### 2015 **- 16** 

**NATIONAL TEACHER AND PRINCIPAL SURVEY (NT**  **PS)**

**PRELIMINARY FIELD AC TIVITIES** 

OMB SUPPORTI

NG STATE MENT PART B
OMB# 1850 - 0598 v .10

September 2014 **National Center For Education Statistics (NCES)** 

**TABLE OF CONTENTS** B. **Collection of information employing statistical methods** 1. Respondent Universe 1 2. Statistical Procedures for Collecting Information 1 3 . Methods for Maximizing Response Rates 2 4 . Tests of Procedures and Methods 3 5 . Reviewing Statisticians 31

**B. COLLECTION**  **OF INFORMATION**  **EMPLOYING STATISTICAL**  **METHODS** The purpose of this submission is to request clearance to contact and seek research approval from “ special contact districts ” and to send pre
- cont act letters to schools selec t ed for the 2015
- 2016 NTPS sample. The special contact districts are those known to require completion of a research application before they will allow schools under their jurisdiction to participate in a st udy . Based on an initial assessment of previous SASS data collections , we estimate that 3 20 special contact districts will be in the sample. The school pre
contact letter is to verify

school mailing addresses and to inform schools about the upcoming data collection. About 4% of all school addresses get corrected b y the U.S. Post Office in response to the pre
contact letter, saving time and effort during the actual data collection period. **1. Respondent Universe**  The respondent universe for the 2015
- 16 NTPS cons ists of approximately 95,750 public schools in the 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia (DC) that offer instruction in any of grades K
- 12. To be eligible for inclusion in the sample, schools must provide instruction to students, have one or more tea chers to provide instruction, serve students in at least one of grades 1
- 12 or the ungraded equivalent, must be located in one or more buildings, and must be located in the U.S. and not in the outlying areas or U.S. territories. NCES’ 201 2 - 1 3 Common Core o f Data (CCD) will be used to construct the public school sampling frame unless a more recent CCD file becomes available. **2. Statistical Procedures f**  **or Collecting Information 2.1.**  **Sampling** In the first year of the study , approximately 7,8 00 public schools will be sampled from a school frame developed from the 2012
- 13 Common Core of Data Public School Universe file. The target number of cooperative, eligible schools is 5, 3 00 ( assuming an eligibility rate of 94% and a response rate of 70%). The school sample is a stratified, probability proportionate to size sample, with measure of size equal to the square root of school FTE (full
- time equivalent teachers). A teacher roster will be collected from the cooperating, eligible schools, and a sample of approximately 40 ,500 teachers will be drawn from these teacher rosters. The target number of teacher interviews is 2 7 ,000: a mean value of 5 teachers per school ( assuming an eligibility

rate of 96% and a response rate of 70% for teachers). The mean number of sampled teachers p er sampled school is 7.5. The teacher sample sizes are proportional to the square root of school FTE, and teachers are sampled from the school teacher rosters in a stratified, equal probability sample. Charter schools and teachers, combined schools and teachers, and ‘town’ schools and teachers are oversampled to achieve domain precision targets. The resultant school and teacher samples are nationally representative probability samples. Final sample sizes and selection procedures will be included in the dat a collection package submission. **2.2 Response Rates**  Approximately

94% of the special districts contacted in the 2011
- 12 SASS responded to a request for external research. These responses were either : unconditional approval (39.8%), conditional approval ( 7.3%), or refusal (47.2%). The Census Bureau has identified districts that have refused multiple rounds of SASS for special outreach. We plan to engage senior NCES staff and others with personal contacts at these districts in our efforts to gain approval for NTPS this cycle. **2.3 Procedures for Collection o**  **f Information** The special district contact operations for the 2015
- 16 NTPS will be based on those used in the 2011
-2

2012 data collection
. D istricts are identified as ‘special districts’ prior to data collection because they were flagged as such during previous cycles of SASS or other NCES studies , or identified during updating district information based on what is found in online sources
. The application process for each individual district is obt ained either through direct contact via phone or e
- mail or through the district website. Most districts require that the following documents be provided in the research request packet:
 Study proposal with a timeline of the study  Study Abstract and/or Executive Summary  IRB approval (NTPS is exempt from seeking IRB approval)  Consent form  Project Director ’s resume  Copy of any communications that would be sent to participants  Copy of questionnaires Some districts require a processing fee (approximately $50
- $2 00) before the research proposal can be evaluated. **3. Methods**  **f**

**or Maximizing Response Rates** A variety of procedures will be employed to ensure high response rates at both the level of the responding unit (i.e., sample member) and at the level of the individual survey items in each survey

questionnaire. A pilot test to look at optimal contact strategies was approved in July 2014 ( OMB# 1850 - 0803 v.105 ) and will begin in October 2014. The final NTPS design will be based on results from this study
. The entire survey

process, starting with securing research cooperation from key public school groups and individual sample members and continuing throughout the distribution and collection of individual questionnaires, is designed to increase survey response rat es. In addition, we believe that the following elements of the data collection plan, in particular, will contribute to overall success of the survey and will enhance the survey

response rates. (1) Visible support from top
- level Federal, State, and local education officials
. Without the support of high
- level officials in the U.S. Department of Education, State Education Agenc ies , and the sampled local school districts , survey s of public school principals and teachers cannot be successfull y implemented. Obtaining endorsements from these officials is a critical factor in the success of the data collection procedures. Top
- level Education Department officials will need to fully support the data collection by endo rsing the survey

in writing and sending advance letters and notices to sampled districts' Superintendents, and individual survey participants (principals and teachers) to encourage participation. (2) Endorsements from key public school groups . The level of int erest and cooperation demonstrated by key groups can often greatl y influence the degree of participation of survey respondents. Endorsements are viewed as a critical factor in soliciting cooperation from state and local education officials. The NTPS is seeking endorsement by the following organizations or agencies: American Association of School Administrators Association of Supervision and Curriculum Development American Federation of Teachers American Counseling Association Association for Middle Level Ed ucation National Science Foundation3 Council of Chief State School Officers Council of the Great City Schools National Association of Elementary School Principals National Association of Secondary School Principals National Education Association (3) Stressing the importance of the survey and the respondents' participation
. Official letters (advance notification, inside the questionnaire , and follow
- up) from the NCES Commissioner of Education Statistics will be used to motivate respondents to return surveys. The additional personalization of survey materials (cover letters and survey packets with teachers' names) is also expected to have positive effects on the response rates. (4) Minimize the survey burden on school
- level authorities
. The procedures for the survey s are designed to minimize the survey burden on schools and sampled individuals (principals and teachers) and the survey

instruments have been designed to be completed as quickly and easil y as possible. Good questionnaire design techniques have been employed to minimize item nonresponse. All completed questionnaires from the 2011
- 12 SASS have been carefull y analyz ed to determine which items had the highest levels of item nonresponse. This information guided NCES in reviewing the clarity of item wording, definitions, and instructions. It ems that were not considered to be effective or useful were deleted so as to streamline the questionnaire s and ease the response burden. NTPS also plans to provide links to or incorporate data from other NCES collections such as EDfacts and the Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC) into final datasets to allow researchers and policy makers to include additional data in their analy ses . This will further reduce the need to collect data from schools that have already been collected at the state or district level. (5) Seeking the recruitment of a school coordinator
. An important procedural measure for helping to maximize response rates is the plan to establish a school
- based "survey coordin ator" to serve as a primary point of contact for NTPS staff
. The use of a school coordinator is expected to help keep response rates high, provide some minimal data quality checks, and simplify

the follow
- up process by having one point of contact. **4. Tests O**  **f Procedures And Methods** As noted previousl y, the 2015
- 16 NTPS is built on the experience of previous rounds of SASS. Results from the pilot test that will start in October 2014 will be implemented in the final NTPS design. These results and the final design will be described in the 2015
- 16 NTPS OMB data collection clearance package to be submitted in earl y 2015. **5. Reviewing Statisticians**  The following statisticians are contributing to the NTPS sample design Randall Parmer , U.S. Census Bureau , Suitland, MD Edward Mulrow , NORC , Bethesda, MD Kirk Wolter , NORC , Chicago, IL David Marker , Westat , Rockville, MD Lou Rizzo , Westat , Bethesda, MD Sharon L ohr , Westat , Bethesda, MD Andrew Zukerberg , NCES, Washington, DC Marily n Seastrom, NCES, Washington, DC