MPS External Research and Evaluation

Application fee: $150, made payable to Minneapolis Public Schools. REA, attn: Sarah Hunter
1250 W. Broadway Ave., Minneapolis, MN 5541

Timeline:
Applications are reviewed three times annually in August December and April. 

• For December review, applications are due by November 30.

• For April review, applications are due by March 31.

• Applications submitted after March 31 will be reviewed in August for the following next school year. 

The Outside Research Committee will review and respond within two to four weeks of receiving the project submittal. 

*Only complete applications will be reviewed, applications must include an online proposal submission:

1.    Letters of support from a district sponsor supporting the research/evaluation project.

2.    A brief research/evaluation proposal. No longer than six pages and should include a list of schools, principals, duration of the project and school year(s) in which the research will be conducted.    

3.    Assent/consent forms. ­

4.    Data collection methods.

5.    Application fee (check only).

In order for a proposal to be considered, researchers must submit a completed application, with the following attachments:

1. A brief proposal (maximum six pages, double-spaced, numbered pages) describing the study, including all of the following:
   1. Purpose of the research, including a description of its value to the Minneapolis Public Schools
   2. Theoretical background including references, where appropriate - not a full literature review. This should be written for a cross-disciplinary, general audience.
   3. Description of the study, which must include the following:
      1. Hypotheses or specific research questions to be addressed
      2. Specifics of the sample - who, when, how many, which site(s), etc.
      3. Description of the tasks students or staff members will be asked to complete
      4. Time demands on students, teachers, or other district employees
      5. Data collection methodologies that will be used to answer research questions
      6. Samples of all data collection instruments (e.g., survey questions, observation forms and rubrics, interview questions, assessments and scoring information). (Samples of data collection instruments do not count toward the six-page maximum.)
   4. Description of the proposed data analysis plan - the methodology that will be used to analyze the data and the way in which this will address the original hypotheses or research questions.

To address the study description (c) and data analysis plan (d), all applications must include a Research Design Table with the following information:

2. Description of the procedures you will use to secure and acknowledge informed consent of all participants, including active or passive consent. If you are proposing to use passive content, please provide a rationale.
   • Outline how subjects will be identified and the criteria used for recruitment, who will make the initial contact with subjects, and whether or not inducements will be used to secure participation.
   • Attach consent forms for study participants (e.g. parents consent forms, student assent forms, teacher consent forms). Consent forms do not count toward the six-page maximum.
   • If the study is likely to involve second-language students, the parental consent letters must also be translated into Hmong, Spanish, and Somali before the study can proceed. Copies of translated consent forms must be submitted to the MPS Research Review Committee; however, we recommend waiting to translate consent forms until all consent forms have been approved by the Committee.
   • Researchers should retain all consent / assent forms and must be prepared to make them available to the building principal or to a district official.
   • If you plan on video-recording students as part of the study, please see the section entitled Video-Recording.
   • If your research could be considered "sensitive" in nature, please see the section entitled Studies Involving Sensitive Material.

3. List of all of the funding sources and budget for the study
4. Indicate whether this research/evaluation will require a specific data request from REA. All data requests must be associated with a previously approved research project or accompanied by a proposal to conduct research.
5. A 1-2 paragraph summary of the plans to disseminate the research results, both internally to appropriate MPS staff and externally.
6. A copy of IRB application. Provide IRB approval letter or statement that IRB approval is pending MPS approval. IRB application and/or letter do not count toward the six-page maximum.
7. Letter of support from a sponsor (subject matter expert, director, or executive director).
8. Letters of support from each school principal where the research/evaluation will be conducted.

Be prepared to upload all surveys and assent / consent forms.

• That they have the option of saying “yes” or “no” to their child being in the videotape; and
• That the videotaping will be structured so that students who do not have consent can remain in the room during instruction but be assured that they will not be in the videotape (describe the process for how you will do this).

The consent form must also include the following information:

• The purpose of the videotaping
• How the videotape will be used (e.g., to verify agreement between observers and/or to be used to present at conferences)
• How long the videotape will be kept / used
• When / how the videotape will be destroyed
• Who will have access to the videotape

Note: District media releases are for District purposes only and cannot be used as a substitute for the researcher obtaining his/her own release.

• Indicate that the information obtained is for research purposes only and will not be shared with the school district;
• Be clear about what data you (as the researcher) will be collecting and what you will/will not do with the information;
• Indicate whether the information collected will be “identifiable” (i.e., whether the student data will be connected to the student’s name/ID). If the information is connected to a student, the researcher must let parents and students know that the researcher will intervene if there is a need based on responses.

Your data collection instruments must:

• Indicate that the research is not being done by MPS and no one from the school will know the answers;
• Provide information about who students can talk to about issues raised in the study;
• Indicate, for instruments connected to a student, that if the student indicates he/she is ‘in trouble/at risk,’ someone will follow up with them.

1. The study must be in alignment with district priorities.
2. The study must have the potential to make a definitive contribution to the education profession and/or to the Minneapolis Public Schools in particular.
3. The study must be pedagogically sound and feasible in terms of its demands on student time, teacher time, and possible expense to the district.     
4. The study design should minimize disruption to instructional time.
5. Staff members’ time must be protected so that they can complete their assigned duties.
6. There must be reasonable assurance that no child in the Minneapolis Public Schools will suffer educationally as a result of the research.
7. The researcher must use appropriate methods to secure informed consent from study participants. The overall design of the study must be sound and have the potential for successful completion.
8. The project must comply with ethical standards for research in education and with all regulations set forth in federal and state law, particularly as they pertain to privacy of data on individuals.

Research conducted within MPS is governed by MPS Policy 1730 (Academic Research) and Regulation 1730A (Responsibility, Definitions and Procedures for Research Approval). 

Researchers working on federally funded projects (Census, Department of Education, Workforce, etc) should reach out to the REA Department for a conversation before applying or reaching out to schools.

Researchers and evaluators must comply with all District policies, and state/federal laws regarding student data privacy including the Minnesota Government Data Practices Act, Minnesota Statute Chapter 13 and The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)

• MPS defines data as any information provided by the school and/or district (individual or aggregate student data), as well as any information that outside organizations collect directly from students and/or families. This includes observations, surveys, focus groups, or individual interviews.
• MPS defines identifiable data as data set where information and data can be connected to a specific student.
• MPS defines de-identified data as a data set where any identifiable data has been suppressed or removed from the data set. 
• REA suppresses data if the n is less than 5 and uses a researcher ID number to identify students for internal matching purposes.

• FastBridge (K-9, literacy and math screeners):
  • November, March, June
• ACCESS for ELLs (English Language proficiency):
  • State releases scores at the end of August (3 months after testing is complete)
• MCA (standards based assessments): 
  • State releases scores at the end of August (3 months after testing is complete)
• ACT:
  • Mid-July
• Graduation Rates:
  • Spring after graduation
• College Matriculation:
  • 2 summers after graduation

MPS Guidelines Regarding Research/Evaluation Projects for Pre-Student Teachers, College, or Graduate Students:

All individuals interested in completing a research project or study in Minneapolis Public Schools must have their research project approved by the MPS Research, Evaluation & Assessment (REA) department. This policy applies to all college and graduate students, including those looking to complete a pre-student teaching (field experience or practicum) experience as well.

If a college or graduate student would like to complete a research project or study in MPS, they must go through REA’s external research request process. 

Guidelines for Pre-Student Teachers:

Pre-Student teachers may complete informal observations of students, classrooms, teachers, and/or schools, or complete informal interviews with teachers provided that they follow these guidelines:

The student completes the required forms and online orientation prior to beginning the experience, and complies with all the Pre-Student Teacher Guidelines