What is ISQ?
ISQ is a comprehensive survey system for school administrators to evaluate and monitor school improvement and accreditation efforts. It summarizes the perceptions of parents, teachers, students, and other school staff regarding more than 30 crucial characteristics of the school.

How does ISQ work?
Schools or districts enroll in ISQ by phone 1-800-303-7363. Once a school enrolls and indicates a start date, a personalized ISQ package is assembled and mailed. This package contains all materials necessary to conduct ISQ (e.g., instructions, surveys, letters, envelopes, etc.). Upon completion, the ISQ package is returned to the Center for the School of the Future for analysis. In just a few days, color reports are generated and sent to the school, along with the original surveys, which are returned so that qualitative responses can be examined.

How is ISQ unique?
The truly unique feature of ISQ is its reporting system. ISQ summarizes the seven core domains (parent support, teacher excellence, student commitment, school leadership, instructional quality, resource accessibility, and school safety) by the four respondent audiences (parents, teachers, students, and other school staff) in an exclusive format called Signal Analysis©, which works on a traffic signal metaphor. Each domain and item is given a color grade based on the results of the survey. Green is better than yellow, which is better than red, and purple, is reserved for exemplary practice. ISQ also includes a school and community risk and resiliency assessment. Based on extensive research, ISQ now includes items that assess social and academic risk for both school populations and the community at large. With this information, schools can better interpret their report.

What does ISQ cost?
The cost for ISQ $1.10 per enrolled student with a minimum of $250. A discount rate is provided for large districts (those with over 10,000 enrolled students). This low price includes all necessary materials for the entire ISQ process, including analysis and printed reports.

How long does the ISQ process take?
During the enrollment process, the school selects a start date, and the ISQ kit will arrive in time to facilitate the school starting at that time. For most elementary schools, all students and staff can take ISQ that day, with respondents requiring 10 to 20 minutes to complete the survey. Secondary schools may spread ISQ out over a few days to accommodate their more complex schedule. Parents are asked to complete their surveys and return them with their children in three days or less, but some schools may wish to wait for a larger return. Additionally, some schools may have specific reasons to extend any of these processes, but ISQ can certainly be back in the mail to the Center within one week of the start date. If ISQ is properly planned for, the return rates will be higher and the burden will seem inconsequential.

Does ISQ require parent consent?
No. ISQ was designed to meet the Family Education Rights & Privacy Act (FERPA) guidelines for obtaining information from students without the need for parent consent. Some states have additional guidelines; however, our experience shows that ISQ follows these state guidelines as well. For further information, feel free to contact CSF.

Do you allow large schools to sample?
We are asked this question more and more. Clearly schools are looking for a break in the price, but what they fail to realize is that if we allowed them to sample, they would now be taking an unwise risk for paying money for something of questionable value. By altering the methodology, side effects are created, not the least of which is that the results will be invalid, and the school has now prevented some people from participating in the process.

In large schools, response rates can be very low (even under the best of circumstances), and everything needs to be done to help schools obtain generalizable data. In the early days of ISQ we tried alternate methodologies, including sampling and online surveys. In both cases, the results were a disaster. When sampling is employed, subgroups are truly eliminated from the process. Not a wise political choice, and not a statistically rewarding one either. Online methodologies, of course, exclude lower SES, ethnically diverse, and many other parents from the process.

So, you still want to sample? Sorry, we have an obligation to schools similar to a medical doctor's obligation to patients. You can't choose medicines from a menu; neither can we ethically allow a school to spend money on measurement that will too likely be faulty. Our commitment to excellence simply prevents us from using inferior methods.

How long are the surveys and how long does it take to fill them out?
Each of the ISQ survey forms is contained on one side of one sheet of paper. Staff and parent survey forms are the longest, but require only 10 to 20 minutes to complete. Student survey forms, both elementary and secondary, are tailored to their audiences by altering both the number and readability of items, and take approximately the same amount of time.

In what languages is ISQ available?
ISQ has both English and Spanish versions for the parent and student forms. Translations are created in a rigorous translation/back-translation process using numerous well-educated native Spanish speakers from various North and South American nations. Final versions attempt to engage the largest possible Spanish speaking audience. Although alternative translations are possible, and perhaps at times more precise, many considerations were honored in the final versions.

What is the best time of year to conduct ISQ?
ISQ is very easy to administer, so any time during the school year is possible. Although the school may wish to avoid the holiday rush, or the testing maze at the end of the school year, ISQ can be and has been done during the last week of school. We suggest, however, that schools not conduct ISQ during the first few weeks of a new school year. ISQ should be done when students, parents, and new faculty have had a chance to accumulate sufficient experience with the current school climate.

How does a school increase response rates?
Many things govern response rates. Experience with ISQ over time has shown that elementary schools obtain a far greater response rate from all audiences than do secondary schools. In addition, schools with enthusiastic principals will also have a higher rate of return. Here are a few things your school can do to maximize response rates:

1. Before the ISQ kit arrives, let the school staff know it is coming, that it is important to the school, and plan with them the time frame and logistics of conducting ISQ.
2. When the ISQ kit arrives, follow the directions closely. These instructions reflect what CSF has learned over the years surveying many people in many schools.
   
3. Provide incentives for young children to return completed parent surveys. These same incentives may not work with older students as they may well fill out the survey themselves for the incentive.
   
4. Let parents know that ISQ is on the way, either with a school newsletter, working with the local newspaper or radio station, announcing ISQ on the school website, etc. In addition, let parents know how important ISQ is to school improvement efforts and assure them that this is a great opportunity for their voice to be heard.

How should a school interpret an ISQ report? This question cannot be addressed fully in this forum. Click here to read an article how to read your ISQ report.

How should a school interpret a behavior report? This question cannot be addressed fully in this forum. Click here to read an article how to read your behavior report.

How does a school connect its ISQ results to school improvement efforts?
The School Leadership Guides provide school leaders with a checklist for responding to the data collected through ISQ. These guides serve as a standard for an exemplary school learning environment and are based on empirically supported principles of school quality.

Is my report made public?
Not unless the school principal or district superintendent want it made public. A paper version of the ISQ report is sent to the school principal, and to the district superintendent when the district is the authorizing party. In addition, ISQ results can be accessed on the Internet using a secure account and password provided with ISQ. From there, schools and districts may work on their own to make the results public. Electronic copies of the report can be downloaded from the Internet and printed on a color printer then distributed to any number of interested parties. Additional copies of ISQ reports can also be ordered from CSF. Finally, reports can be transferred to school or district websites for public viewing.

What if I want to do ISQ again?
ISQ is both a summative and formative evaluation. Because of this, most, if not all schools conduct ISQ on an annual basis. Given the nature of this type of data, conducting ISQ more often will more likely be redundant, instead of providing more or updated information. Less often may confuse administrators about the causal relationship between interventions and their ISQ results. In addition, school audiences can change rapidly and each school year brings in a new class. To maintain a solid grip on the changing school landscape, once per year is best.