Classroom observations and teacher focus groups. RMC Research staff worked with the site leaders to recruit teachers in kindergarten through Grade 5 to participate in classroom observations and teacher focus groups with the goal of achieving representation across grade levels. 18 RMC Research aimed to visit three to four classrooms and conduct focus groups with six to eight teachers per site. RMC Research communicated with the site leaders at each of the four sites to schedule times for the visits and focus groups that were convenient for teachers. As a thank you for participating in the focus groups, teachers each received a $30 gift certificate for the Scholastic Teacher Store Online. An RMC researcher conducted a multiday visit to each of the four sites to observe LitCamp implemented in the classroom and conduct focus groups with teachers. The researcher observed one classroom for the full 2-hour LitCamp period to capture the full extent of the LitCamp experience and observed each of the remaining classrooms for 30-minute segments to gather snapshots of implementation across multiple classrooms and grade levels. The researcher conducted one focus group per site, each ranging from approximately 30 to 60 minutes in duration. Each teacher who participated in the focus groups signed a consent form prior to the start of the discussion. Exhibit B5 shows the number of classroom observations and focus groups conducted for each site. In total, RMC Research observed teachers in 11 classrooms. The total focus group sample across all four sites included 21 teachers spanning kindergarten through Grade 5.
Exhibit B5 Classroom Observations and Focus Group Participants
Site
Classrooms Observed
Focus Group Participants
Site 1
1
7
Site 2
4
6
Site 3
2
2
Site 4
4
6
Total
11
21
Family interviews. RMC Research worked with site leaders at two of the four sites to recruit four students and their families to participate in a family interview. The site leaders nominated and reached out to parents to explain the purpose of the interviews and obtain verbal agreement. Once families agreed to participate, RMC Research worked with the site leader to schedule times for parents and students to meet at the site. All family interviews took place in the evening. Parents and students who participated in an interview signed a consent or assent form prior to the start of the interview. As a thank you for participating in the interview, each family received dinner during the interview and a $100 gift certificate to Target. In total, four families participated in an interview. Each family interviewed included at least one child who was enrolled in the Summer Enrichment Program/LitCamp and the child(ren)’s mother. Additional family members were present in some interviews.
18 The evaluation did not target Grade 6 because few Grade 6 students participated in the Summer Enrichment Program and only at one site.
SCHOLASTIC RESEARCH & VALIDATION 26
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