[PHIC] SAF Exit Survey and Focus Groups

Form Approved
OMB No. 0920-1163

Expiration Date: 02/28/2026

Attachment 5. 2024 CDC Science Ambassador Fellowship Focus Group Discussion Guide

BACKGROUND & INSTRUCTIONS

Overarching Evaluation Questions	Discussion Guide Questions:
To what extent has the SAF program delivered high quality virtual EPHS training sessions for fellows and alumni?	1, 2
To what extent did the SAF program improve the integration of EPHS into the secondary school STEM curricula of participating educators?	3
To what extent has the SAF program improved the capacity of participating secondary STEM educators to effectively teach EPHS?	4
To what extent did fellows share their experience with other teachers in their school(s) or community? (Proposed)	5

Discussion Guide Section	Approximate Time
Introductions	10 minutes
Discussion	49 minutes
Conclusion	1 minutes
Total	60 minutes

Facilitator Instructions:

• Be familiar with the discussion guide prior to your session.

• Italicized text are instructions or section titles and should not be read aloud.

• Copy and paste the question into the chat as you introduce each question verbally.

• Ask probes whenever the group has not already provided the information.

  • TIP: It may be useful to use the checkboxes next to the probes to note when participants cover a topic so that you do not ask for information that has already been provided (or forget to ask for information that has not been provided).

• Stay on track and watch the time. If the discussion gets off topic, stop the discussion and ask that the note-taker note that this is a topic for further discussion at a different time.

• Call on participants if others are dominating the discussion and/or if they have not provided input to a question.

• Remain neutral - do not show judgement or options.

  • TIP: General, neutral probes to use throughout session:

    • Tell me more...

• Can you explain further…

• Can you give an example...

• Can you say more about that?

• [Summarize what you heard, and ask if the group agrees]

• Review and verify the notes after the session and before the note-taker submits them.

• Always keep your video on (unless for unforeseen circumstances). Remain muted if someone else is talking.

DISCUSSION GUIDE

Good afternoon. Thank you for joining us today. My name is [facilitator name] and I am joined by [notetaker’s name] who will be helping take notes today. The purpose of this discussion is to share your experiences in the Science Ambassador Fellowship (SAF) and to provide feedback to help us improve the fellowship program. As you near the end of your fellowship, we would like to ask you a few questions about the program, its impact on you and your teaching, and what we can do to improve it. Please speak only to your experience and respect the experiences of others that might be different from your own. We would like to hear everyone’s reflections but not everyone is required to answer each question. While only one person is able to talk at a time, you can use the chat feature to agree or add on to what is being said. All of the information collected today will be de-identified, anonymized, and a report with aggregate findings will be shared with program staff. Please be on camera if you can.

Now, I am going to share some information with you about how this data collection meets requirements for the Paperwork Reduction Act and how to contact us if you have comments.

Public reporting burden of this collection of information is estimated to average 60 minutes 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 Reports Clearance Officer; 1600 Clifton Road NE, MS H21-8 Atlanta, Georgia 30329; ATTN: PRA (0920-1163).

Now, we would like everyone to briefly introduce themselves with their name, the state they live in, and the age groups they teach, if any. [If no one volunteers, ask someone to introduce themselves]

Ok, great! Thanks for sharing that. Let’s get started with the questions.

1. Did the Science Ambassador Fellowship meet your expectations? Why or why not?

   1. Probe: Can you describe what you expected from the fellowship when you applied?

2. Thinking about the sessions conducted virtually over Zoom that were NOT activity check-ins, did you find them valuable to your learning or professional development? Why or why not?

   1. Probe: How can we improve these sessions to make them more relevant?

   2. Probe: How can we make these sessions easier to attend? For example, should we offer a two-week intensive schedule in the Fall?

3. If relevant, can you provide an example of how the SAF has changed how you integrate epidemiology or other public health topics in your classroom?

   1. Probe: Looking forward, how do you plan to integrate epidemiology and public health topics in your classes?

4. How has your confidence in your ability to teach epidemiology or other public health topics changed since beginning the SAF?

   1. Probe: What factors do you think contributed to this change?

5. How did you share the information you received from SAF with other teachers in your school or your larger community?

   1. How can SAF better support you in serving as an ambassador for the program?

6. Before we close, is there anything else you would like to share regarding what we discussed today?

Thank you for participating in our discussion today. Your experiences and feedback will help us plan future iterations of the program.