General Teacher Questionnaire – English

Instructions

Dear teacher,

Thank you for participating in this study.

This questionnaire asks for information about:

• Background information
• Your initial education and professional development
• Your school
• Teaching practices

This information will help illustrate the similarities and differences between groups of teachers in order to better establish the context for students’ test results. For example, the information provided may help to establish what effect the availability of resources may have on student achievement – both within and between countries.

The questionnaire should be completed by you only. It should take about 30 minutes to complete.

If you do not know an answer precisely, your best estimate will be adequate for the purposes of the study.

Please note that the forward button used to proceed to the next question is located at the bottom right hand corner of your screen. In some instances you may need to scroll down to the bottom of your screen to access this forward button.

Your answers will be combined with answers from other teachers to calculate totals and averages. All information (or responses) you provide may only be used for statistical purposes and may not be disclosed, or used, in identifiable form for any other purpose except as required by law [Education Science Reform Act of 2002 (ESRA 2002), 20 U.S. Code, Section 9573].

According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, no persons are required to respond to a collection of information unless such collection displays a valid OMB control number. The valid OMB control number for this voluntary information collection is 1850-0755. The time required to complete this information collection is estimated to average 30 minutes per response, including the time to review instructions, search existing data resources, gather the data needed, and complete and review the information collection. If you have any suggestions for improving the form, or comments or concerns regarding the accuracy of the time estimate(s) or the status of your individual submission of this form, please write to: Program for International Student Assessment (PISA), National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, 1990 K Street, N.W., Room 8122, Washington, D.C. 20006. O.M.B. No. 1850-0755, Approval Expires 08/31/2016

Background Information

Are you female or male?

(Please select one response.)

Female

Male

How old are you?

(Please move the slider to the appropriate number of years.)

What is your employment status as a teacher at this school?

(Please select one response.)

Permanent employment (an ongoing contract with no fixed end-point before the age of retirement)

Fixed-term contract for a period of more than 1 school year

Fixed-term contract for a period of 1 school year or less

What is your current employment status as a teacher?

(Please consider your employment status at this school and for all your teaching employments together.)

(Please select one response in each row.)

	Full-time (more than 90% of full-time hours)	Part-time (71-90% of full-time hours)	Part-time (50-70% of full-time hours)	Part-time (less than 50% of full-time hours)
My employment status at this school
All my teaching employments together

In how many schools have you worked in the course of your teaching career?

(Include all schools, even if you worked at several schools at once.)

(Please move the slider to the appropriate number of schools.)

How many years of work experience do you have?

(Please round up to whole years no matter whether you worked part-time or full-time and move the slider to the appropriate number of years. If any option does not apply to you select "0" (zero).)

Year(s) working as a teacher at this school

Year(s) working as a teacher in total

Your Initial Education and Professional Development

What is the highest level of formal education you have completed?

(Please select one response.)

High school and/or some college courses

Associate's degree

Bachelor's degree

Master's degree

Doctoral or professional degree (e.g., PhD, M.D., J.D.)

After completing high school, was your goal to pursue a career in the teaching profession?

(Please select one response.)

Yes

No

Did you complete a teacher education or training program?

(Please select one response.)

Yes

No

How did you receive your teaching qualifications?

(Please select one response.)

I attended a standard teacher education or training program at an educational institution.

I attended an in-service teacher education or training program.

I attended a work based teacher education or training program.

I attended training in another pedagogical profession.

Other

Were any of the following included in your teacher education or training program or other professional qualification and do you teach them to the 10th grade in the current school year?

(Because this is an international survey, we had to categorize many of the actual subjects taught in schools into broad categories. If the exact name of one of your subjects is not listed, please mark the category you think best fits the subject.)

(If you need further explanation for terms used in this question, please use the help button.)

(Please select all that apply.)

Reading, writing and literature: reading and writing (and literature) in English, language arts, public speaking, literature, composition, communications, journalism

Mathematics: mathematics, mathematics with statistics, geometry, algebra, etc.

Science: natural science, physics, physical science, chemistry, biology, human biology, earth and space sciences, environmental science, agriculture/horticulture/forestry

Technology: orientation in technology, including information technology, computer studies, construction/surveying, engineering, electronics, graphics and design, keyboard skills, word processing, workshop technology/design technology

Social studies: social studies, community studies, contemporary studies, economics, environmental studies, geography, history, humanities, legal studies, American studies, social sciences, ethical thinking, philosophy

Modern foreign languages: languages different from the language of instruction

Ancient languages (e.g., Latin)

Arts: arts, music, visual arts, practical art, drama, performance music, photography, drawing, creative handicraft, creative needlework

Physical education: physical education, gymnastics, dance, health

Religion and/or ethics: religion, history of religions, religion culture, ethics

Practical and vocational skills: vocational skills (preparation for a specific occupation), technics, domestic science, accountancy, business studies, career education, clothing and textiles, driving, home economics, polytechnic courses, secretarial studies, tourism and hospitality, handicraft.

	Included in my teacher education or training program or other professional qualification	I teach it to the 10th grade in the current school year
Reading, writing and literature
Mathematics
Science
Technology
Social studies
Modern foreign languages
Ancient languages (e.g., Latin)
Arts
Physical education
Religion and/or ethics
Practical and vocational skills

During the last 12 months, did you participate in any of the following activities?

(Please select one response in each row.)

	Yes	No
Degree program
Participation in a network of teachers formed specifically for the professional development of teachers
Individual or collaborative research on a topic of interest to you professionally
Mentoring and/or peer observation and coaching, as part of a formal school arrangement
Reading professional literature (e.g., journals, evidence-based papers, thesis papers)
Engaging in informal dialogue with your colleagues on how to improve your teaching

Are you required to take part in professional development activities?

(Please select one response.)

Yes

No

Were any of the topics listed below included in your teacher education or training program or other professional qualification and your professional development activities?

(Please select all that apply.)

	Included in my teacher education or training program or other professional qualification	Included in my professional development activities during the last 12 months
Knowledge and understanding of my subject field(s)
Pedagogical competencies in teaching my subject field(s)
Knowledge of the curriculum
Student assessment practices
ICT (information and communication technology) skills for teaching
Student behavior and classroom management
School management and administration
Approaches to individualized learning
Teaching students with special needs
Teaching in a multicultural or multilingual setting
Teaching cross-curricular skills (e.g., problem solving, learning-to-learn)
Student career guidance and counseling
Internal evaluation or self-evaluation of schools
Use of evaluation results
Teacher-parent cooperation

Your School

Is your school's capacity to provide instruction hindered by any of the following issues?

(Please select one response in each row.)

	Not at all	Very little	To some extent	A lot
A lack of teaching staff
Inadequate or poorly qualified teaching staff
A lack of assisting staff
Inadequate or poorly qualified assisting staff
A lack of educational material (e.g., textbooks, IT equipment, library or laboratory material)
Inadequate or poor quality educational material (e.g., textbooks, IT equipment, library or laboratory material)
A lack of physical infrastructure (e.g., building, grounds, heating/cooling, lighting and PA system)
Inadequate or poor quality physical infrastructure (e.g., building, grounds, heating/cooling, lighting and PA system)

To what extent do you disagree or agree with the following statements regarding your school?

(Please select one response in each row.)

	Strongly Disgree	Disgree	Agree	Strongly Agree
The principal tries to achieve consensus with all staff when defining priorities and goals in school.
The principal is aware of my needs.
The principal inspires new ideas for my professional learning.
The principal treats teaching staff as professionals.
The principal ensures our involvement in decision making.

On average, how often do you do the following in this school?

(Please select one response in each row.)

	Never	Once a year or less	2-4 times a year	5-10 times a year	1-3 times a month	Once a week or more
Teach jointly as a team in the same class
Observe other teachers’ classes and provide feedback
Engage in joint activities across different classes and age groups (e.g., projects)
Exchange teaching materials with colleagues
Engage in discussions about the learning development of specific students
Work with other teachers in my school to ensure common standards in evaluations for assessing student progress
Attend team conferences
Take part in collaborative professional learning

We would like to know how you generally feel about your job. How strongly do you agree or disagree with the following statements?

(Please select one response in each row.)

	Strongly Disgree	Disgree	Agree	Strongly Agree
The advantages of being a teacher clearly outweigh the disadvantages.
If I could decide again, I would still choose to work as a teacher.
I regret that I decided to become a teacher.
I enjoy working at this school.
I wonder whether it would have been better to choose another profession.
I would recommend my school as a good place to work.
I am satisfied with my performance in this school.
All in all, I am satisfied with my job.

Teaching Practices

How often do you assign the following activities to your students?

(Please select one response in each row.)

	Never or almost never	Once a year or less	2-4 times a year	5-9 times a year	1-3 times a month	Once a week or more
Doing some short task (10 minutes to 2 hours) in teams such as exercises or problems
Conducting a longer project (over several weeks) in teams such as writing a document, inventing something, etc.
Preparing and giving a talk/presentation together

How often do you use the following to grade students´ team collaboration activities?

(Please select one response in each row.)

	Never or almost never	Sometimes	Often	Always or almost always
No grades
Individual grades for individual performance
Collective grades for a group product
Collective grades for individual contributions
Individual grades for a group product

How often do you use the following types of collaboration during students' team collaboration activities?

(Please select one response in each row.)

	Never or almost never	Sometimes	Often	Always or almost always
Members of groups work according to specialization of each member.
Members of groups work on a collective outcome.
Group members receive different information (resource interdependence).
Group members are assigned different roles (role interdependence).

How often do you use the following grouping practices during students' team collaboration activities?

(Please select one response in each row.)

	Never or almost never	Sometimes	Often	Always or almost always
Groups with a mix of abilities
Groups of students with similar abilities
Groups as the students choose them

How often do you use the following methods of assessing student learning?

(If you need further explanation of the term "standardized tests," please use the help button.) (Please select one response in each row.)

Here, the term standardized tests includes standardized mandatory tests (mandated e.g., by state, district, or other governing authorities) as well as standardized non-mandatory tests (e.g., publicly or commercial available standardized test material). These tests are consistent in design, content, administration and scoring. Results can be compared across students and schools.

	Never or almost never	Some lessons	Most lessons	Every lesson or almost every lesson
I develop and administer my own assessment.
I administer a standardized test.
I have individual students answer questions in front of the class.
I provide written feedback on student work in addition to a grade.
I let students judge their own progress.
I observe students when working on particular tasks and provide immediate feedback.
I collect data from classroom assignments or home work.

To what extent do you use the following approaches to assign final semester grades to students in 10th grade?

(If you need further explanation of the term "standardized tests," please use the help button.) (Please select one response in each row.)

Standardized tests are consistent in design, content, administration and scoring. Results can be compared across students and schools. This excludes teacher-developed tests.

	Not at all	Very little	To some extent	To a large extent
I consider students’ individual improvement of performance since the beginning of the semester.
I consider students' problem solving ability.
I consider students' critical thinking ability.
I consider students' performance in collaborative problem solving activities.
I recognize students' effort; even if performance does not improve.
I compare student performance in the current course to that of students from the previous course.
I compare a student's performance to that of other students in the course.
I compare students’ performance to written federal or state performance standards.
I consider the degree to which the student participates in the class.
I base grades on standardized tests mandated by national, state or district authorities (e.g., the test in your state).
I base grades on non-mandatory, publicly or commercially available standardized tests (e.g., SAT).

Thank you very much for your cooperation in completing this questionnaire!