information in a report. We will never identify you by name in any of our reporting.
Do we have your permission to record the discussion?
*Please note: Read the ground rules for focus groups only. If this is an interview with program leaders or managers or with facilitators, please skip this section and go to the OMB statement section.
Before we start, we want to agree on some ground rules about how our time together should go.
This will be an informal discussion. There are no right or wrong answers to the questions. We are interested in learning everyone’s perspective.
There may be times in the discussion when you have different opinions than other people do, and that is okay. We want to hear all opinions.
There will be no formal breaks, so please feel free to step away whenever you need to.
We would like one person to talk at a time so we can understand everyone clearly, but we hope each of you will share your thoughts at some point.
We also ask you to respect each other’s privacy and not share what we talk about here with anyone else.
There is a lot we look forward to asking you about, so I may change the subject or move the discussion ahead from time to time just to keep the conversation moving. Please don’t take it personally; it’s only to make sure we cover all our questions today.
Do you have any questions before we start, or any ground rules you think should guide our time together?
Now, I am going to read a statement:
An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. The OMB number and expiration date for this collection are OMB #0970-0531, Expiration: 09/30/2025. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to Alicia Meckstroth at [email protected].
Do you have any questions before we get started?
NOTE: The Paperwork Reduction Act Statement: This collection of information is voluntary and will be used to gather information for the purpose of understanding the dosage and relevance of APS programming in order to help strengthen the programming that youth receive. [For instrument 2.a] Public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 105 minutes per response, including the time for scheduling, reviewing instructions, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and reviewing the collection of information. [For instruments 2.b, 2.c, and 2.d] Public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 75 minutes per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and reviewing the collection of information. An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. The OMB number and expiration date for this collection are OMB #0970-0531, Exp: 09/30/2025. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to Alicia Meckstroth at [email protected].
Topic |
Program leaders and managers (Instrument 2.a) |
Program facilitators (Instrument 2.b) |
Community members (Instrument 2.c) |
Youth participants (Instrument 2.d) |
Program characteristics |
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Characteristics and needs of community and youth served by program |
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Program staff and community partnerships that support program delivery |
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Overview of APS programming and dosage by subject |
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Adolescent development |
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How well existing APS topics are meeting the cultural or lived experience needs of youth being served |
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How APS content has been adapted or modified to enhance cultural relevance of APS topics |
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Examples of how APS content is supplemented to enhance cultural relevance |
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Suggested changes and/or improvements to APS topics and associated topics to address cultural relevance or lived experience |
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Educational and career success |
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How well existing APS topics are meeting the cultural or lived experience needs of youth being served |
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How APS content has been adapted or modified to enhance cultural relevance of APS topics |
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Examples of how APS content is supplemented to enhance cultural relevance |
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Suggested changes and/or improvements to APS topics and associated topics to address cultural relevance or lived experience |
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Financial literacy |
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How well existing APS topics are meeting the cultural or lived experience needs of youth being served |
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How APS content has been adapted or modified to enhance cultural relevance of APS topics |
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Examples of how APS content is supplemented to enhance cultural relevance |
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Suggested changes and/or improvements to APS topics and associated topics to address cultural relevance or lived experience |
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Healthy life skills |
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How well existing APS topics are meeting the cultural or lived experience needs of youth being served |
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How APS content has been adapted or modified to enhance cultural relevance of APS topics |
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Examples of how APS content is supplemented to enhance cultural relevance |
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Suggested changes and/or improvements to APS topics and associated topics to address cultural relevance or lived experience |
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Healthy relationships |
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How well existing APS topics are meeting the cultural or lived experience needs of youth being served |
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How APS content has been adapted or modified to enhance cultural relevance of APS topics |
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Examples of how APS content is supplemented to enhance cultural relevance |
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Suggested changes and/or improvements to APS topics and associated topics to address cultural relevance or lived experience |
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Parent-child communication |
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How well existing APS topics are meeting the cultural or lived experience needs of youth being served |
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How APS content has been adapted or modified to enhance cultural relevance of APS topics |
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Examples of how APS content is supplemented to enhance cultural relevance |
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Suggested changes and/or improvements to APS topics and associated topics to address cultural relevance or lived experience |
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General reflections |
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Overall perception of APSs and the associated topics as part of PREP programming |
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Community coordination around making cultural adaptations |
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Opportunities and challenges with adapting content |
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Considerations for other programs when culturally adapting content |
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| File Type | application/vnd.openxmlformats-officedocument.wordprocessingml.document |
| File Title | Mathematica Standard Report Template |
| Author | Nickie Fung |
| File Modified | 0000-00-00 |
| File Created | 2024-11-13 |