APPENDIX G

DISTRICT INTERVIEW PROTOCOL
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TIF DISTRICT INTERVIEW PROTOCOL

Introduction

This is _________ from Mathematica. As you know, The U.S. Department of Education has contracted with 

Mathematica to conduct the national evaluation of the Teacher Incentive Fund. The information we will obtain 

from this interview is extremely important for us to fully understand your TIF program, your implementation 

experiences and challenges, how you met those challenges, and to learn about other district improvement 

efforts. This interview should take about 45 minutes. Before we proceed, I would like to confirm that this is still a 

good time for you.

(If a good time, proceed with text below; if not, ask: when would be a good time to call? On what date? Then 

repeat time and date to respondent.)

I would like you to know that 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. Additionally, no one in your district will see your responses. 

While cooperation with this activity is a condition of your grant, we appreciate your time.

(If the person asks, you can indicate that EDGAR: part 75.591, Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1221e–3 and 3474 requires 

they cooperate with this activity.)

Program name: _____________________________________________________________________

District Name: ______________________________________________________________________

Date: _____________________________________________________________________________

Person interviewed:

Name: ____________________________________________________________________________

Title: _____________________________________________________________________________

Phone number: _____________________________________________________________________

Email:_____________________________________________________________________________

Interviewer name: ___________________________________________________________________
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A. Performance Pay Programs Before TIF

1. Before the 2010 TIF grant, did your district have performance pay program(s) for teachers or 

principals? 

If yes, ask the following questions.

a. What was the source of the funding?

b. What were the targeted areas (e.g., student achievement, teacher retention, professional 

development, etc.)?

c. Were schools, teachers, or principals required to participate? Or could they opt out?

d. How many schools participated?

1. Are any of these schools participating in the 2010 TIF grant?

If yes: What are the names of the schools?

e. Who was eligible for performance pay? (e.g., teachers, principals, non-teaching staff)

f. What was the level of award? (e.g., school, team, individual)

g. What types of awards did you give? (e.g., monetary [one-time cash bonus, salary increase], 

non-monetary [retirement benefits, health benefits, fewer classes, roles]) 

h. Is the program still in operation? 

If no:

1. When was it discontinued?

2. Why was it discontinued?

B. Current Reforms in Educator Compensation not Funded by TIF

1. During the current school year, are there federal, state, district, or privately sponsored 

programs, OTHER than TIF, that offer additional compensation to teachers and/or principals in 

your district? 

If yes, ask the following questions.

a. What are the names of the programs?

b. What are the sources of funding?

c. For what reasons or factors can educators receive additional compensation? (e.g., high 

effectiveness, extra roles and responsibilities, teacher in high-need schools, etc.)

d. Who is eligible for additional compensation? (e.g., teachers, principals, non-teaching staff)

e. How much extra compensation can teachers and/or principals receive?

f. Are schools required to participate, or can they opt out?

g. How many schools participate?

1. Are any of these schools participating in the 2010 TIF grant?

If yes: What are the names of the schools?
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C. Characteristics of TIF Program 

1. What criteria did you use to identify schools eligible for the TIF (or PROGRAM NAME) program?

2. Do teachers or principals have to pass any eligibility requirements to be part of the 

performance-based compensation program? (e.g., teach tested subject, full-time teacher)

If yes: What are these requirements?

3. Which of these services have you used to convey information about the program to school 

staff? (Ongoing and new staff)

• Workshops

• Program website

• Call or email center

• One-on-one consultation

• Other (specify)

4. What opportunities do you provide teachers and principals to earn additional pay through the 

TIF program? (e.g. leadership roles, teaching a high-need subject)

5. Can a teacher or principal opt out of the program?

If yes: Can the teacher or principal choose to opt in later?

6. What happens when a teacher or principal transfers to a different school? (From a TIF to a nonTIF school or vice versa.) 

a. Does that teacher’s evaluation continue from where it started? 

b. Can the teacher still receive a bonus, or bonuses?

D. Obtaining Stakeholder Buy-in 

1. Did participation in your TIF program require a vote and approval by your district’s teacher 

union?

a. Were schools given the option of voting to participate in the TIF program? 

b. Were there additional concerns or complications for participating in the national TIF 

evaluation?

2. How do you keep current and new participants informed about aspects of the program?

3. What techniques do you use to communicate information about the program and its benefits?

4. Is there a process for program participants to provide feedback about the program? 

5. Did you encounter any resistance to the TIF program?

If yes: Who provided this resistance?

If a teachers’ union or teachers’ association is named: Did this resistance affect the 

implementation of the program?

If yes: Please describe how it affected the program implementation.
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E. Evaluating and Rewarding Educator Performance

1. How are principals evaluated in your program?

2. How do you measure effectiveness for teachers in tested grades/subjects? 

a. In untested grades/subjects?

3. Do teachers set their own goals? 

4. Do principals set their own goals?

5. Do teachers or principals have to apply to be considered for a performance award?

6. Will performance-based bonuses or awards for teachers be based on one overall performance 

rating, or separate ratings for each criterion?

If yes: 

a. What criteria are included in this overall rating?

b. How do you weight the different criteria? 

c. Are there separate awards for different criteria? 

If yes:

1. What are they? 

2. What is the range of the amounts that participants can earn for each one?

7. Are classroom observations used to evaluate teacher performance?

If yes:

1. Who trains the classroom observers?

2. Describe the observation tool or rubric that is used. Is it commercially published or 

district created?

8. Do you have different ways of evaluating teachers who teach in untested grades or subjects?

If yes: How do you evaluate teachers in untested grades or subjects?

9. Are teachers or principals required to do anything additional to receive a performance award

(e.g., open their classrooms to observers)? 

10. How, and by whom, is it determined who will receive additional pay for performance?

a. How is the amount awarded determined?

b. Who must approve the additional pay before it is awarded?

11. Can a teacher or principal appeal or dispute his or her performance pay or award amount?

If yes: Is there a formal appeals process for teachers or principals have such a dispute?

If yes: Please briefly describe this process.
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F. Professional Development

1. Do you provide professional development opportunities for teachers and/or principals to 

explain the measures that are used to determine effectiveness?

If yes: Who provides it, and briefly describe how it is done.

2. Are there any differences between the professional development provided to teachers in 

treatment schools and teachers in control schools?

If yes: How does the professional development differ?

3. How is the professional development that is offered under the TIF grant different from that 

provided prior to TIF?

a. Are there ways in which professional development under the TIF grant is more targeted 

than prior to the grant?

If yes: Please explain.

G. Challenges and Experiences

1. What has been challenging so far about implementing the program?

2. What were your district’s most significant start-up challenges? 

3. Based on your experiences, would you have done anything differently?

If yes: Please describe.

4. What changes, if any, do you plan to implement to the TIF program in the next school year?