[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 125 (Friday, July 2, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 35277-35278]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-14187]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

[Docket No.: ED-2021-SCC-0095]


Agency Information Collection Activities; Comment Request; Trends 
in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS 2023) Field Test 
Data Collection and Main Study Sampling, Recruitment, and Data 
Collection

AGENCY: Institute of Educational Science (IES), National Center for 
Education Statistics (NCES), 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 to a currently approved information collection.

DATES: Interested persons are invited to submit comments on or before 
August 31, 2021.

ADDRESSES: To access and review all the documents related to the 
information collection listed in this notice, please use http://www.regulations.gov by searching the Docket ID number ED-2021-SCC-0095. 
Comments submitted in response to this notice should be submitted 
electronically through the Federal eRulemaking Portal at http://www.regulations.gov by selecting the Docket ID number or via postal 
mail, commercial delivery, or hand delivery. If the regulations.gov 
site is not available to the public for any reason,

[[Page 35278]]

ED will temporarily accept comments at <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#eba2a8af8488808e9fa68c99ab8e8fc58c849d"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="3c757f78535f575948715b4e7c5958125b534a">[email protected]</span></a>. Please 
include the docket ID number and the title of the information 
collection request when requesting documents or submitting comments. 
Please note that comments submitted by fax or email and those submitted 
after the comment period will not be accepted. Written requests for 
information or comments submitted by postal mail or delivery should be 
addressed to the PRA Coordinator of the Strategic Collections and 
Clearance Governance and Strategy Division, U.S. Department of 
Education, 400 Maryland Ave. SW, LBJ, Room 6W208B, Washington, DC 
20202-8240.

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 Data Collection and Main Study 
Sampling, Recruitment, and Data Collection.
    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: 50,996.
    Total Estimated Number of Annual Burden Hours: 20,336.
    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 [The Educational Sciences Reform Act of 2002 (ESRA 
2002, 20 U.S.C. 9543)].
    A previous request to conduct sampling and recruitment activities 
associated with the TIMSS 2023 field test, which will be conducted in 
March and April 2022, was approved by OMB in May 2021 (OMB# 1850-0695 
v.16). 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 for the field test data collection materials and the main 
study sampling, recruiting, and data collection plans. Recruitment 
activities for the main study will begin in January 2022, with the data 
collection activities currently scheduled to begin in March 2023.

    Dated: June 29, 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. 2021-14187 Filed 7-1-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P


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