5. SEELS DATA ANALYSIS AND DISSEMINATION

The SEELS sample, research agenda, and data collection schedule make SEELS an especially ambitious study. The study must be equally ambitious with regard to analysis and dissemination so that the generated information will be of maximum use to as many audiences as possible. Specifically, the SEELS analysis and dissemination strategies need to address the following issues:

These analyses need to be tailored to formats and conventions that are appropriate for different audiences and formats.

Data Analysis Strategy

Given the range of likely SEELS data analysis and dissemination activities, it is appropriate to refer to SEELS analysis and dissemination as consisting of multiple interrelated strategies rather than a single strategy. Thus, the approach here is to propose analysis and dissemination strategies that link likely study analyses and their products to the study’s data collection timeline. This approach provides a general framework that will allow for thoughtful planning about analysis and dissemination, but one that is sufficiently flexible to accommodate changes in terms of particular topic areas that may be of interest over the course of the study. Thus, a variety of documents are suggested that are linked to specific waves of data collection, including comprehensive reports, technical reports, and special topic reports. Table 5-1 shows illustrative topics for the reports, as well as their possible timelines and data sources. These topics are placeholders; the actual content addressed in many of the documents may well be different in the implementation of the study.

 

 

 

Table 5-1

ILLUSTRATIVE Data Analysis and Reporting Outline

 

Product

Approx.

Date

Data

Sources*

 

Potential Topic Areas

Wave 1 Parent Guardian Interview

Comprehensive Report

5/01

PGI

Ö Who are the students in elementary and middle school special education, in terms of demographics, household characteristics, and student abilities/disabilities?

Ö What are their parent-reported educational (e.g., home literacy activities) and non-educational experiences (e.g., extracurricular group activities)?

Ö How are parents involved in and supportive of their children’s education?

Ö What are parents’ expectations for their children’s futures?

Ö How satisfied are parents and students with their schools and school programs?

Technical Report

5/01

 

Ö Sampling details

Ö Weighting specifications

Ö Nonresponse analysis

Wave 1, School and Student Data Collection

Technical Report

12/02

 

Ö Sampling details

Ö Weighting specifications

Ö Nonresponse analysis

Ö Accommodations provided

Special Topic Report #1

7/02

LATS, SPS, SBS

Ö What are the schools like that serve students in special education?

Ö What are students’ school programs like in terms of placement, curriculum and instruction, access to general education, performance assessment practices, accommodations, etc.?

  • How do schools interact with parents?

Special Topic Report #2

7/02

PGI, LATS, SPS, DA, SS

Ö How well are students in special education doing at school, both academically and socially?

  • How do students view their school experience and performance?

Special Topic Report #3

7/02

PGI, DA, SPS, LATS, SBS, SS

Ö What are the individual, household, school, and school program factors that help explain variations in student outcomes?

 

Table 5-1 (Concluded)

ILLUSTRATIVE Data Analysis and Reporting Outline

Wave 2, All Sources

Comprehensive Report

3/03

PGI,

    • Trends in factors reported in the first comprehensive report on parent interview data

Technical Report

6/03

 

Ö Sampling details

Ö Weighting specifications

Ö Nonresponse analysis

Ö Accommodations provided

Special Topic Report #1

8/03

LATS, SPS, DA, SS

Ö Trends in student performance at school

Special Topic Report #2

8/03

PGI, LATS, SPS, SBS, DA, SS

Ö What individual, household, school, and school program factors in one school year help explain change in student performance from the previous to the current school year?

Wave 3, All Sources

Overview Report

3/05

PGI

  • Trends in factors reported in the first comprehensive report on parent interview data

Technical Report

5/05

 

Ö Sampling details

Ö Weighting specifications

Ö Nonresponse analysis

Ö Accommodations provided

Special Topic Report #1

8/05

LATS, SPS, DA, SS

Ö Trends in student performance at school

Special Topic Report #2

8/05

PGI, SS

Ö Trends in school programs–how the experiences of particular grade levels change over time

Special Topic Report #3

8/05

PGI, LATS, SPS, SBS, DA, SS

Ö What are the individual, household, school, and school program factors that help explain variations in student outcomes?

Special Topic Report #4

 

PGI, SPS, LATS, SBS

Ö Declassification from special education–not a one-way street

  • What individual, household, school, and school program factors help explain why some students are declassified and others are not?

 

* PGI=parent interview; LATS=teacher survey; SPS=school program survey; SBS=school background (principal) survey; DA=direct assessment; SS=student survey.

 

In addition to these formal reports, professional journal articles that report segments of analyses from the larger reports also should be produced.

SEELS will use a variety of statistical and analytic methods to generate this variety of products. Likely methods to be used include:

 

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