[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 57 (Friday, March 26, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 16196-16197]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-06279]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

[Docket No.: ED-2021-SCC-0008]


Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the 
Office of Management and Budget for Review and Approval; Comment 
Request; Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS 
2023) Field Test Sampling and Recruitment

AGENCY: Institute of Education Sciences (IES), Department of Education 
(ED).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, ED is 
proposing a revision of a currently approved information collection.

DATES: Interested persons are invited to submit comments on or before 
April 26, 2021.

ADDRESSES: Written comments and recommendations for proposed 
information collection requests should be sent within 30 days of 
publication of this notice to www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain. Find 
this information collection request by selecting ``Department of 
Education'' under ``Currently Under Review,'' then check ``Only Show 
ICR for Public Comment'' checkbox. Comments may also be sent to 
[email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For specific questions related to 
collection activities, please contact Carrie Clarady, 202-245-6347.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Department of Education (ED), in 
accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA) (44 U.S.C. 
3506(c)(2)(A)), provides the general public and Federal agencies with 
an opportunity to comment on proposed, revised, and continuing 
collections of information. This helps the Department assess the impact 
of its information collection requirements and minimize the public's 
reporting burden. It also helps the public understand the Department's 
information collection requirements and provide the requested data in 
the desired format. ED is soliciting comments on the proposed 
information collection request (ICR) that is described below. The 
Department of Education is especially interested in public comment 
addressing the following issues: (1) Is this collection necessary to 
the proper functions of the Department; (2) will this information be 
processed and used in a timely manner; (3) is the estimate of burden 
accurate; (4) how might the Department enhance the quality, utility, 
and clarity of the information to be collected; and (5) how might the 
Department minimize the burden of this collection on the respondents, 
including through the use of information technology. Please note that 
written comments received in response to this notice will be considered 
public records.
    Title of Collection: Trends in International Mathematics and 
Science Study (TIMSS 2023) Field Test Sampling and Recruitment.
    OMB Control Number: 1850-0695.
    Type of Review: A revision of a currently approved information 
collection.
    Respondents/Affected Public: Individuals and Households.
    Total Estimated Number of Annual Responses: 3,199.
    Total Estimated Number of Annual Burden Hours: 1,040.
    Abstract: The Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study 
(TIMSS), conducted by the National Center for Education Statistics 
(NCES), within the U.S. Department of Education (ED), is an 
international assessment of fourth and eighth grade students' 
achievement in mathematics and science. Since its inception in 1995, 
TIMSS has continued to assess students every 4 years (1995, 1999, 2003, 
2007, 2011, 2015, and 2019), with the next TIMSS assessment, TIMSS 
2023, being the eighth iteration of the study. In TIMSS 2023, 
approximately 65 countries or education systems will participate. The 
United States will participate in TIMSS 2023 to continue to monitor the 
progress of its students compared to that of other nations and to 
provide data on factors that may influence student achievement.
    TIMSS is led by the International Association for the Evaluation of 
Educational Achievement (IEA), an international collective of research 
organizations and government agencies that create the frameworks used 
to develop the assessment, the survey instruments, and the study 
timeline. IEA decides and agrees upon a common set of standards, 
procedures, and timelines for collecting and reporting data, all of 
which must be followed by all participating countries. As a result, 
TIMSS is able to provide a reliable and comparable measure of student 
skills in participating countries. In the U.S., NCES conducts this 
study in collaboration with the IEA and a number of contractors to 
ensure proper implementation of the study and adoption of practices in 
adherence to the IEA's standards. Participation in TIMSS is consistent 
with NCES's mandate of acquiring and disseminating data on educational 
activities and student achievement in the United States compared with 
foreign nations

[[Page 16197]]

[The Educational Sciences Reform Act of 2002 (ESRA 2002, 20 U.S.C. 
9543)].
    TIMSS 2023 will be a computer-based assessment (referred to as 
``eTIMSS''), administered using the eTIMSS player via Chromebook 
tablets with attached keyboards. TIMSS 2023 builds on the work of TIMSS 
2019, which primarily used an electronic assessment format but included 
a bridge study to examine the effect of administering the assessment on 
tablet versus paper and establish the link to maintain trends. TIMSS 
2023 will be the second eTIMSS assessment in the United States.
    Because TIMSS is a collaborative effort among many parties, the 
United States must adhere to the international schedule set forth by 
the IEA, including the availability of final field test and main study 
plans as well as draft and final questionnaires. In order to meet the 
international data collection schedule, to align with recruitment for 
other NCES studies (e.g., the National Assessment of Education 
Progress, NAEP), and for schools to put the TIMSS 2023 field test 
assessment on their Spring 2022 calendars, recruitment activities for 
the field test will begin in June of 2021. This package requests 
approval to conduct sampling and recruitment activities associated with 
the TIMSS 2023 field test, which will be conducted in March and April 
2022. A separate 60-day package will be submitted in August 2021 to 
request approval for the field test data collection materials and the 
main study sampling and recruiting plan.

    Dated: March 23, 2021.
Stephanie Valentine,
PRA Coordinator, Strategic Collections and Clearance Governance and 
Strategy Division, Office of Chief Data Officer, Office of Planning, 
Evaluation and Policy Development.
[FR Doc. 2021-06279 Filed 3-25-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P