Schools get graded
Educators weigh in on their schools via survey
TODD ENGDAHL, EDUCATION NEWS COLORADO
Monday, June 29, 2009
By TODD ENGDAHL
EDUCATION NEWS COLORADO
What do Colorado educators think about their supervisors, roles in decision-making, school working conditions and the amount of time they have available to do their jobs? Results of a new state survey provide some insights.
The TELL (Teaching, Empowering, Leading and Learning Initiative) was required by a 2008 state law, and the first survey was conducted online between April 13 and May 11.
While researchers are still analyzing the results, statewide data is now available through the Colorado Department of Education Web site. District and school data is available to administrators and teachers for districts and buildings where there were sufficient participation.
Responses, it should be noted, were received from only about a third of the state’s teachers, building administrators and other professionals. The response rate was 36 percent, or 23,108 of the 64,050 eligible to participate. Of the state’s 178 school districts, 50 had a response rate of 40 percent or better and 20 or more responses. There were sufficient responses from 624 schools.
Here’s a snapshot of some survey results, taken from an initial findings memo by Eric Hirsch of the New Teacher Center, the research firm that ran the project. Overall, 73 percent of respondents said their schools were good places to work and learn.
Professional plans
and influences
• Ffity-six percent want to continue working at their schools long term;
• Sixteen percent want to remain in education in Colorado;
• Three percent want to leave education now;
• Nine percent expected to leave education at some point;
• Listed as important factors affecting their personal professional plans were (in declining order): support from administration, collegial atmosphere, time to finish work during the school day, their assignments and salary.
Time
• Forty-five percent of respondents said they have sufficient instructional time to meet the needs of all students;
• Thirty-nine percent said they have enough non-instructional time to plan and collaborate;
• Forty-eight percent said time factors were the most important condition to promote student learning, more important than teacher empowerment, facilities, resources and school leadership;
• Fifty-three percent agreed there’s adequate time for professional development;
• Thirty-seven percent of the nearly 550 principals who responded feel they have enough time for instructional leadership.
Materials, space
and technology
• Sixty-sevent percent believe there’s sufficient access to appropriate instructional materials;
• Eighty-four percent agree their appropriate access to communications technology;
• Forty-eight percent believe teachers have adequate technology training;
• Seventy-three percent agree they have adequate professional space;
• Eighty-five percent believe schools are safe;
• Sixty-nine percent feel their schools have an adequate amount of professional staff.
Administration
• Fifty-five percent agree that teachers are integrally involved in decision-making;
• Forty-two percent feel teachers have an appropriate level of influence on decision-making;
• Fifty-six percent say teachers have no role in deciding professional development activities;
• Fifty-five percent agree their school leadership is effective;
• Sixty-five percent feel performance evaluations are fair;
• Fifty-seven percent say their school has an atmosphere of mutual trust and respect.
Of the respondents, 48 percent agree that state assessments are useful in improving student learning and in timeliness, and 73 percent agree their school does a good job of encouraging parent involvement.
Legislators who support House Bill 08-1384 believed that a regular survey of working educators would provide data that could be useful when considering school finance, education reform and other issues. Survey results are not used for accountability or staff evaluation purposes, and it’s hoped that results for individual schools will be the basis for discussion among building faculty and administrators. Some other states do similar surveys.
The $100,000 survey was open to certified personnel plus charter teachers. Principals responded to an additional set of questions. Individual letters, signed by Gov. Bill Ritter and education Commissioner Dwight Jones, were distributed by union officials, principals and the Colorado League of Charter Schools. (The Colorado Education Association, the Colorado Association of School Boards and the Colorado Association of School Executives also partnered with CDE to promote the effort.) Respondents were given unique code numbers to sign into the poll and had to finish the 20-minute survey in one take. (Questionnaires couldn’t be saved and finished at a later time.)
According to Hirsch’s memo, “An interim report will be completed this summer, providing more in-depth analysis of the survey results and analyses of the representativeness of respondents. A final report, analyzing the findings of the survey relative to student learning and teacher retention, will be submitted in the fall.”
School and district level survey results are to be released to public by about end of the year. School data will be available only if at least 50 percent of educators responded.
The New Teacher Center is located at the University of California at Santa Cruz.
Participation rates
Here’s a look at participation rates in the state’s 10 largest school districts. The average rate for the 10 was 34.1 percent.
• Adams 12 – 63 percent, 1,722 of 2,726 educators
• Aurora – 42 percent, 1,040 of 2,472
• Boulder Valley – 22.8 percent, 618 of 2,704
• Cherry Creek – 37.9 percent, 1,531 of 4,034
• Colorado Springs 11 – 27.5 percent, 696 of 2,531
• Denver – 22.2 percent, 1,322 of 5,935
• Douglas – 4.2 percent, 181 of 4,286
• Jefferson County – 53.2 percent, 3,294 of 6,190
• Poudre – 36.2 percent, 686 of 1,892
• St. Vrain – 39.5 percent, 705 of 1,785
Schools under the Charter School Institute reported 32.2 percent participation, 141 of 437.
The highest participation rate was in the Dolores RE-4A district, with 96.5 percent, 56 of 58. A handful of rural districts reported no participation.
Among Front Range districts, the highest participation was in Sheridan, 77.6 percent, 111 of 143; Brighton, 69 percent, 599 of 867, and Westminster, 63 percent, 415 of 658.
Hirsch told EdNews that participation rates vary by state and, importantly, by how many times a survey has been conducted. A 2009 survey in Vermont had a 45.6 percent rate, while a Maryland survey had 61.9 percent. Some 86.7 percent of educators participated in a 2008 North Carolina study. But, Hirsch said, that was the fourth time the study had been done. The first, in 2002, had a 34 percent participation rate.
