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Precollege Science and Mathematics Teachers: Monitoring Supply, Demand, and Quality (1990)

Chapter: Appendix B: National Data Sets Relating to Demand, Supply, and Quality of Precollege Science and Mathematics Teachers

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Suggested Citation:"Appendix B: National Data Sets Relating to Demand, Supply, and Quality of Precollege Science and Mathematics Teachers." National Research Council. 1990. Precollege Science and Mathematics Teachers: Monitoring Supply, Demand, and Quality. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/1597.
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Suggested Citation:"Appendix B: National Data Sets Relating to Demand, Supply, and Quality of Precollege Science and Mathematics Teachers." National Research Council. 1990. Precollege Science and Mathematics Teachers: Monitoring Supply, Demand, and Quality. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/1597.
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Suggested Citation:"Appendix B: National Data Sets Relating to Demand, Supply, and Quality of Precollege Science and Mathematics Teachers." National Research Council. 1990. Precollege Science and Mathematics Teachers: Monitoring Supply, Demand, and Quality. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/1597.
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Suggested Citation:"Appendix B: National Data Sets Relating to Demand, Supply, and Quality of Precollege Science and Mathematics Teachers." National Research Council. 1990. Precollege Science and Mathematics Teachers: Monitoring Supply, Demand, and Quality. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/1597.
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Suggested Citation:"Appendix B: National Data Sets Relating to Demand, Supply, and Quality of Precollege Science and Mathematics Teachers." National Research Council. 1990. Precollege Science and Mathematics Teachers: Monitoring Supply, Demand, and Quality. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/1597.
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Suggested Citation:"Appendix B: National Data Sets Relating to Demand, Supply, and Quality of Precollege Science and Mathematics Teachers." National Research Council. 1990. Precollege Science and Mathematics Teachers: Monitoring Supply, Demand, and Quality. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/1597.
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Suggested Citation:"Appendix B: National Data Sets Relating to Demand, Supply, and Quality of Precollege Science and Mathematics Teachers." National Research Council. 1990. Precollege Science and Mathematics Teachers: Monitoring Supply, Demand, and Quality. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/1597.
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Suggested Citation:"Appendix B: National Data Sets Relating to Demand, Supply, and Quality of Precollege Science and Mathematics Teachers." National Research Council. 1990. Precollege Science and Mathematics Teachers: Monitoring Supply, Demand, and Quality. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/1597.
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Page 225
Suggested Citation:"Appendix B: National Data Sets Relating to Demand, Supply, and Quality of Precollege Science and Mathematics Teachers." National Research Council. 1990. Precollege Science and Mathematics Teachers: Monitoring Supply, Demand, and Quality. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/1597.
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Page 226
Suggested Citation:"Appendix B: National Data Sets Relating to Demand, Supply, and Quality of Precollege Science and Mathematics Teachers." National Research Council. 1990. Precollege Science and Mathematics Teachers: Monitoring Supply, Demand, and Quality. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/1597.
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Page 227
Suggested Citation:"Appendix B: National Data Sets Relating to Demand, Supply, and Quality of Precollege Science and Mathematics Teachers." National Research Council. 1990. Precollege Science and Mathematics Teachers: Monitoring Supply, Demand, and Quality. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/1597.
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Page 228
Suggested Citation:"Appendix B: National Data Sets Relating to Demand, Supply, and Quality of Precollege Science and Mathematics Teachers." National Research Council. 1990. Precollege Science and Mathematics Teachers: Monitoring Supply, Demand, and Quality. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/1597.
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Appendix B National Data Sets Relating to Demand, Supply, and Quality of Precollege Science and Mathematics Teachers The Schools and Stalling Survey (SASS) High School and Beyond The National Longitudinal Study (NLS-72) National Education Longitudinal Study of 1988 (NELS: 88) Surveys of Recent College Graduates (RCG) The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) The American Freshman National Surveys of Science and Mathematics Education Status of the American Public School Teacher THE SCHOOLS AND STAFFING SURVEY The Schools and Staffing Survey (SASS) is an integrated set of the National Center for Education Statistics surveys consisting of the Teacher Demand and Shortage Survey, the School Survey, the School Administrator Survey, and the Teacher Survey (including separate follow-ups a year later of those sampled teachers who leave teaching and a subsample of those who stay in teaching). These surveys were first conducted in the 1987-88 school year, will be conducted again in 1990-91, and are scheduled to be repeated thereafter every two years. They are designed to better measure important aspects of teacher supply and demand, the composition of the administrator and teacher work force, and the status of teaching and schooling generally. More specifically, five purposes underlie these studies: (1) to profile the nation's precollege teaching force; (2) to improve estimates and projec- tions of teacher supply and demand by teaching field, sector, level, and geographic location; (3) to allow analyses of teacher mobility and turnover; 218

NATIONAL DATA SETS 219 (4) to enhance assessment of teacher quality and qualifications; and (5) to provide more complete information on school policies and programs, administrator characteristics, and working conditions. If implemented suc- cessfully, we will have a national data base of indicators of teacher supply, demand, and quality. The sampling unit for SASS is the school 9,300 public and 3,500 private schools were selected for SASS; the districts to which those schools belonged were then identified for the sample. Thus, 5,600 public local education agencies are in the sample (of a universe of 16,000~; Within the selected schools, 52,000 public and 13,000 private school teachers were sampled, totaling 65,000 teachers. Of the 52,000 public school teachers, 23,000 taught at the secondary level; 29,000 were elementary teachers. Below are capsules of the kinds of data found in each of the surveys. SASS 1A Teacher Demand and Shortage Questionnaire for Public School Districts (SASS 1B is the parallel private school form). District enrollment, hiring and retirement policies, and staff data. Number of teaching positions, by level and field, that are filled or remain unfilled. New hires, layoffs, salaries, benefits. High school graduation requirements by field. SASS 2~choolAdministrator Questionnaire (public and private). Train- ing, experience, and professional background of principals. School prob- lems, including teacher absenteeism. Influence of teachers/principaVdistrict on curriculum and on hiring. Methods of dealing with unfilled vacancies. SASS 3A Public School Questionnaire (SASS 3B is the parallel private school form). Pupil-teacher ratio, student characteristics, staffing patterns, and teacher turnover (entry, attrition). Supply sources of new entrants and destinations of leavers. Some data can be analyzed by academic subject area. SASS 4A Public School Teacher Q~eshonnaire (SASS 4B is the par- allel private school form). Education and training, current assignment, continuing education, job mobility, working conditions, career choices. Di- vision of time, courses taught. Achievement level of students. Salary, other income. Opinions on pay policies, salary, working conditions, professional recognition, etc. What they did before they began teaching at this school. Data can be analyzed by teaching field. TFS 2 Teacher Follow-up Survey (Questionnaire for former teachers sampled in SASS). Teacher attrition, salary, other factors or reasons for leaving teaching. What they did after leaving. Comparison of teaching with current occupation with regard to salary, working conditions, and job satisfaction. Data can be analyzed by subject. TFS 3 Teacher Follow-up Survey (Questionnaire for sampled teachers who remained in teaching). Factors in retention; reasons for possible

220 APPENDIX B change in school assignment. Salary, other income. Data can be analyzed by subject. Data related to demand are found in SASS 1A, the district-level questionnaire; data related to supply, teacher qualifications, and quality are found in the teacher questionnaires. Links exist among the school, teacher, and administrator questionnaires to enable comparative analyses. And repetition of SASS every two years will yield valuable information on trends in indicators over time. Contact: Mary Papageorgiou National Center for Education Statistics 555 New Jersey Avenue, N.W Washington, D.C. 20208 202/357-6336 HIGH SCHOOL AND BEYOND High School and Beyond is a national longitudinal survey of 1980 high school seniors and sophomores conducted by the National Center for Education Statistics. A probability sample of 1,015 public and private high schools was selected with 36 seniors and 36 sophomores in each of the schools. A total of about 30,000 sophomores and 28,000 seniors participated in the base-year survey. The base-year data were collected in 1980, with follow-ups in 1982, 1984, and 1986. In addition, data from their parents and teachers and high school and postsecondary education transcripts were included. Currently the sample contains 14,825 participants from the 1980 sophomore cohort and 11,995 participants from the 1980 senior cohort. The purpose of the survey is to observe the educational, occupational, and family development of young people as they pass through high school and college and take on adult roles. Data obtained can also help re- searchers understand the new graduate component of the supply pool and the incentives to which they respond. The 1980 and 1982 surveys consisted of questionnaire data (on back- ground characteristics, attitudes, postsecondary educational and career plans, and activities related to education, career, and family development). Cognitive tests developed for the sophomore cohort by the Educational Sting Service were administered in 1980 and 1982. The tests were de- signed to measure cognitive growth in three domains: verbal, mathematics, and science. The 1984 and 1986 follow-up surveys contain similarly detailed ques- tions concerning college courses and experiences, jobs (including salaries), attitudes, and marriage and family formation. Tentative plans call for an additional follow-up of the 1980 sophomores in 1991. An analysis file is

NATIONAL DATA SETS 221 being prepared containing transcripts and student responses for students indicating that they plan to become teachers. The Administrator and Teacher Survey (ATS) was designed and given to a sample of High School and Beyond school staff in 1984 to explore findings from "effective schools" research with a broadly representative sample. The effective schools literature identifies characteristics of schools in which students perform at higher levels than would be expected from their background and other factors. Prior to the ATS, measures of those characteristics were not available on any large national data set. The ATS provides measures of staff goals, school environment, school leadership, and other processes believed important. A total of 457 public and private high schools (approximately half of the 1,015 High School and Beyond schools) were sampled for the ATS; separate questionnaires were prepared for principals, teachers, vocational education coordinators, heads of guidance, and community service coor- dinators. Up to 30 teachers in each of the 457 schools responded to the teacher questionnaire; only one respondent per school completed the other surveys. There are 402 principals in the sample. In all, approximately 11,000 administrators and teachers participated. The ATS was designed to measure school goals and processes that the effective schools literature indicates are important in achieving effective education. Questionnaire items describe staff goals, pedagogic practices, interpersonal staff relations, teacher workload, staff attitudes, availability and use of services, planning processes, hiring practices, optional programs designed to produce educational excellence, and linkage to local employers, parents, and the community. The ATS asked teachers a number of quality-related questions con- cerning school environment, in-service experience, interruptions, autonomy, absenteeism, parent contact, hours spent teaching and nonteaching, and time use and practices in a typical class. The respondent's educational background and subject preparation, certification and salary data were also asked. NCES has not issued publications based on the ATS, but the data are available on tape and a code book is available. Contact: Carl Schmitt National Center for Education Statistics 555 New Jersey Avenue, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20208 202/357-6772

222 APPENDIX B THE NATIONAL LONGITUDINAL STUDY The National Longitudinal Study (NLS-72), conducted by NCES and administered by the National Opinion Research Center, studies the high school class of 1972 in the form of a sample of 23,000 high school seniors (1972) enrolled in 1,318 high schools. Follow-ups were conducted in 1973- 74, 1974-75, 1976-77, and 1979-80. A fifth follow-up was conducted on a subsample in 1986, with approximately 13,000 responding; at this point they were about 32 years old. In each follow-up, data were collected on high school experiences, background, opinions and attitudes, and future plans. Participants took achievement tests in the first survey. Follow- ups traced their college, postgraduate and work experiences, including salaries. Reasons for leaving schools or jobs were also asked. In addition, respondents included data on marriage and family formation and military . service. A Teaching Supplement Questionnaire was sent to all respondents to the fifth follow-up survey (1986) who indicated they had teaching experience or had been trained for precollege teaching. In addition, persons with mathematics, science or engineering backgrounds (with 2-year, 4-year, or graduate degrees in those fields) were drawn into the sample. A total of 1,147 eligible individuals responded. Of these, 109 indicated they actually had no teaching experience, degree in education, or certification to teach. This left 1,038 completed teaching supplements to analyze, drawing on the wealth of previous NLS data on these individuals. This sample of current and former teachers (and some who never became teachers) were asked about career paths, salaries in teaching and nonteaching positions, certification, continuing education, family formation, reasons for entry into teaching and attrition, and nonteaching jobs. This detailed information can be analyzed by subject area. The data have been analyzed at NCES and by Heyns (1988) in light of contributing to knowledge of the characteristics of the supply pool, to identifying patterns of entry, exit, and reentry and to understanding the role of salary and other incentives. Contact: Paula Knepper National Center for Education Statistics 555 New Jersey Avenue, N.W Washington, D.C. 20208 202/357-6914

NATIONAL DATA SETS NATIONAL EDUCATION LONGITUDINAL STUDY OF 1988 223 The National Education Longitudinal Study of 1988 (NELS: 88) is a new education longitudinal study sponsored by NCES and designed to provide trend data about critical transitions experienced by young people as they develop, attend school, and embark on their careers. By initially focusing in 1988 on 8th graders and their schools, teachers, and parents, then by following up that cohort at two-year intervals, the NELS:88 data will be used to address such issues as persistence and dropping out of high school, transition from 8th grade to high school, tracking, and features of effective schools. For the base-year survey conducted in the spring of 1988, a nationally representative sample of 1,000 schools (800 public and 200 private) was drawn. Within this school sample, 26,000 8th grade students, 6,000 8th grade teachers, and 24,000 parents were surveyed. Thus, the four major component surveys for the base year were directed at students, parents, school administrators, and teachers. Students were asked about school work, aspirations, and social rela- tions. They also took cognitive tests in four achievement areas: reading and vocabulary, mathematics, science, and social studies. The parent sur- vey gauged parental aspirations for their children, commitment of resources to their children's education, and other family characteristics relevant to educational achievement. Analysis of these data may suggest young peo- ple's levels of interest and their parents' commitment to pursuing sci- ence/mathematics fields in the future. School principals provided information about the teaching staff, stu- dent body, school policies and offerings, and courses required for 8th graders. For example, for science and for mathematics, the principal was to note whether a full year, a half year, less than a half year, or no specified amount is required. Whether a gifted-talented program is offered is also noted, by subject. School environment items, and particularly discipline in- dicators, are included. Staffing questions are general and not broken down by subject. From this survey, data on 8th grade mathematics or science required might inform demand in a general way. Course-taking data might inform preparation for high school mathematics and science. Indicators of quality of education offered at the 8th grade level are somewhat more evident. Itacher data include academic background and certification informa- tion, class size, time use, instructional materials used, laboratory use, and school environment information. The teacher questionnaire thus can shed light on a number of indicators of quality of education offered at the 8th grade level by subject.

224 APPENDIX B The science and mathematics teachers who participated in NELS:88 are expected to furnish postsecondary education transcripts for a National Science Foundation study, the NSF Teacher Transcript Study, begun under contract with Westat, Inc., in 1988. This study plans to collect transcript data on a national basis for use ~ assessing teacher characteristics. Contact: Jeffrey Owings National Center for Education Statistics 555 New Jersey Ave., N.W., Room 518 Washington, D.C. 20208 202/357-6777 SURVEYS OF RECENT COLLEGE GRADUATES The National Center for Education Statistics has conducted periodic surveys, as described above, on outcomes of college graduation. The Recent College Graduates (RCG) surveys, which are not longitudinal, have concentrated especially on those graduates entering the teaching profession. Education majors are thus oversampled for the RCG. These surveys have primarily addressed the issues of employment related to individuals' field of study and their access to graduate or professional programs. The survey involves a two-stage sampling procedure. First, a sample of institutions awarding bachelor's or master's degrees is selected and stratified by percent of education graduates, control, and type. Special emphasis is placed on institutions granting degrees in education and on traditionally black institutions. For each of the selected schools, a sample of degree recipients is chosen. Included are both B.N and M.N degree recipients. The survey of 1974-75 college graduates was the first and smallest of the series. The sample consisted of 200 responding schools. Of the 5,506 graduates in that sample, 4,350 responded (79 percent). The 1981 survey was somewhat larger, covering 301 institutions and 15,852 students. The student response rate was 62 percent. The 1985 survey (which collected race/ethnicity data for the first time) requested data from 18,738 students from 404 colleges. The student response rate was an effective 70 percent, with just under 11,000 participating. Response rates in these cycles (except for the 1976 survey) tend not to be higher because of invalid mailing addresses, reflecting the difficulty in tracing students after graduation. The 1987 study (which included transcripts for the first time) was more effective in locating graduates as the file contains 16,878 respondents from 400 higher education institutions, representing an 80 percent response rate. This study was also the largest sample (21,957 eligible sample members) drawn from institutions to date. The RCG may thus be biased against more mobile graduates. Students are surveyed once, without additional follow-ups.

NATIONAL DATA SETS 225 Questionnaire items request data including degrees and teaching cer- tificates; continuing education; additional formal training; what job was held as of April 27, 1987, and its relation to educational training; sub- jects eligible/certified to teach, whether/when entered teaching; subjects taught; marital status and number of children; and further degree plans. The questionnaire asks whether the person taught in grades K-12 before completing the degree requirement. Subjects taught are phrased generally: mathematics, computer science, biological science, and physical sciences. Information on the graduates' incentives for choosing particular careers or jobs is limited. Thus, the RCG offers a general, nonlongitudinal picture of the new graduates component of the supply pool. Its inclusion of items that may suggest incentives and disincentives to enter teaching make it a possi- ble source of reserve pool information. In addition to supply related to potential teachers and potential minority teachers, a few aspects of the qualification component of quality may be touched on rather indirectly, such as grades (self-reported). The RCG will be conducted again in 1991. Beginning in 1994, the RCG is scheduled to be redesigned as a longitudinal study, the Baccalaureate and Beyond Longitudinal Study. Contact: Martin M. Frankel National Center for Education Statistics 555 New Jersey Avenue, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20208 202/357-6774 THE NATIONAL ASSESSMENT OF EDUCATIONAL PROGRESS The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) is a con- gressionally mandated study directed and funded by the National Center for Education Statistics. The assessment is currently administered for NCES by the Educational lasting Service. It is referred to as The Nation's Report Card, the National Assessment of Educational Progress. Approxi- mately 120,000 precollege students are randomly selected for the national assessment every two years. The overall goal is to determine the nation's progress in educational achievement, including achievement in science and mathematics. 1b accomplish this goal, NAEP has surveyed the educational accom- plishments of 9-, 13-, and 17-year-old students in 11 subject areas, starting in 1969-70. NAEP first identifies counties as primary sampling units through a stratified sampling plan. Then for each age level, public and private

226 APPENDIX B schools are selected by a stratified sampling plan. Finally, within each school groups of students are selected to participate in NAEP. The most recent science and mathematics assessments were in 1985- 86; the next ones are planned for 1990. Previous mathematics assessments were in 1-973, 1976, 1978, and 1982. The science assessment was previously given in 1969-70, 1973, 1977, and 1982. By law, mathematics is now to be assessed every two years and science every four years. Assessments are given in fall, winter, and spring, measuring achieve- ment and gathering information on attitudes and classroom practices as students perceive them. The nonachievement measures (attitudes toward science or math, homework and grades, and home environment) are ob- tained through a companion background questionnaire. NAEP Teacher Questionnaire In 1984, NAEP began collecting data on teacher attributes, as reported by teachers of the students participating in the NAEP assessments. At grades 7 and 11, teachers are identifiable by subject (e.g., mathematics, science). The 1986 assessment, for example, gathered information from 325 7th grade science teachers and 289 11th grade science teachers who responded. The teacher questionnaire asked for data on general demographic characteristics, certification, educational preparation, and teaching experi- ence at various grade levels. These help to illuminate aspects of teacher qualifications. School environment indicators asked on the questionnaire include classroom activities and practices, homework, laboratory and other instructional resources, and autonomy. The questionnaire asks whether the respondent would become a teacher if he or she could start over again. Continuing education is touched on in one item, although not in detail. There are no questions tracing the teacher's career path, salary, or other nonteaching work. Thus, the NAEP teacher survey may provide some quality-related information, but little on demand or supply. In 1990, mathematics teachers in grades 4 and 8 will be surveyed. Science teachers at grade 8 will also receive questionnaires. The Horizon Corporation is under contract to develop the science teacher questionnaire for 1990. Contact: Kent Ashworth Educational Testing Seance Princeton, New Jersey 08541 1/800/223-0267

NATIONAL DATA SETS 227 Gene Owen National-Center for Education Statistics 555 New Jersey Avenue, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20208 202/357-6746 THE AMERICAN FRESHMAN The American Freshman survey is conducted annually by the Coopera- tive Institutional Research Program (CIRP)? of the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA). CIRP and UCLAs Higher Education Research Institute survey all incoming freshmen in full-time study in a sample of colleges and universities. The data are stratified by type of college, pub- lic or private control, and selectivity. Longitudinal follow-up studies are conducted each summer to track students two and four years after college entry. Freshman surveys typically involve 300,000 students at 600 institu- tions; follow-ups are done with random samples of 25,000 students from each cohort. The Requestion survey instrument solicits data on high school back- ground, including SAT or ACT scores and grade point average, intended major and educational goals, career plans, financial arrangements, and attitudes. Personal data include race/ethnicity, sex, and parents' income and occupations. Data from The American Freshman can illuminate the beginning stage of the supply pipeline choosing a major and a career plan. Questionnaire data, such as SAT scores and number of honors courses taken in high school, can be used to provide some measure of the qualifications aspects of quality. Contact: Alexander W. Astin Higher Education Research Institute University of California Los Angeles, California 90024 213/825-4321 NATIONAL SURVEYS OF SCIENCE AND MATHEMATICS EDUCATION The 1977 and 1985 surveys were sponsored by the National Science Foundation and conducted by Iris Weiss of Research Triangle Institute. They involved a national probability sample of schools, principals, and teachers in grades K-12. The 1985 survey covered 425 public and private schools. From these schools a sample of 6,000 teachers was selected. The sample was stratified by grades K-6, 7-9, and 10-12. For grades 10-12 the

228 APPENDIX B sample was also stratified by subject to avoid the oversampling of biology. Of the teachers sampled, 2,300 were teaching at the grade 1~12 level. Response rates were generally high; for example, the response rate from principals was 86 percent. Principals in schools selected for the grade 10-12 sample were asked to check the types and number of science and mathematics courses taught by each teacher: biology/life sciences, chemistry, physics, earth/space science, "other mathematics/computer science." Principals also reported whether they had difficulty hiring fully qualified teachers for vacancies, by subject. The survey requested science and mathematics course offerings and enrollment (by race, ethnicity, and sex), science labs and equipment, in- structional techniques, and teacher training. Information on achievement was not requested. Teachers supplied in-depth information on curriculum and instruction in a single, randomly selected class. Time spent in instruction, lab, and amount of homework given are among the types of practices for which data were collected. In addition, data on the detailed educational background of each teacher were requested. Information about advanced degrees earned, cer- tification, and subject-matter courses taken, to compare with standards of the NSTA and NCI'M. Teacher age and teaching experience were also included. Most of the teacher data from the National Survey of Science and Mathematics Education are related to aspects of qualify. From the school- level data supplied by principals, indicators of demand may be found to some extent in the course offerings and enrollment data. Contact: Iris Weiss or Jennifer McNeill Research Triangle Institute PO. Box 12194 Research Triangle Park North Carolina 27709 1/800/334-8571 STATUS OF THE AMERICAN PUBLIC SCHOOL TEACHER National Education Association (NEA) in 1956 developed the first of a series of surveys covering numerous aspects of U.S. public school teachers' professional, family, and civic lives. This survey project, titled The Status of the American Public School Teacher, has been conducted every five years since 1956. Although the questionnaire has been revised to update items of concern, the wording still provides comparable data on most items from survey to survey (except for 1961, which contained some differences in the

NATIONAL DATA SETS 229 wording of questions). The most recent survey was conducted in 1985-86 and published by the NEA in 1987. The sample of respondents for 1985-86 contained 1,291 usable re- sponses (72.4 percent of the questionnaires originally mailed). Participants were selected through a two-stage sample design: first, a sample of public school districts was drawn, classified by pupil enrollment into nine strata. All school districts in the sample were asked to submit a list of all their teachers. Using that list, systematic sampling with a random start was used. A 58-item questionnaire was then mailed, in spring 1986, to all- teachers in the sample. Questionnaire items span teaching experience, educational background, subjects taught, income, workload, school environment, de- mographic and family information, and civic interests. Subject area taught is self-reported, with the teacher filling in a blank with the main subject taught (i.e., "science"~. Items related to supply include number of breaks in service and (one) primary reason, salaries from teaching and from additional employment, what the person did the previous year, what he or she plans to do next year, and how long the person plans to remain in teaching. Items related to quality include highest college degree and recentness of that degree; teaching and nonteaching loads; type of teaching certifi- cate held; college credits earned in the past three years and how much of the teacher's own money was spent for credits and other school expenses; detailed information about professional growth activities (workshops, uni- versi~cy extension, college courses in education/other than education, etc.~; whether the person would become a teacher if he or she started over again; reasons for teaching; what helps~inders the teacher most in his or her position; and presence of teaching assistants. Contact: Richard R. Verdugo Research Division National Education Association 1201 Sixteenth St., N.W. Washington, D.C. 20036 202/822-7400

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