Who are you

FAQ:
Participating in the Project

How can we help?

Q: Do I have to participate?
A: No. Your participation is voluntary.
Q: I am a principal: What do I have to do?
A: 1) As soon as you receive an invitation email from MM, give us permission to conduct this research in your school. 2) Appoint someone on your staff to act as school contact for us. 3) Encourage your math teachers to take the SEC online. 4) Some principals will be asked to complete a What Makes Schools Work survey. If you are one of them, MM will contact you and mail you a questionnaire. It takes about 30 minutes to complete. After you return the survey, we will thank you with a $30 Barnes and Noble gift certificate.
Q: I am a math teacher: What do I have to do?
A: 1) Login to a user-friendly webinar to learn about the SEC. Shortly after January 1, 2009, MM will email you webinar directions, dates, and times. 2) Follow the email instructions to pre-register for the survey, select your class, and complete the SEC online. For your efforts, we will thank you with a $50 Barnes and Noble gift certificate and survey reports.
Q: I am a school contact. What do I have to do?
A: 1) Review, edit, and approve your school's teacher list, which MM will email you. To thank you, we will send you a $100 Barnes and Noble gift certificate. 2) Coordinate and/or participate in a one-hour webinar training that will provide an overview of the survey process. 3) Encourage your math teachers to take the SEC online. If 80% or more from your school complete the survey, we will add $100 to the value of your gift certificate.
Q: Why do teachers need to select a class?
A: When pre-registering, teachers will be presented with one or more classes that are associated with that teacher in NWEA's records. There are two reasons that a teacher must select a class before taking the survey. 1) The survey must be completed with one class's practices and content in mind. 2) As part of the analysis for this study, we are looking at the relationship between survey responses and NWEA student achievement data. To do this, we need to know which students are in the classes of the teachers who teach math.
Q: This year's online survey is different from the one I took online last year-why?
A: Two reasons: the SEC gives us new information for understanding what makes schools work, and the SEC gives you immediate reports for understanding what makes your school and classroom work.
Q: How do I let you know I am willing to participate?
A: There are four steps to participation:
  1. In fall, 2008, principals receive phone calls from MM, asking for permission to take part in the research and, if granted, for the name of a school contact person to act as liaison for the study.
  2. School contact persons provide MM with teacher names and email addresses in a teacher roster format that MM will send them.
  3. Between January and March 2009, math teachers receive emails from MM with a link to the SEC pre-registration and webinar information.
  4. Upon completing the webinar, math teachers receive a second email from MM with survey pre-registration, username, and link. To show your willingness to participate, simply complete and submit it within two weeks of receiving the email.
Q: What is the timeline?
A: Please take the survey within two weeks of receiving the email invitation with instructions.
Q: Who can I call with my questions?
A: Please call Mountain Measurement at 800-745-6142 if you have questions. Mountain Measurement is the research firm that is administering this survey on behalf of NWEA and Vanderbilt University.