Background

In the Fall of 2002, the Metiri Group was commissioned by SETDA to develop an assessment framework for effective technology use in schools. That framework, available on the SETDA site, is based on a set of key questions aligned to indicators and common data elements. (Note: A subset of the identified data elements could be used to assess states' progress with NCLB, EETT.)

The Common Data Elements Committee recommends a state-by-state data collection methodology that includes a combination of surveys: a single point of contact at schools, districts, and the state, combined with a stratified random sampling of schools/classrooms. The workgroup at the NLI 2003 strongly concurred with the Committee’s recommendation for site visitations at the classroom/school level in order to fully assess the goals of NCLB, Title II, Part D.

A suite of tools has been developed, field-tested, and revised over the course of the last year. The instruments are grounded in prior instruments developed by the Metiri Group. In the spring of 2003, the site visit tools were piloted in four states, and the full suite of tools was piloted in three Tiers. Tier 1 involved "talk alouds," in which teachers and administrators provided feedback on the clarity of the survey questions. Tier 2 involved piloting the survey instruments in four states, and from that data collection, Metiri used statistical analysis to reduce the number of questions and refine the remaining questions. Tier 3 involved piloting the full suite of tools in the state of Oregon. Metiri Group finalized the tools in the Spring of 2004.