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Statistics in Brief: Parents and Schools: Partners in Student Learning
NCES: 96913
October 1996

Technical Notes

The sample of elementary schools for the FRSS survey on parent involvement was selected from the 1993-94 NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) Public School Universe File. Over 84,000 public schools are contained in the CCD universe file, of which 60,000 are elementary schools. For this survey, elementary schools were defined as schools beginning with grade 6 or lower and having no grade higher than 8. Special education, alternative, schools not classified by grade span, and "combined" schools that house both elementary and secondary grades were excluded from the survey.

A stratified sample of 900 schools was selected from the elementary school frame. To select the sample, the frame of schools was stratified by poverty status, as determined by the percent of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunches. Within these primary strata, schools were also sorted by enrollment size class and then by metropolitan status. The sample sizes were then allocated to the primary strata in rough proportion to the aggregate square root of the enrollment of schools in the stratum. The use of the square root of enrollment to determine the sample allocation is expected to be reasonably efficient for estimating school-level characteristics (e. g., number or percent of schools that include parents on an advisory group or policy council). Further, the proposed sample sizes were large enough to permit limited analysis of the questionnaire (along one dimension) by the four regions, by four metropolitan classes, and by three enrollment size categories.

In early April 1996 questionnaires were mailed to 900 elementary school principals. The principal was asked either to complete the questionnaire or to have it completed by the person in the school who was most knowledgeable about parent involvement in the school. Telephone followup of nonrespondents was initiated in late April, and data collection was completed in June 1996. Five schools were found to be ineligible, and a total of 810 schools completed the survey. Thus, the final response rate was 91 percent.

The response data were weighted to produce national estimates. The weights were designed to adjust for the variable probabilities of selection and differential nonresponse. The findings in this report are estimates based on the sample selected and, consequently, are subject to sampling variability. The standard error is a measure of the variability of estimates due to sampling. It indicates the variability of a sample estimate that would be obtained from all possible samples of a given design and size. Standard errors are used as a measure of the precision expected from a particular sample. If all possible samples were surveyed under similar conditions, intervals of 1.96 standard errors below to 1.96 standard errors above a particular statistic would include the true population parameter being estimated in about 95 percent of the samples. This is a 95 percent confidence interval. For example, the estimated percentage of public elementary schools reporting that they sponsored an open house is 97 percent, and the estimated standard error is 0.8 percent. The 95 percent confidence interval for the statistic extends from [97-(0.8 x 1.96) to 97 + (0.8 x 1.96)], or from 95.4 to 98.6. Estimates of standard errors for this report were computed using a technique known as the jackknife replication method. Standard errors for all of the estimates are presented in the tables. All specific statements of comparison made in this report have been tested for statistical significance using chi-square tests and t-tests adjusted for multiple comparisons using the Bonferroni adjustment, and they are significant at the 95 percent confidence level or better.

The survey estimates are also subject to nonsampling errors that can arise because of nonobservation (nonresponse or noncoverage) errors, errors of reporting, and errors made in collection of the data. These errors can sometimes bias the data. Nonsampling errors may include such problems as the differences in the respondents' interpretation of the meaning of the questions; memory effects; misrecording of school, the performance of all children in the school tends to improve. Increasing family involvement in children's learning has become a special focus in all school reform efforts. In addition to the information presented in this report, The Survey on Family and School Partnerships in Public School, K-8 gathered other data regarding the efforts elementary schools are making to actively engage parents and families in partnerships that support the academic work of children. School respondents provided information concerning school-to-home and home-to-school communication, volunteer opportunities for parents, the various resources schools make available to assist parents, the provision of information about school activities and student progress, and perceived barriers to parent involvement. These issues will be examined in a forthcoming analytical report, scheduled for release by the end of the year. responses; incorrect editing, coding, and data entry; differences related to the particular time the survey was conducted; or errors in data preparation. While general sampling theory can be used in part to determine how to estimate the sampling variability of a statistic, nonsampling errors are not easy to measure and, for measurement purposes, usually require that an experiment be conducted as part of the data collection procedures or that data external to the study be used. To minimize the potential for nonsampling errors, the questionnaire was pretested with public school principals like those who completed the survey. During the design of the survey and the survey pretest, an effort was made to check for consistency of interpretation of questions and to eliminate ambiguous items. The questionnaire and instructions were extensively reviewed by the National Center for Education Statistics. Manual and machine editing of the questionnaire responses were conducted to check the data for accuracy and consistency. Cases with missing or inconsistent items were recontacted by telephone. Data were keyed with 100 percent verification.

The survey was performed under contract with Westat, Inc., using the NCES Fast Response Survey System (FRSS). Westat's Project Director was Elizabeth Farris, and the Survey Manager was Nancy Carey. Judi Carpenter was the NCES Project Officer. The data were requested by Oliver Moles, National Institute on the Education of At-Risk Students, and Mary Rollefson of the National Center for Education Statistics, Office of Educational Research and Improvement, U. S. Department of Education.

This report was reviewed by the following individuals:

Outside NCES

  • Cindy Prince, National Education Goals Pane

Inside NCES

  • Jonaki Bose, Surveys and Cooperative Systems Group

  • Michael Cohen, Statistical Standards and Services Group

  • Mary Frase, Data Development and Longitudinal Studies Group

  • Edith McArthur, Data Development and Longitudinal Studies Group

  • Laurence Ogle, Assessment Group

  • William Sonnenberg, Data Development and Longitudinal Studies Group

For a copy of the questionnaire, School Survey on Family and School Partnerships, K-8, or for more information about the Fast Response Survey System, contact Judi Carpenter, Data Development and Longitudinal Studies Group, National Center for Education Statistics, Office of Educational Research and Improvement, at http://nces.ed.gov.

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