Mathematics Program Review (MPR)
Principal Interview
Introduction: Principals and other administrators are leaders in their schools. They have a wealth of knowledge when it comes to the school’s background and curriculum information. It is for this reason that we have chosen to interview administrators first in the program review. Due to current teacher evaluation systems, we will later hold a group discussion with teachers and other staff so that they can talk freely about their math teaching practices without feeling that positive or negative answers could influence their evaluations. The combination of the principal interview and group discussion will be used to develop a complete program review.
1. As a general overview, can you tell me about some of the things that make your school unique and different from other schools?
2. How would you describe the population of students that attend your school?
- How would you describe their mathematical understanding and overall math abilities?
3. What would you consider to be the strengths of your math program? Curriculum, instructional materials, teachers, interventions, etc.
4. Do you have specific areas of concern?
5. What have you identified as changes that need to occur in your math program, if any?
6. How easy will it be to make these changes? How do teachers feel about them?
7. How does leadership work in your district in terms of proposing, adopting and instituting change in the mathematics program?
We’d like to ask several questions that we’ll also ask the teachers.
8. Are teachers generally happy with their curriculum materials? How effective do you think they are?
9. How often do teachers collaborate on work related to their math teaching? Writing or analyzing common assessments, sharing activities, observing each other and giving feedback, etc.
10. Are teachers using common assessments? What’s the thinking about common assessments?
11. What do you consider to be “best practices” for teaching mathematics? Is there consensus among the staff about best practices, or some agreement about teaching approaches that all math teachers use?
12. Do you have sufficient time for math instruction?
13. Do you feel that time devoted to math instruction is being well-used?
14. What kinds of professional development or other support do you feel are needed by teachers?
15. What is your role in improving math teaching?
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