Spring 2015 Teacher Survey

[[Version: Teachers. On-line administration. Wave 1.]]

Understanding Your Participation in the Study

Welcome to the spring 2015 survey for school leaders about the feedback you give to teachers’ 

regarding their instruction as a part of the NM TEACH Educator Effectiveness System. 

Study Purpose. With funding from the federal Department of Education as a part of the 

Southwest Regional Educational Lab, this study is intended to learn about the feedback 

principals give to teachers under the NM TEACH Educator Effectiveness System, and teachers’ 

perceptions of that feedback. For more information about the study, please see {REL Southwest 

website}. In {month, year} REL Southwest researchers asked all New Mexico’s public school 

principals to participate in a study about evaluation feedback to teachers. Results will be used 

to provide New Mexico Public Education Department feedback regarding how to improve the 

NM TEACH Educator Effectiveness System training for principals and teachers.

Survey Purpose. This survey is intended to gather information on the provision of feedback to 

teachers after formal observations by school leaders. REL Southwest researchers will link your 

survey responses to basic employment information, such as race, ethnicity and years of 

experience that REL Southwest researchers will obtain from NM PED. Survey results will not be 

used to evaluate you, other teachers, or school leaders. REL Southwest researchers will ask 

study participants to fill out an on-line, 30-minute survey once in spring 2015 and again in 

spring 2016.

Procedures. Online completion of the survey should take approximately 30 minutes. By using 

your personal survey link provided in the invitation email, you will be able to complete the 

survey in multiple sessions; responses will be saved as you enter them. However, once you click 

“submit” at the very end of the survey, you will no longer be able to return.

Confidentiality. REL Southwest will keep all survey responses confidential and will only use 

them for the purpose of the study. Our reports will contain summaries, and responses will 

never be presented in any way that would permit readers to identify you or your school. No 

one at your school, district, or the state will have access to survey responses that include 

respondents’ names, school names, or other information that could potentially be used to 

identify individuals or schools.

Participants In each of the participating New Mexico public schools, REL Southwest has invited 

the principal to participate in this study Up to 10 teachers in your school were selected at 

random to be surveyed. 

Benefits. Your completion of this survey gives you the opportunity to reflect on and share your 

perspective about the teacher evaluation system. You will be providing valuable information 
that may help New Mexico Public Education Department improve the NM TEACH Educator 

Effectiveness System. 

Compensation. Within two weeks of completion of this online survey, you will receive via email 

a link to your $25 online gift card for completing the survey. We will provide another $25 

online gift card upon completion of the spring 2016 survey to each participant.

Risks. The risks associated with your participation in this study are minimal. 

Voluntary Participation. Your participation in this survey is completely voluntary. You can 

decide not to participate or to discontinue your participation at any time. A few survey 

questions, marked with a red asterisk, are required for routing to later questions.

Questions? If you have any questions about this survey or the study as a whole, please feel free 

to call us toll-free at {XXX}. You can also contact {XX}, the survey coordinator, at {email} or by 

phone at {XX}. If you have concerns or questions about your rights as a participant, contact the 

RAND IRB Office (which is responsible for the protection of project participants): {email}, toll 

free at {XX}, or c/o IRB, {address}.

[Required question] Informed Consent. By clicking the box below, you are indicating that you 

have read and understood the information provided to you about your participation in this 

survey.

 I have read and understood the information and choose to participate.. 

Thank you very much for your help in this important study!

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Using This Survey

Here are some tips that may help you navigate and complete this survey.

Returning to previous pages. Be sure to use the survey “go back to previous page” button at 

the bottom of the page. Do not use your browser’s back button—it will not work.

Returning to the survey itself. If you would like to complete the survey in multiple sessions—or 

if you accidentally get disconnected from the survey—you can return to your previous 

responses by clicking on the link that was in your invitation email. This will take you to where 

you left off (through the last full page you completed). You can keep returning until you click on 

the “submit” button on the final page of the survey.

Saving your responses. Your responses on any given survey page are saved when you click on 

either button at the bottom of the page (“save and go to next page” or “go back to previous 
page”). 

Adding optional comments. Toward the bottom of each survey page is a space where you can

write in any comments you may have pertaining to the questions on the page. This is 

completely optional.

----------------------------------------[INTERNAL CODES]-----------------------------------------------

[[Treatment code (treatment): REL Southwest will pre-identify via an internal code that will not 

be listed on the survey whether teacher respondent works at a school that belongs to the 

treatment group or the control group. treatment = 1 indicates teacher is in the treatment 

group. treatment = 0 = control group. Unless otherwise noted, survey questions will appear for 

both groups of teachers.]]

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Your Position and Job Responsibilities

[required] [q1] Which of the following best describes your current position as a teacher of K12 students? (Check one.)

 If you are not a teacher of K-12 students, or do not have teaching responsibilities in 

2014-2015, you have received this survey in error. Please let us know by replying to 

the invitation email or by calling {number}.

 Regular education teacher

 Special education teacher

 Other kind of teacher: ___________________________________

[q2x] What subject area(s) are you currently teaching ? (Check all that apply.)

 [q2a] English/language arts/reading/writing

 [q2b] Mathematics

 [q2d] Science

 [q2d] Social Studies

 [q2e] Foreign language(s)

 [q2f] Visual or performing arts (art, music, etc.)

 [q2g] Physical education/health education

 [q2h] Career/technical education

 [q2i] Other subject area(s): [include fill-in box]

[q3] Which one of the following three groups of teachers do you belong to? These groups are 
defined by New Mexico’s teacher evaluation system, NM TEACH. 

 Group A: tested subject, tested grade

 Group B: grade 3 – 12 subject not linkable to NM’s standard based assessments

 Group C: grade K-2 teacher

[q4]Which of the following best describes your current teaching arrangement? (Check one.)

 I teach a single group of students all or most of the day in multiple subject areas. 

(Traditional elementary arrangement; sometimes called “self-contained.”)

 I teach several classes of different students during the day in a particular subject (for 

example, math) or perhaps two subjects (for example, you teach some math classes and 

some science classes). (Traditional secondary arrangement; sometimes called “subjectspecific” or “departmentalized”; at elementary level, sometimes called “subject matter 

specialist.” Also typical arrangement for physical education, art, music, etc.)

 I mainly teach selected students released from (or in) their regular classes in specific 

skills or to address specific needs (for example, special education, reading, English as a 

second language, gifted and talented.) (Sometimes called “pull out”, “resource,” or 

“push in” instruction.)

 I am one of two or more teachers who are jointly responsible for teaching the same 

subject(s) to a group of students (for example, in the same classroom), all or most of the 

time and/or in a majority of classes. (Sometimes called “co-teaching” or “job share.”)

 Other (please describe): _______________________________________

[q5] Including this school year (2014-2015), how many years have you been teaching, total,

regardless of location?

Total years teaching: [fill in number: must be whole number less than 60]

[q6] Including this school year (2014-2015), how many years have you been teaching in your 

current school?

Years in current school: [fill in number: must be whole number less than 60]

[q7] Which of the following best describes your current position as a teacher of K-12 students? 

(Check all that apply)

 Spanish bilingual teacher

 Native American bilingual teacher

 Other bilingual teacher: ___________________________________

 Not a bilingual teacher
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Your Experiences This Year (SY 2014-2015) of Formal Observations for Evaluation 

Purposes 

[* required question] [q8] Thinking back over this whole school year 2014-2015, how many 

times were you formally observed by a school leader? School leader is defined as a principal, 

assistant principal, dean, or coach charged with authority to conduct formal observations of 

20+ minutes using the NM TEACH Observation Rubric {link to rubric}. 

 3 or more times

 2 times

 1 time

 0 times

 Other: ________________________________

[q9] [If q8 = 1, 2, or 3+ times] Use the slider to estimate how long the post-observation 

conferences typically took. Think only of conferences after formal observations; do not include 

informal feedback you might have received from classroom walk-throughs. 

[insert slider graphic here. Tick marks for 0 min, 15 min, 30 min, 45 min, 60 min, 75 min, 90 

min.]

[q10] How frequently did you receive informal feedback this year from a school leader—for 

example, “wow or wonder” statements after brief walk-throughs. 

 At least once a week 

 At least once a month

 At least once per semester or trimester

 Never

 Other: ___________________

[q11x] [If q8 = 1, 2, or 3+ times] Use the slider to indicate the extent to which you agree or 

disagree with the following statements about all of the conferences you had with a school 

leader following his or her formal observation(s) of your class this year (school year 2014-

2015). 

Disagree 

Strongly

Disagree 

Somewhat

Agree 

Somewhat

Agree 

Strongly

[q11a] The feedback session itself, separate
from professional development I may have 

been recommended to take, helped me 

improve my instruction.

[q11b] In each conference, I brought 

documents to the conference, documents 

such as the lesson plan, and PDP.

[insert slider here]

[q11c] In each conference, the school leader

brought documents to conference, such as my 

summative score and the most recent PDP.

[insert slider here]

[q11d]In each conference the school leader 

identified at least one positive practice that I 

do well.

[insert slider here]

[q11e] In each conference the school leader 

identified at least one challenge facing me. 

[insert slider here]

[q11f]In each conference, the school leader 

used my scores on the NM TEACH 

Observation Rubric to determine which 

instructional practices to praise or critique.

[insert slider here]

[q11g] In each conference, the school leader 

used my scores on the NM TEACH 

Observation Rubric to determine what 

professional development to recommend to 

the teacher.

[insert slider here]

[q11h] In each conference, the school leader

ended the conference on a positive note.

[insert slider here]

[q11i]Each conference followed a predictable 

format.

[insert slider here]

[q11j]In each conference ,y school leader and 

I mutually developed next steps for my 

instruction.

[insert slider here]

[q11k]I walked away with a clear 

understanding of my school leader’s 

feedback.

[insert slider here]

[q11l]My school leader listened to what I had 

to say during the conferences.

[insert slider here]

[q11m]The observations were done to me, 

rather than for me. 

[insert slider here]

[q11n]I received specific feedback about my [insert slider here]
performance. 

[q11o] I received actionable feedback about 

my performance.

[insert slider here]

[q11p]During the conferences, I committed 

to a specific set of next steps to improve my 

instruction. 

[insert slider here]

[q11q] ] In each conference, the school 

leader spoke for almost all of the time. 

[insert slider here]

[q11r] There was a high level of conflict in 

the conference. 

[insert slider here]

[q11s] In each conference I obtained 

recommendations for professional 

development tailored to my specific needs.

[insert slider here]

[q11t] I trusted and accepted the feedback I 

received. 

[insert slider here]

[q11u]I feel positive about the feedback I got 

during the conferences. 

[insert slider here]

[q11v] I enjoyed most of the postobservation feedback conferences.

[q11w] I was always provided with a written 

or online summary of the observation and my 

school leader’s comments on it. 

[insert slider graphic here]

[q12x] Please indicate whether you were ever rated this school year by your school leader as 

needing to improve upon or else excelling in the following observation items from NM TEACH, 

whether you received a recommendation to take up professional development (PD), and how you 

rate yourself on the item. Mark all that apply.

NM TEACH 

Observation Item

I was rated at 

least once as 

excelling on 

this item

I was rated at 

least once as 

needing to 

improve on 

this item

I was 

recommended 

to take PD 

because of 

this item

I don’t 

know how 

I was rated

How would 

you rate 

yourself 

this school 

year on this 

item? 

2A: Creating an 

environment of respect 

and rapport

[Ineffective, 

Minimally 

Effective, 

Effective, 

Highly 

Effective, 

Exemplary

I don’t 

know]
2B: Organizing 

Physical Space

2C: Establishing a 

culture for learning

2D: Managing 

classroom 

procedures

2E: Managing Student 

Behavior

3A: Communicating 

with Students

3B: Using questioning 

and discussion 

techniques

3C: Engaging students 

in learning

3D: Assessment in 

Instruction

3E: Demonstrating 

flexibility and 

responsiveness

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Professional Development You Received This Year (SY 2014-2015)

The questions on this page ask about all of the professional development you have participated 

in during the 2014-2015 school year, including summer 2014.

 Professional development includes (but is not limited to) workshops, inservices, 

coaching/mentoring, collaborative planning/study, courses, institutes, professional 

conferences, self-directed learning, and so forth.

 Consider mandatory/required professional development as well as voluntary 

professional development.

[q13x] Please indicate all of the topics below that one or more school leader recommend you 

take. In addition, please also include which topics were covered in professional development 

you actually participated in this year (2014-2015, including summer 2014), and topics that you 

would have liked to have participated in professional development, but it was not available to 

you. Select as many topics as apply.

A school 

leader 

recommen

ded I take 

this PD

I took the 

PD online

I received 

the PD in 

person

h

t
[q13a] Classroom management    

[q13b] Professionalism and communication in the classroom    

[q13c] Special education and inclusion    

[q13d] Standards-based lesson plans    

[q13e] Common Core Standards    

[q13f] Assessment (includes continuous assessment, portfolio 

assessment, Common Core aligned assessments)    

[q13g] Data-driven instruction    

[q13h] Early childhood    

[q13i] Instructional strategies or content in the content area(s) you 

teach—e.g., Mathematics; or Literacy PD    

[q13j] Response to Intervention    

[q13k] Teachscape Reflect training    

[q13l] Other NM TEACH training    

[q13m] Sheltering Instruction for Language development    

[q13n] Language Acquisition Design    

[q13o] Scaffolding instruction    

[q13p] Other: _______________________________    

[q13q] Other: _______________________________    

[q13r] Other: _______________________________    

[q14x] Thinking about the professional development you have participated in this year (2014-

2015, including summer 2014), use the slider to indicate how much you agree or disagree with 

each of the following statements. 

My professional development experiences this year...

Disagree 

Strongly

Disagree 

Somewhat

Agree 

Somewhat

Agree 

Strongly

[q14a] Were mostly developed by school 

leaders or teachers at my school.

[insert slider here]

[q14b] Were mostly job-embedded rather 

than one-time only sessions.

[insert slider here]

[q14a] Were varied and numerous enough to 

allow the school leader to customize PD 

recommendations based on my performance on 

specific domains of the NM TEACH 

[insert slider here]
Observation Rubric.{link}

[q14b] Have been useful for helping me 

improve the achievement of my students

[insert slider here]

[q14c]Have been useful for improving my 

instruction

[insert slider here]

[q14d]Have taken more time than they were 

worth

[insert slider here]

[q14e]Have been well aligned with the 

Common Core State Standards and/or 

curriculum based on these standards

[insert slider here]

[q15x]Use the slider to indicate how much you agree or disagree with each of the following 

statements about the support you have received related to your professional development 

experiences this year (SY 2014-2015, including summer 2014). 

Disagree 

Strongly

Disagree 

Somewhat

Agree 

Somewhat

Agree 

Strongly

[q15a] I had easy access to a list of the 

possible professional development courses or 

offerings I could take. 

[insert slider graphic here]

[q15c]My school leader(s) has encouraged 

and supported my participation in professional 

development.

[insert slider here]

[q15d]Sufficient resources (for example, 

substitute coverage, funding to cover 

expenses, stipends) have been available to 

allow me to participate in the professional 

development I need to teach effectively.

[insert slider here]

[q15e]I have had sufficient flexibility in my 

schedule to pursue the professional 

development opportunities recommended for 

me.

[insert slider here]

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Your Perceptions of the Quality of Your School’s Leadership Last Year

[q16] Rate your level of agreement with the following statement: “Overall, I was satisfied with 

the quality of my school’s leaders (principals, assistant principals, deans, department chairs) 

this year (school year 2014-2015).”
 Disagree strongly

 Disagree somewhat

 Agree somewhat

 Agree strongly 

[q17x] Thinking about this year (2014-2015), use the slider to indicate how much you agree or 

disagree with the following statements. “The school leaders who conduct formal observations 

of my classroom ... 

Disagree 

Strongly

Disagree 

Somewhat

Agree 

Somewhat

Agree 

Strongly

[q17a] Understand the subject 

matter content that I teach.

[insert slider here]

[q17b] Understand what skills are 

needed for teachers to foster 

meaningful student learning. 

[insert slider here]

[q17c] Foster an atmosphere of 

trust and mutual respect in my 

school.

[insert slider here]

[q17d] Understand the 3 rating 

components of the NM TEACH 

Summative Evaluation Report

(student achievement, observations, 

multiple measures). 

[insert slider here]

[q17e] Help to improve my 

teaching. 

[insert slider here]

[q17f] Are instructional leaders. [insert slider here]

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Your Personal Views of NM TEACH Educator Effectiveness System

[q18x]Use the slider to rate how much you agree or disagree with each of the following 

statements about the NM TEACH Educator Effectiveness System from school year 2014-2015. 

Disagree 

Strongly

Disagree 

Somewhat

Agree 

Somewhat

Agree 

Strongly

[q18a]The NM TEACH Educator 

Effectiveness System does a good job 

distinguishing effective from ineffective 

teachers.

[insert slider here]
[q18b]The NM TEACH Educator 

Effectiveness System is fair to all teachers, 

regardless of their personal characteristics or 

those of the students they teach.

[insert slider here]

[q18c]The NM TEACH Educator Effectiveness 

System ignores important aspects of teacher 

performance.

[insert slider here]

[q18d]The NM TEACH Educator 

Effectiveness System has helped me pinpoint 

specific things I can do to help improve my 

performance.

[insert slider here]

[q18e] I understand how the overall teacher 

ratings work in the NM TEACH Educator 

Effectiveness System.

[insert slider graphic here]

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Your NM TEACH Summative Evaluation Score 

[q19]Do you know what your level of Educator Effectiveness (Ineffective, Minimally Effective, 

Effective, Highly Effective, Exemplary) was for the school year 2014-2015? 

 Yes

 No

[q20] [if q19=yes] How did you learn your level of Educator Effectiveness for the school year 

2014-2015? Select all that apply.

 I received it via email from New Mexico Public Education Department

 I logged into my teacher portal online

 A school leader told me 

 I received it via my mailbox at school 

 Other: ______________________

 Other: ______________________

 I don’t recall

[q21] [if q19=yes] Did a school leader ever discuss with you how to improve your Educator 

Effectiveness score? 
 Yes, we had a conference

 Yes, in passing

 No

 I don’t recall 

[q22] [if q19=yes] Did a school leader ever discuss with you how to interpret your student 

achievement growth score? 

 Yes, we had a conference

 Yes, in passing

 No

 Not Applicable

 I don’t recall 

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Optional Comments from You

The following four questions are optional if you have any feedback you wish to share. If you do 

not, proceed to the next and final page.

[q23] Do you have any comments about the NM TEACH Observation Rubric? 

[q24] Do you have any comments about professional development available to teachers in 

your district?

[q25] Do you have any comments about the NM TEACH Educator Effectiveness System?

[q26] Do you have any feedback about this survey? 

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Thank You!

Thank you so much for your time to complete this survey. 

Within the next 2 weeks, you will receive an email message with instructions about how to 

claim your gift card. This email message will come from {iCard (services@icardgiftcard.com)} 
and will be sent to the same email address at which you received the survey invitation, unless 

you indicate otherwise here:

 Yes, please send my gift card information to the same email address to which you sent the 

survey invitation.

 Please send my gift card information to a different email address, which I am providing 

here: _______________

 No, I do not wish to receive a gift card email from {iCard}.

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Thanks Again

You have completed the survey and may now close it.