![](media/image1.jpeg){width="1.7083333333333333in"
height="1.0277777777777777in"}

#  {#section .unnumbered}

# Contract #ED-06-CO-0023 {#contract-ed-06-co-0023 .unnumbered}

> **SUPPORTING STATEMENT**
>
> **REQUEST FOR OMB APPROVAL OF**
>
> **native-american parent involvement**
>
> **data collection**
>
> **Part A: Justification**

February 15, 2007

Jean M. Williams, Ph.D.\
Mid-continent Research for Education and Learning

+---+--------------------------------+---+--------------------------------+
| S |                                | S |                                |
| u |                                | u |                                |
| b |                                | b |                                |
| m |                                | m |                                |
| i |                                | i |                                |
| t |                                | t |                                |
| t |                                | t |                                |
| e |                                | e |                                |
| d |                                | d |                                |
| t |                                | b |                                |
| o |                                | y |                                |
| : |                                | : |                                |
+---+--------------------------------+---+--------------------------------+
|   | Institute of Education         |   | Mid-continent Research\        |
|   | Sciences                       |   | for Education and Learning\    |
|   |                                |   | 4601 DTC Blvd., #500\          |
|   | U.S. Department of Education\  |   | Denver, CO 80237\              |
|   | 555 New Jersey Ave., N.W.      |   | Phone: 303-337-0990\           |
|   |                                |   | Fax: 303-337-3005              |
|   | Washington, DC 20208           |   |                                |
+---+--------------------------------+---+--------------------------------+
|   |                                |   |                                |
+---+--------------------------------+---+--------------------------------+
| P |                                | P |                                |
| r |                                | r |                                |
| o |                                | o |                                |
| j |                                | j |                                |
| e |                                | e |                                |
| c |                                | c |                                |
| t |                                | t |                                |
| O |                                | D |                                |
| f |                                | i |                                |
| f |                                | r |                                |
| i |                                | e |                                |
| c |                                | c |                                |
| e |                                | t |                                |
| r |                                | o |                                |
|   |                                | r |                                |
|   |                                | : |                                |
+---+--------------------------------+---+--------------------------------+
|   | Sandra Garcia, Ph.D.           |   | Louis F. Cicchinelli, Ph.D.    |
+---+--------------------------------+---+--------------------------------+

# INTRODUCTION {#introduction .unnumbered}

This submission requests approval for a data collection plan for a study
of Native American parents' involvement in their children's education.
The project is sponsored by the Institute of Education Sciences within
the U.S. Department of Education, and will be conducted by the Central
Region Educational Laboratory (contract #ED-06-CO-0023) at Mid-continent
Research for Education and Learning (McREL).

# Justification {#justification .unnumbered}

## Circumstances that make collection of information necessary {#circumstances-that-make-collection-of-information-necessary .Style-Heading-2-+-Goudy-Old-Style}

The primary mission of the Regional Educational Laboratories (REL) is to
serve the educational needs of each region. The current authorization
for the Regional Educational Laboratories program is under the Education
Sciences Reform Act of 2002, Part D, Section 174, (20 U.S.C. 9564),
administered by the Institute of Education Sciences' National Center for
Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance. The national priority for
the current REL contract is to address the goals of the No Child Left
Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB). A key goal of NCLB is to close the
achievement gap between children from diverse poverty levels,
ethnicities, disabilities, and English proficiency levels. Prior
research has shown that parent involvement in their children's education
is associated with higher student achievement (Gutman & Midgley, 2000;
Henderson & Mapp, 2002; Nye, Turner & Schwartz, 2006; Sanders & Herting,
2000; Shaver & Walls, 1998). Therefore, one strategy to close the
achievement gap is to increase parents' involvement in their children's
education --- which is why NCLB calls for the identification of
effective parent involvement strategies.

Native American students' performance on state and national assessments
lags behind that of their white peers (Ed Watch Interactive State &
National Data Site, n.d.), and many schools perceive Native American
parents to be relatively uninvolved in their children's education (de
Baca, Rinaldi, Billig, & Kinnison, 1991; Deyhle, 1991; Latham, 1989;
Pavel, Curtin, & Whitener, 1997; Reyhner, 1992). On the other hand, some
parents of Native American students perceive communication from schools
to be nonexistent or negative (Cockrell, 1992), and they also fear that
the influence of the school will undermine their culture (Deyhle, 1991).

The seven states in the Central Region (Colorado, Missouri, Nebraska,
Kansas, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wyoming) fall within the top 24
states in terms of the size of their Native American populations.
According to the 2000 U.S. Census, North Dakota, South Dakota, and
Wyoming are among the eight states with the highest percentage of Native
Americans (Ogunwole, 2002). Schools in these states need assistance in
involving parents in their children's education in order to overcome
cultural impediments to achievement (Mid-continent Regional Advisory
Committee, 2005).

Native American parents in particular need to know how to better
interact with schools, and schools must work to overcome a history of
mistrust (E. Kubinski, Region VI Comprehensive Center, personal
communication, August 23, 2005). Research on parent involvement for
Native American families has lagged far behind research on school
involvement of other minority groups (Boethel, 2003), and even that work
is becoming dated (John, 1998). Knowing more about the keys to
encouraging parent involvement among Native Americans will help district
decision makers, principals, and teachers implement community outreach
strategies that will ultimately help close the achievement gap for
Native American students. This study, funded under the Central Region
Education Laboratory contract, responds to one of the goals of NCLB by
exploring: 1) the ways in which Native American parents and families
become involved in the education of their children; 2) the barriers to
their involvement; and 3) strategies that have helped these families get
involved in their children's education.

## How, by whom, and for what purpose is the information used? {#how-by-whom-and-for-what-purpose-is-the-information-used .Style-Heading-2-+-Goudy-Old-Style-Left:--0.25\"-First-line:--0\"}

This study will explore the following research questions: 1) In what
ways do Native American parents and families become involved in their
children's education?, 2) What barriers do Native American parents and
families encounter when getting involved in their children's education?,
and 3) What school strategies have helped these families get involved in
their children's education? To respond to these research questions, the
design of this study calls for data to be collected from Native American
parents and families.

Researchers who have worked with Native American populations repeatedly
stress the need to earn the trust of community members in order to
successfully collect data (Brayboy & Deyhle, 2000; Harala, Smith,
Hassel, & Gailfus, 2005; Robertson, Jorgensen, & Garrow, 2004; Sobeck,
Chaplesk, & Fisher, 2003; Wax, 1991). Because of exploitative and
unethical research methods employed in the past by non-Native American
researchers, Native American communities are often wary of people
wishing to conduct research; the researchers' motives must be determined
first, as must the potential benefit of the research to the community
(Deloria Jr., 1991; Lomawaima, 2000; Mihesuah, 1993; Wax, 1991).
Establishment of trusting relationships is an integral part of many
traditional Native American ways of transferring knowledge; important
information is passed on orally from elders to younger tribe members
only when the elders deem the younger members ready (Brayboy & Deyhle,
2000; McAvoy, Winter, Outley, McDonald, & Chavez, 2000). Because it is
the holder of the knowledge who determines the appropriate time for
sharing, asking direct questions can be seen as intrusive and
presumptuous in many Native American cultures (Brayboy & Deyhle, 2000;
Jurich, 2000). A relationship must be established first; then, the
person with the desired knowledge decides what information is to be
shared, and at what time. People asking too many direct questions may be
shut out or given inaccurate information. Because of these cultural
norms, the use of qualitative, in-person modes of data collection is
recommended. A face-to-face encounter that allows for flexibility in the
data collection process and interaction between researcher and informant
is likely to be the most effective method for gathering information.
Involving a competent Native American person to conduct the data
collection is more likely to produce the trusting relationship needed to
access this hard-to-reach minority community.

Focus groups will be the most effective means of collecting Native
American parents' opinions on school involvement because this will
facilitate the interaction with Native American participants and because
we are looking for respondents' attitudes, feelings, beliefs, and
experiences, data which could not feasibly be collected with other
collection methods (e.g., surveys). Focus groups are useful in helping
to identify what participants think of a given topic, as well as why
they think that way. A deeper level of understanding can be gained
through the explicit interaction among session participants. A Native
American consultant will facilitate the focus group sessions to
encourage parent participation. The Native American consultant will
develop the level of trust necessary to collect and appropriately
interpret the data for this study. Given that not much is known about
how Native American parents get involved in the education of their
children (John, 1998), focus group sessions facilitated by a Native
American person will help in the exploration of this important topic.

Forty Native American parents will participate in this study. Four focus
group sessions will be conducted, with ten participants attending each
session. We have chosen to recruit participants from North Dakota and
South Dakota because these Central Region states have the highest
percentages of K--12 Native American students in the region (8.5% and
10.8% respectively[^1]). We will contact school and district
administrators with high concentrations of Native American students in
order to identify families to participate in the study. Participants
will be selected from K--12 public schools. It is likely that Native
American parents display various degrees of involvement in their
children's education (e.g., attend parent-teacher conferences, attend
non-academic events at school, participate in fund-raising events,
volunteer as teacher aides). A special effort will be made to recruit
participants who fall within a wide range of school participation. The
study team will ask school administrators for a list of potential
participants. From the list of prospective parent participants, the
Native American consultant will, using a simple random selection
process, contact parents to encourage them to participate in the focus
group sessions. All aspects of the study will be explained during these
conversations, including time required to participate, benefits of
participation, and the manner in which the data will be analyzed,
summarized, and reported. Participants will be assured that their
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
them or their district to anyone outside the study team, except as
required by law.

Each focus group session will follow a scripted focus group protocol
(see Exhibit A) that will address the following four topics:

-   Understanding of what parent involvement is. This first topic will
    address questions about what it means for parents to be involved in
    their children's education.

-   Ways in which Native American parents and other family members
    become involved in their children's education. Questions in this
    topic will refer to how participants and other family members
    participate in the education of their children.

-   Barriers to parent involvement. These questions will be posed to
    identify things (e.g., school personnel's practices and/or
    attitudes) that discourage or prevent parents and families from
    participating in their children's education.

-   Facilitating parent involvement. Questions in this topic will
    address parents' and families' experiences in the schools that have
    helped them be more involved in their children's education.

The information collected in this study will be summarized, analyzed and
disseminated as a research brief to educators in the Central Region. It
is expected that the results of the study will provide educators with
ideas of strategies to increase parent involvement within Native
American communities.

## Use of information technology to reduce burden {#use-of-information-technology-to-reduce-burden .Style-Heading-2-+-Goudy-Old-Style-Left:--0.25\"-First-line:--0\"}

This study will not use any type of automated, electronic, mechanical,
or other technological collection techniques. Data collection will be
conducted through face-to-face sessions between the data collector and
study participants.

## Efforts to identify and avoid duplication {#efforts-to-identify-and-avoid-duplication .Style-Heading-2-+-Goudy-Old-Style-Left:--0.25\"-First-line:--0\"}

The data collection planned for this project will produce data that is
unique and targets the study's research questions. While other studies
have been conducted on parent involvement of minority and low-income
communities, no study has been conducted on how Native American parents
and families get involved in their children's education and the barriers
they find in their involvement. The information to be collected, not
available elsewhere, will represent the Native American parents'
perspective and is needed to improve school relations with Native
American communities with the ultimate purpose of helping to close the
achievement gap for Native American students.

## Impacts on small businesses and other small entities {#impacts-on-small-businesses-and-other-small-entities .Style-Heading-2-+-Goudy-Old-Style-Left:--0.25\"-First-line:--0\"}

No small businesses or entities will be involved in this study. All
focus group participants will be recruited from schools with high
percentages of Native American students.

## Consequences to federal programs or policies if data collection is not conducted  This study has been designed as a response to the Central Region's need to improve the academic achievement of ethnic minority students. Without the findings of this study, schools with high concentrations of Native American students will not be able to identify and remove the barriers that impede parent involvement within Native American communities. {#consequences-to-federal-programs-or-policies-if-data-collection-is-not-conducted-this-study-has-been-designed-as-a-response-to-the-central-regions-need-to-improve-the-academic-achievement-of-ethnic-minority-students.-without-the-findings-of-this-study-schools-with-high-concentrations-of-native-american-students-will-not-be-able-to-identify-and-remove-the-barriers-that-impede-parent-involvement-within-native-american-communities. .Style-Heading-2-+-Goudy-Old-Style-Left:--0.25\"-First-line:--0\"}

## Special circumstances {#special-circumstances .Style-Heading-2-+-Goudy-Old-Style-Left:--0.25\"-First-line:--0\"}

There are no special circumstances related to the data collection for
this project.

## Solicitation of Public Comments and Consultation with People Outside the Agency {#solicitation-of-public-comments-and-consultation-with-people-outside-the-agency .Style-Heading-2-+-Goudy-Old-Style-Left:--0.25\"-First-line:--0\"}

A 60-day notice was published in the Federal Register on December 12,
2006, with an end date of February 12, 2007 to provide the opportunity
for public comment. Consultations on the research design, instrument
development, data sources and needs, and study reports have occurred
during the design phase of the study and will continue to take place
throughout the study. The purpose of such consultations is to ensure the
technical soundness of the study and the relevance of its findings, and
to verify the importance, relevance, and accessibility of the
information sought in the study. For the most part, consultations were
conducted internally at McREL but also included an external Native
American consultant. Consultants for this study include:

-   Dr. Zoe Barley, Senior Research Fellow, Mid-continent Research for
    Education and Learning, Denver, Colorado

-   Dr. Jean Williams, Vice-President for Research and Evaluation,
    Mid-continent Research for Education and Learning, Denver, Colorado

-   Ms. Dolores M. Riley, Educational Consultant, Prairie Riley Group,
    Midvale, UT\
    (Native American Consultant)

## Payments or gifts to respondents {#payments-or-gifts-to-respondents .Style-Heading-2-+-Goudy-Old-Style}

No payment will be provided to study participants.

## Confidentiality assurances

All data collection activities will be conducted in full compliance with
McREL's Institutional Review Board regulations to maintain
confidentiality of data in the protection of human research subjects.
Research participants will be informed about the nature of the
information that will be collected and the protection of their
confidentiality. The following process will be used to assure
confidentiality:

-   During initial contact, prospective study participants will be
    informed of the voluntary nature of their participation. They will
    also be informed that, as study participants, they will have the
    right to not respond to certain questions if they so decide.

-   During focus group sessions, and before any questions are asked of
    participants, they will be informed of the nature of the information
    to be collected and assured that data will be reported only in
    aggregate form. Participants will be assured that their 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 them or
    their district to anyone outside the study team, except as required
    by law.

-   During the focus group sessions, participants will be provided with
    a written consent form (see Exhibit B). The session facilitator will
    read and explain the consent form and will provide time for
    participants to ask for clarifications on the study, their rights,
    and the consent form. Participants will be asked to sign consent
    forms if they understand their rights and agree to participate.
    There will be no negative consequences to those who decide not to
    participate or not to answer questions.

-   Participants will also be asked to consent to the audiotaping of the
    session. Sessions will be audiotaped only if all participants in
    that session provide written consent. In addition to, or in lieu of
    the audiotape, written notes will be taken during the focus groups.

-   Verbatim transcriptions of audiotapes will be performed. All
    participants' names and/or identifying information will be removed
    from transcriptions and written notes. Once transcriptions and notes
    have been checked for accuracy, the tapes will be destroyed.

-   Reports will not contain names or participants' identifying
    information and consent forms will be stored in a secured location
    in the McREL premises.

The Principal Investigator will monitor compliance with the
confidentiality procedures identified above and report the status of
compliance annually to McREL's Institutional Review Board (IRB).

## Justification for data collection of a sensitive nature {#justification-for-data-collection-of-a-sensitive-nature .Style-Heading-2-+-Goudy-Old-Style-Left:--0.25\"-First-line:--0\"}

## No sensitive questions will be asked during this focus group. Also, participation in the focus group is voluntary, and participants may choose not to respond to any of the questions. {#no-sensitive-questions-will-be-asked-during-this-focus-group.-also-participation-in-the-focus-group-is-voluntary-and-participants-may-choose-not-to-respond-to-any-of-the-questions. .Style-Heading-2-+-Goudy-Old-Style-Left:--0.25\"-First-line:--0\" .unnumbered}

## Estimate of hour burden of data collection {#estimate-of-hour-burden-of-data-collection .Style-Heading-2-+-Goudy-Old-Style-Left:--0.25\"-First-line:--0\"}

This study's data collection plan is crafted to create the minimal
feasible burden on participants. Four focus group sessions will be
conducted in locations accessible to participants (e.g., school,
recreation center, church, public library, etc.). We expect to recruit
8--10 Native American parents per focus group session. Each focus group
session will last between 60 and 90 minutes, for a maximum of 60 total
burden hours on the public. We anticipate that there will be no burden
on the public due to recruitment efforts.

**Estimated Respondent Burden**

  ---------------- ---------------- --------------- -------------- -------------
  **Data           **Number\        **Number\       **Time\        **Total\
  collection       of respondents   of data         per data       hour burden**
  activity**       per data         collections**   collection**   
                   collection**                                    

  Parents' focus   10               4               1.5 hours      60
  group                                                            
  ---------------- ---------------- --------------- -------------- -------------

## Estimate of cost burden to respondents {#estimate-of-cost-burden-to-respondents .Style-Heading-2-+-Goudy-Old-Style-Left:--0.25\"-First-line:--0\"}

There are no direct monetary costs to respondents other than their time
to participate in this study. There are no start-up costs.

For estimates of hourly wage, the average salary for residents of South
Dakota calculated by the Bureau of Labor Statistics was used.

  ------------ -------------- --------------- -------------- ----------- ----------------
  **Data       **Number\      **Number\       **Time\        **Hourly    **Cost for 1.5
  collection   of respondents of data         per data       Wage        hours for 40
  activity**   per data       collections**   collection**   (BLS)**     participants**
               collection**                                              

  Parents'     10             4               1.5 hours      \$14.18     \$850.80
  focus group                                                            
  ------------ -------------- --------------- -------------- ----------- ----------------

## Estimate of annualized cost to the federal government {#estimate-of-annualized-cost-to-the-federal-government .Style-Heading-2-+-Goudy-Old-Style-Left:--0.25\"-First-line:--0\"}

The estimated cost to the federal government of conducting the study of
Strategies for Native American Parent Involvement is approximately
\$97,020 total across the entire course of the study, broken down as
follows:

> Personnel \$ 45,659
>
> Consultants \$9,200
>
> Travel \$11,864
>
> Facilities and Resources \$10,385
>
> Indirect cost \$19,912

## Reasons for changes or adjustments in burden  This request is for a new information collection. {#reasons-for-changes-or-adjustments-in-burden-this-request-is-for-a-new-information-collection. .Style-Heading-2-+-Goudy-Old-Style-Left:--0.25\"-First-line:--0\"}

## Tabulation, analysis, and publication plans and schedule {#tabulation-analysis-and-publication-plans-and-schedule .Style-Heading-2-+-Goudy-Old-Style-Left:--0.25\"-First-line:--0\"}

The timeline for this study is presented in Table 1. The study will
begin with recruitment of Native American parents during March--April of
2007. Focus group sessions will take place in March--April of 2007,
followed by transcription of audiotapes, member checking, and content
analysis of the data collected during April and May 2007. The primary
product of this study will be a research report describing the findings
of the study as related to the research questions. A draft of the report
will be prepared in May of 2007. The study will undergo a quality
assurance process in May of 2007. A final research report will be
delivered to the Institute of Education Sciences in June 2007 and
disseminated to practitioners via the National Laboratory Network
website.

Once the Institute of Education Sciences has approved a final version of
the research report, it will be submitted for presentation at an
appropriate professional conference (i.e., American Education Research
Association).

  ---------------------------------------------------- ------------------
  **Activity**                                         **Time period**

  Recruitment of participants                          March-April 2007

  Focus group sessions                                 March-April 2007

  Data preparation                                     April-May 2007

  Data analysis                                        May 2007

  Draft research report preparation                    May 2007

  Quality assurance process                            May 2007

  Final research report delivered to Institute of      June 2007
  Education Sciences                                   
  ---------------------------------------------------- ------------------

## OMB expiration date  {#omb-expiration-date .Style-Heading-2-+-Goudy-Old-Style-Left:--0.25\"-First-line:--0\"}

The agency plans to display the expiration date for OMB approval of the
information collection on the focus group protocol.

## Exceptions to the certificate statement  {#exceptions-to-the-certificate-statement .Style-Heading-2-+-Goudy-Old-Style-Left:--0.25\"-First-line:--0\"}

There are two exceptions to the certification statement as follows:

**(i) *It uses effective and efficient statistical survey methodology***

> The methodology used for data collection in this study is focus
> groups. Focus groups provide data that are qualitative in nature. Data
> will be analyzed via content analysis according to the research
> questions and will not involve statistical procedures.
>
> Because of the cultural norms of Native American communities and
> distrust issues towards educational institutions and towards some
> non-Native American researchers, it would be extremely difficult to
> secure a random sample of Native American parents willing to
> participate in the study. A purposeful sample of participants with
> maximum variation in their level of involvement will be the target for
> recruitment to participate in the study. No statistical sampling
> methodology will be used to identify potential study participants. The
> facilitator of the focus group sessions will be a Native American
> consultant who will develop the level of trust necessary to collect
> and appropriately interpret the data for this study.

\(j\) ***It makes appropriate use of information technology.***

> Data for this study will be collected via focus group methodology.
> Focus groups are a face-to-face method of data collection that does
> not involve the use of technology.

# REFERENCES {#references .unnumbered}

Boethel, M. (2003). *Diversity: School, family & community connections.
Annual synthesis 2003*. Austin, TX: Southwest Educational Development
Laboratory.

[^1]: North Dakota data retrieved, August 11, 2006:
    <http://nces.ed.gov/ccd/bat> for school year 2003-2004. South Dakota
    data retrieved, August 11, 2006:
    <http://doe.sd.gov/publications/annualreport/2005/RaceEthnicity.asp>
    for school year 2004-2005.