Attachment 7: Sample Qualitative Instrument (Interview Guide)
DASH 1308-Strategy 4 Project: School Administrator Interview Guide on School Climate
Form Approved
OMB No. 0920-xxxx
Exp. Date xx/xx/xxxx
School Climate Index Interview Guide – School-Level Administrator Guide
Public reporting burden of this collection of information is estimated to average 1 hour per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden to CDC/ATSDR Information Collection Review Office, 1600 Clifton Road NE, MS D-74, Atlanta, Georgia 30333; ATTN: PRA (0920-xxxx).
DOMAINS TO BE COVERED: The
school administrator interview guides will be used to assess Domain
1b: School Level Policy; Domain 2: Practice; Domain 4a: School Level
Professional Development; Domain 5: Place; and Domain 6: Pedagogy
INTERVIEW PARTICIPANTS:
It is anticipated that two separate interviews with individual school administrators (principals, vice principals, etc.) will take place. The selected school administrators should be responsible for one or more of the following areas:
Implementation of district level policy that is inclusive of or focused on LGBTQ youth or addressing student conduct, safety or diversity
Implementation and oversight of school programming
Approval and selection of school programs, student activities and the promotion of these programs and activities in the physical school environment
Professional development opportunities for school staff
Guidance to teachers in implementing curriculum.
In planning the interviews, the domains to be covered for each interview will be combined based on the areas for which the administrator is responsible, to create two unique interviews, so that each domain is only covered once between the two interviews. The interview questions for each domain will be covered only once during one of the two school administrator interviews. If one administrator is responsible for all of the domains, only one interview will be conducted.
INTERVIEW LENGTH:
The length of the school administrator interviews will be determined by the number of domains to be covered in each interview. It is estimated that each interview will last up to one hour, and regardless of the way domains and are combined or divided between interviews, no interview will exceed one hour.
Introduction: Thank you for agreeing to meet with us today. I am __________and I work for a company called ICF International. We are working with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Division of Adolescent and School Health (DASH), Broward County Public Schools, and the Hetrick Martin Institute to help your district learn more about the school climate for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning (or LGBTQ) students.
Before we begin, I would like to review a few points and confirm if you provide your permission to participate. These points are also reflected on the copy of the consent statement that I gave you:
This interview is completely voluntary. You do not have to take part in this interview. Whether or not you take part in this project will not affect your job or the services your school receives from the district.
With your permission, we will audio-record the interview.
Your name will not be linked with the notes or audio recording from this interview. No quotes or comments you make will be linked with your name in any way. Your name will not be used in any publications or reports about these interviews.
We will only share overall findings from these interviews with the school district, and we will protect your identity as a respondent.
You may choose to not take part in the interview at any time. You may also choose to not answer certain questions and still continue in the discussion.
We expect this interview to take about 60 minutes, and you will receive a $25 gift card to thank you for participating in this project.
In order for this process to be useful to the school and the district, it is important that you describe the school climate as it REALLY is, and not how it’s “supposed to be.” We would like to learn about all aspects of the school climate as they are now – as well as areas in which changes are being implemented or not – so that we have a basis for comparing changes that occur over time.
At the end of our discussion, we will also provide a list of resources that may be helpful to the school in improving the school climate for LGBTQ students. Your copy of the consent statement also has the contact information for the principal investigator of this evaluation, who you can contact if you have any questions about today’s interview.
Do you agree to participate? YES NO
Do I have your permission to record the interview? YES NO
If yes, continue: Thank you. ***TURN ON RECORDER***
SUGGESTED INTERVIEW TIME: 15-30 minutes
The questions for this interview are divided into two parts: primary and secondary questions. Ask the primary questions first and move into secondary questions only if the primary questions are covered during the first 15 minutes of the interview.
In this part of the interview we’ll ask about the extent to which your school is implementing policies adopted at the district level that support a safe and supportive school environment for LGBTQ students. We would like to hear about how you share policy information with school staff, parents and students, and how procedures are put in place to carry out the policies. We are not here to judge your school, but to understand how you work in this area and the challenges and successes that you have experienced. Please answer to the best of your ability, and feel free to ask questions at any time.
Note to interviewer: At the beginning of the interview, share the list of policies provided by the district and confirm that the school administrators are aware of the policies. If no documents were provided begin the interview with the following:
“To start with, please give me a short description of the policies your district has that support a safe and supportive school environment for LGBTQ students.”
PRIMARY QUESTIONS:
1. How does your school communicate information about these policies to:
School staff members (probe for specific staff: teachers, coaches, bus drivers, etc.)?
Students?
Parents?
2. What kinds of questions do school staff members, students or parents have about the policies? What about objections to the policies?
3. What is the process at your school for handling incidents or complaints related to these policies? (Probe for specific process and steps)
When any of the policies were implemented, was there an increase in reporting of bullying or harassment of LGBTQ students?
4. How do you feel that the policy contributes to safe and supportive environment for LGBTQ youth? Please give specific examples if you can think of any.
SECONDARY QUESTIONS:
1. Are you ever asked to give feedback about whether the policies are helpful in maintaining a safe and supportive environment? If yes, please describe.
2. What are the biggest successes and challenges that you feel these policies have presented?
Interviewer instructions: If this is the first part of the interview, review the consent statement and ask for permission to record prior to proceeding. If there is one or more new interviewees, review the consent statement before proceeding.
SUGGESTED INTERVIEW TIME: 30 MINUTES
In this part of the interview, we’ll ask about the extent to which your school has adopted and implemented practices supportive of LGBTQ students in order to shape a culture of inclusion and respect. For example, we are interested in any actions taken to welcome LGBTQ youth to school events such as dances, sports teams, and other activities that take place at the school. We realize that some of these questions may be about areas where specific actions are not being taken, or are in the planning phase. We are not here to judge your school on these things but rather, we are interested in your perspective on what is happening in this area and how your school handles issues that may arise. Please answer to the best of your ability, and feel free to ask questions at any time.
Note to interviewer: The questions are divided into primary and secondary sections. Ask the primary questions for each area, and go back to ask the secondary questions if time permits after the primary questions have been covered for each area.
AREA: TERMINOLOGY
PRIMARY QUESTION:
1. Are school staff members encouraged to practice gender-inclusive language? (i.e., using the term “significant other”, “person you are dating” rather than “husband/wife”, “girlfriend/boyfriend” etc.?) Do you think they use gender-inclusive language as a general practice?
SECONDARY QUESTION:
1. If a student requests to be referred to as a different gender, or to be called a name that is not consistent with the sex they were assigned at birth, how does the school handle this request? How do you think teachers handle this request?
AREA: EVENTS AND PROGRAMS
PRIMARY QUESTIONS
1. Please describe any ways that your school tries to ensure that school events are inclusive and safe for LGBTQ students.
Can same-sex couples attend school dances as a couple?
If a group of students is planning an event or dance, can posters advertising the dance show same gender and opposite gender couples?
2. Does your school do anything special to ensure that physical education classes and sports programs are welcoming and safe for LGBTQ youth?
If a student is not comfortable wearing the required uniform, can they wear clothing in which they are comfortable for physical education class or sports programs?
3. Does your school have a diversity and/or cultural education program? If so, please describe it;
How are LGBTQ people included in the program?
4. Does your school have a Safe Zone program, or another school-wide program, in which trained staff display posters or stickers indicating that their office or classroom is a safe and welcoming space for LGBTQ students?
Are staff required to complete training in order to participate in the program? If yes, who provides the training?
SECONDARY QUESTIONS:
1. Are there any events where staff who are in same sex couples are permitted to bring their partners or spouses?
2. Do you think that staff at your school are made to feel welcome in bringing their partners or spouses to school events, regardless of whether they are in a same sex or opposite sex relationship?
3. Is a variety of physical education activities offered and advertised as welcoming to all students?
Are physical education activities offered that accommodate a variety of body types and levels of physical contact? (i.e., volleyball as well as football)
To what extent are co-ed sports opportunities offered?
AREA: SCHOOL SERVICES
PRIMARY QUESTIONS:
1. What efforts, if any, has your school made to include resources for LGBTQ youth in referral lists and resource guides for students and staff?
If community agencies provide services on campus, are LGBTQ-serving agencies included?
2. Are there health resources—including mental health services—available that specifically address the needs of LGBTQ students?
SECONDARY QUESTIONS:
1. Does your school do anything special to ensure that health services and other student services are welcoming and inclusive for LGBTQ students?
Do advertisements for services explicitly state that LGBTQ youth are included?
Interviewer instructions: If this is the first part of the interview, review the consent statement and ask for permission to record prior to proceeding. If there is one or more new interviewees, review the consent statement before proceeding.
SUGGESTED INTERVIEW TIME: 15 MINUTES
In this section of the interview, we will ask about the extent to which your school provides or supports opportunities for ALL staff to participate in professional development activities focused on meeting the needs of LGBTQ students and promoting a safe and supportive school environment. Although the district may require or offer training in these areas, this section is focused on how your school may encourage staff to attend training specifically in this area, and provide additional on-site resources and in-service opportunities. For this discussion, professional development can include training sessions, in-service, webinars, online training modules, resources provided on a website, and other types of professional development that you may describe.
Please answer to the best of your ability, and feel free to ask questions at any time.
1. Please describe, to your knowledge, the level of participation of staff from your school in professional development opportunities related to working with LGBTQ students that have been offered through the district.
What were the specific topics?
What types of staff attended (teachers, mental health counselors, lunch room staff, etc.)
2. Does your school conduct any additional professional development activities related to working with LGBTQ students? Please describe them in terms of:
Specific topic
Format (in-service, online, bulletins, etc.)
Frequency
Provider
Topic areas relevant to LGBTQ students or issues
SUGGESTED INTERVIEW TIME: 15
MINUTES
Interviewer instructions: If this is the
first part of the interview, review the consent statement and ask for
permission to record prior to proceeding. If there is one or more new
interviewees, review the consent statement before proceeding.
Note to interviewers: The questions for this interview are divided into two parts: primary and secondary questions. Ask the primary questions first and move into secondary questions only if time permits.
In this section of the interview, we will ask about the extent to which schools have established a built-environment that reflects diversity and is inclusive of LGBTQ students and promotes a safe and supportive school environment. The built-environment is defined as physical space (including classrooms, displays, bathrooms, etc.). We realize that some of these questions may be about areas where specific actions are not being taken, or are in the planning phase. We are not here to judge your school on what is currently happening but rather, we are interested in your perspective on what is happening in this area and how your school handles issues that may arise.
Please answer to the best of your ability, and feel free to ask questions at any time.
1. What specific actions are being taken or planned that can be visually observed to let LGBTQ students know that they are welcome at the school?
Interviewers: Allow respondent to answer and use probes only as needed.
PROBE: Visual markers include posters, rainbow flags, bulletin boards, or other visual images and/or phrases that are affirming and inclusive of LGBTQ youth
PROBE: Posting of notices about LGBTQ activities (like GSA meetings) or school-based or community resources
2. Are there certain areas of the school where keeping students safe is more challenging than others? For example, are there areas where more fights or assaults take place? What areas are those?
Are there any specific measures taken (or being planned) to increase safety in these or other areas?
PROBE: Gender neutral bathroom
options (meaning individual bathrooms)
PROBE: School safety agents or cameras in areas of the building that could be target zones for bullying, physical attack, and other forms of assault.
SUGGESTED INTERVIEW TIME:
15 MINUTES
Interviewer instructions: If this is the first
part of the interview, review the consent statement and ask for
permission to record prior to proceeding. If there is one or more new
interviewees, review the consent statement before proceeding.
Note to interviewers: The questions for this interview are divided into two parts: primary and secondary questions. Ask the primary questions first and move into secondary questions if time permits.
In this section of the interview we’ll ask about the extent to which your school’s curricula and teaching approaches are aimed at enhancing students’ understanding of diversity, inclusion, and the life experiences of LGBTQ people. We are interested in how teachers are encouraged or given resources to assist them in addressing these issues in the classroom, either through incorporation of specific topics into their lesson plans, or simply in the language they use and how they handle questions that may come up. We realize that some of these questions may be about areas where specific actions are not being taken, or are in the planning phase. We are not here to judge your school on what is currently happening but rather, we are interested in your perspective on what is happening in this area and how your school handles issues that may arise.
Please answer to the best of your ability, and feel free to ask questions at any time.
PRIMARY QUESTIONS:
1. What kind of guidance are teachers given for addressing diversity including sexual orientation, in the classroom?
Are teachers given any guidance for addressing stereotyping and exclusion?
How does the guidance given address using language that reflects diversity in sexual orientation, relationships and families?
SECONDARY QUESTIONS:
1. How do teachers address homophobic or transphobic language used by students in the classroom?
2. Are teachers evaluated on their ability to create an inclusive classroom? By inclusive classroom, I mean a classroom that is welcoming to all students, including LGBTQ students, in terms of physical appearance (visual displays, etc.), language and teaching style that recognizes diversity.
Please tell us how you gauge or evaluate teacher comfort, ability and success in creating an inclusive classroom.
That was the last of my questions. Is there anything else you want to say about the ways in which your school creates a safe and supportive environment for LGBTQ students that was not already addressed during the interview?
Thank you for taking the time to talk with me today. You have provided a lot of valuable information that will help us get a fuller picture of the climate in your district/school.
The Hetrick Martin Institute has compiled a list of resources related to this topic that may be of interest. (Provide a copy if respondent desires it.)
| File Type | application/vnd.openxmlformats-officedocument.wordprocessingml.document |
| Author | Elizabeth Kroupa |
| File Modified | 0000-00-00 |
| File Created | 2021-01-13 |