Principal Interview Protocol

OMB Number: 1850-0952; Expiration 11/30/2026

Attachment II. Strategies to Improve Reading (STIR): Principal Interview Protocol  

The research team will use the following protocol to conduct two in-depth 45-minute interview with principals participating in STIR. Interviews with principals will occur in November 2024 and March 2025 to capture feedback about the STIR components, including the STIR Institute and professional learning communities.

Participant name:		Interview date:
Participant school:		Start time:
Interviewer name:		End time:

Introduction 

Hello, I am __________________________ with the Regional Educational Laboratory Midwest.

Thank you for deciding to participate in this interview. The purpose of this interview is to provide STIR developers with feedback from teachers about their experience participating in the STIR training and coaching model. The information collected from the interview will be reported back to the STIR development team, but no identifying information about your name, school, or district will be attached to the reports.

The interview will last approximately 30 minutes. Your participation in this interview is voluntary. You may stop at any time or choose not to answer a question you do not want to answer. To facilitate our notetaking, we would like to audio-record our conversation today. After the transcription of our conversation, the digital file will be destroyed. Do I have permission to record you? [Note: If the respondent wishes not to be recorded, take notes but do not proceed with recording. If the respondent consents to being recorded, please record the interview.]

Do you have any questions before we begin?

Section 1: Implementation facilitators and barriers

I’d like to start by getting a sense of the supports you’ve received and barriers you’ve faced in implementing recommended practices shared by STIR.

1. What, if any, changes have you made to your practice as a result of the STIR Institute, professional learning communities, and/or site visits with your STIR coach?

   1. PROBE: This could include changes in how you monitor implementation of instructional strategies and routines, to how you conduct walk-throughs or classroom observations, to how you conduct data reviews with teachers, or other changes in how you train and support your staff.

2. FOLLOW-UP: What kinds of supports did you receive that helped you in making those changes?

   1. PROBE: This could include direct support from STIR or supports from your district, peers, or resources from other PD opportunities.

3. What recommended practices has STIR shared that have been challenging to implement?

   1. PROBE: This could include evidence-based practices for monitoring implementation of instructional strategies and routines, for conducting walkthroughs, and for conducting data reviews.

4. FOLLOW-UP: What has made those practices challenging to implement?

   1. PROBE: Barriers could include contextual barriers like a lack of alignment with school or district priorities or not having enough time in the day to implement the practices. Barriers could be specific to STIR, like content that isn’t clear or materials that are difficult to navigate.

Section 2: Experience of the STIR professional learning communities

I’d now like to focus on understanding your experience of the STIR professional learning communities.

1. Which, if any, of the sessions have you participated in?

   1. [If they attended at least one session, proceed to questions 2-5.]

   2. [If they did not attend any sessions, proceed to questions 6-7.]

2. As you reflect on the session(s) you attended, what aspects of the session(s) were most helpful to or engaging for you? Why were they helpful or engaging?

   1. PROBE: Aspects could include the content covered, the activities and materials, the flipped-classroom format, the length of the session, the timing of the session, the pacing of the session, the attendance structure for the session, etc.

3. As you reflect on the session(s) you attended, what aspects of the session(s) were least helpful to or engaging for you? Why were they less helpful or engaging?

   1. PROBE: Aspects could include the content covered, the activities and materials, the flipped-classroom format, the length of the session, the timing of the session, the pacing of the session, the attendance structure for the session, etc.

4. Are there any aspects of your community, district, and/or school that you feel supported your engagement in the PLC session(s)?

5. Are there any aspects of your community, district, and/or school that you feel prevented your engagement in the PLC session(s)?

6. Can you share why you have not attended one or more STIR PLC sessions?

   1. PROBE: Are there aspects of STIR that prevented your attendance? E.g., the content was not relevant to you, the content was not aligned to your school or district priorities, the format is not conducive to learning, PLC is too long, PLC is too frequent

   2. Are there contextual factors that prevented your attendance? E.g., competing professional development opportunities, lack of buy-in at the school or district level, personal reasons

7. What would make the STIR PLC sessions easier or more appealing to participate in?

Closing out

Before we end the interview, is there anything else you would like the STIR team to know about your experience of STIR?