Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 145 / Monday, August 2, 2021 / Notices 41463 

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION 

[Docket No.: ED–2021–SCC–0114] 

Agency Information Collection 

Activities; Comment Request; 

Progress in International Reading 

Literacy Study (PIRLS 2021) Main 

Study Data Collection 

AGENCY: Institute for Education Sciences 

(IES), National Center for Education 

Statistics (NCES), Department of 

Education (ED). 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: In accordance with the 

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, ED is 

requesting the Office of Management 

and Budget (OMB) to conduct an 

emergency review of an information 

collection. 

DATES: Approval by the OMB has been 

requested by July 30, 2021. Interested 

persons are invited to submit comments 

on or before September 1, 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–0114. 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, 

ED will temporarily accept comments at 

ICDocketMgr@ed.gov. 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 Director 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: Progress in 

International Reading Literacy Study 

(PIRLS 2021) Main Study Data 

Collection. 

OMB Control Number: 1850–0645. 

Type of Review: A revision of an 

approved information collection. 

Respondents/Affected Public: 

Individuals or Households. 

Total Estimated Number of Annual 

Responses: 31,028. 

Total Estimated Number of Annual 

Burden Hours: 10,716. 

Abstract: The Progress in 

International Reading Literacy Study 

(PIRLS) is coordinated by the 

International Association for the 

Evaluation of Educational Achievement 

(IEA), an international collective of 

research organizations and government 

agencies that create the assessment 

framework, the assessment instrument, 

and background questionnaires. The 

IEA decides and agrees upon a common 

set of standards and procedures for 

collecting and reporting PIRLS data, and 

defines the studies’ timeline, all of 

which must be followed by all 

participating countries. As a result, 

PIRLS is able to provide a reliable and 

comparable measure of student skills in 

participating countries. In the U.S., the 

National Center for Education Statistics 

(NCES) conducts this study, with 

support from U.S. Department of 

Education contractors, and works with 

the IEA to ensure proper 

implementation of the study and 

adoption of practices in adherence to 

the IEA’s standards. Participation in 

PIRLS allows NCES to meet its mandate 

of acquiring and disseminating data on 

educational activities and student 

achievement in the U.S. compared with 

foreign nations [The Educational 

Sciences Reform Act of 2002 (ESRA 

2002) 20 U.S.C. 9543]. PIRLS is an 

international assessment of fourth-grade 

students’ achievement in reading. PIRLS 

reports on four benchmarks in reading 

achievement at grade 4 (Advanced, 

High, Medium, and Low) and on a 

variety of issues related to the education 

context for the students in the sample, 

including instructional practices, school 

resources, curriculum implementation, 

and learning supports outside of school. 

Since its inception in 2001, PIRLS has 

continued to assess students every 5 

years (2001, 2006, 2011, and 2016), with 

the next PIRLS assessment, PIRLS 2021, 

being the fifth iteration of the study. 

Participation in this study by the United 

States at regular intervals provides data 

on student achievement and on current 

and past education policies and a 

comparison of U.S. education policies 

and student performance with those of 

the U.S. international counterparts. In 

PIRLS 2016, 58 education systems 

participated. The U.S. will participate in 

PIRLS 2021 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. In preparation for the 

PIRLS 2021 main study, all countries 

were asked to implement a field test in 

2020 in order to evaluate new 

assessment items and background 

questions, to ensure practices that 

promote low exclusion rates, and to 

ensure that classroom and student 

sampling procedures proposed for the 

main study are successful. In selecting 

a school sample for this purpose, it is 

important to minimize the burden on 

schools, districts, and states, while also 

ensuring that the field test data are 

collected effectively. PIRLS staff will 

work to help respondents understand 

the study’s value relative to the burden 

imposed, and to ensure a high level of 

school participation. Data collection for 

the field test in the U.S. occurred from 

March 1 through April 15, 2020 and 

involved a sample of 45 public schools 

and about 1,650 students (selecting two 

classes from each school). The U.S 

PIRLS 2021 main study involves a 

nationally-representative sample of 290 

schools and about 9,280 students. Main 

study data collection was originally 

scheduled to be completed in Spring 

2021, but due to the COVID–19 

pandemic the main study has been 

delayed and will be conducted from 

September through October 2021. The 

submission describing the overarching 


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41464 Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 145 / Monday, August 2, 2021 / Notices 

plan for all phases of the data collection, 

including the 2021 main study, and 

requesting approval for all activities, 

materials, and response burden related 

to the field test recruitment was 

approved in April 2019 with a change 

request in September 2019 (OMB 

#1850–0645 v.11–12), while the 

submission describing all aspects of the 

field test and recruitment for the main 

study was approved in October 2019 

(OMB #1850–0645 v.13). The 

submission for all aspects of the PIRLS 

2021 main study, including data 

collection activities, with an 

accompanying 30-day public comment 

period was approved in May 2020 (OMB 

#1850–0645 v.14) with a change request 

in February 2021 (OMB #1850–0645 

v.15). In summer 2021, NCES was 

notified by the IEA that teacher 

questionnaire data from the United 

States would not be included in the 

PIRLS international report or 

international database. At the same 

time, IEA requested changes to the 

school questionnaire to solicit 

information about the 2020–2021 school 

year. The exceptional circumstances of 

the 2021 PIRLS administration in the 

United States and these other countries 

(assessing fifth-grade students at the 

beginning of the academic year rather 

than fourth-grade students at the end of 

the academic year) present challenges 

for reporting and interpreting some 

PIRLS questionnaire data. This issue 

impacts other Northern Hemisphere 

countries administering the PIRLS 

teacher questionnaire to the teachers of 

fifth grade students in the fall of 2021. 

Due to the exclusion of teacher 

questionnaire data from international 

reporting and limitations in its use for 

national analysis, the U.S. PIRLS 2021 

administration will no longer include a 

teacher questionnaire component. In 

accordance with the IEA’s guidance, the 

school questionnaire has been modified 

to more adequately characterize the 

impact of the pandemic on students in 

countries assessing students at the 

beginning of fifth grade rather than at 

the end of the fourth grade. Note, for 

example, that the school questionnaire 

now asks questions about resources 

available to 4th grade students. The aim 

is to evaluate students at the beginning 

of their fifth-grade year, in light of what 

was available to them throughout their 

fourth-grade year. These changes will 

facilitate the inclusion of U.S. data in 

international reports that include 

findings from the school questionnaire. 

Additional Information: An 

emergency clearance approval for the 

use of the system is described below 

due to the following conditions: 

• NCES requests emergency clearance 

to allow us to continue recruiting 

schools for participation in a Fall 2021 

data collection after substantive changes 

were required to an already approved 

and finalized data collection plan. The 

need for immediate clearance is due to 

the time sensitivity of this data 

collection, as normal clearance 

procedures would not allow NCES to 

follow the mandates set by the 

sponsoring international organization 

and make the required changes to the 

data collection while also respecting the 

timeline specified for this data 

collection. NCES will publish a Federal 

Register Notice soliciting 30 days of 

public comment on this collection 

concurrent with continued recruitment 

and data collection. 

Dated: July 27, 2021. 

Stephanie Valentine, 

PRA Coordinator, Strategic Collections and 

Clearance, Governance and Strategy Division, 

Office of Chief Data Officer. 

[FR Doc. 2021–16342 Filed 7–30–21; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4000–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY 

Environmental Management SiteSpecific Advisory Board, Idaho 

Cleanup Project 

AGENCY: Office of Environmental 

Management, Department of Energy. 

ACTION: Notice of open in-person/virtual 

hybrid meeting. 

SUMMARY: This notice announces an inperson/virtual hybrid meeting of the 

Environmental Management SiteSpecific Advisory Board (EM SSAB), 

Idaho Cleanup Project (ICP). The 

Federal Advisory Committee Act 

requires that public notice of this 

meeting be announced in the Federal 

Register. 

DATES: Wednesday, August 18, 2021; 

3:00 p.m.–6:30 p.m. 

The opportunity for oral public 

comment for those attending in-person 

is at 4:45 p.m. MTN and written public 

comment received prior to the meeting 

will be read into the record. 

This time is subject to change; please 

contact the ICP Citizens Advisory Board 

(CAB) Administrator (below) for 

confirmation of time prior to the 

meeting. 

ADDRESSES: This hybrid meeting is 

offered both virtually via Zoom and inperson. To attend virtually, please 

contact the ICP CAB Administrator 

(below) no later than 5:00 p.m. MTN on 

Monday, August 16, 2021. 

Board members, Department of 

Energy (DOE) representatives, agency 

liaisons, and support staff will 

participate in-person at: Residence Inn 

by Marriott Idaho Falls, 635 W 

Broadway Street, Idaho Falls, ID 83402. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Jordan Davies, ICP CAB Administrator, 

by phone (720) 452–7379 or email 

jdavies@northwindgrp.com or visit the 

Board’s internet homepage at https://

energy.gov/em/icpcab. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Purpose of the Board: The purpose of 

the Board is to make recommendations 

to DOE–EM and site management in the 

areas of environmental restoration, 

waste management, and related 

activities. 

Tentative Agenda (agenda topics may 

change up to the day of the meeting; 

please contact Jordan Davies for the 

most current agenda): 

1. Recent Public Outreach 

2. Idaho Cleanup Project Overview 

3. Integrated Waste Treatment Unit 

(IWTU) Update 

4. Westbay Well Rehabilitation Update 

5. Spent Nuclear Fuel at the Idaho site 

6. Indefinite Delivery Indefinite 

Quantity End State Contracting Model 

Public Participation: The in-person/ 

online virtual hybrid meeting is open to 

the public. Written statements may be 

filed with the Board no later than 5:00 

p.m. MTN on Monday, August 16, 2021 

or within seven days after the meeting 

by sending them to the ICP CAB 

Administrator at the aforementioned 

email address. Oral comments may be 

given by in-person attendees during the 

aforementioned time. The Deputy 

Designated Federal Officer is 

empowered to conduct the meeting in a 

fashion that will facilitate the orderly 

conduct of business. Individuals 

wishing to make or submit public 

comments should follow as directed 

above. 

Minutes: Minutes will be available by 

writing or calling Jordan Davies, ICP 

CAB Administrator, phone (720) 452– 

7379 or email jdavies@

northwindgrp.com. Minutes will also be 

available at the following website: 

https://energy.gov/em/icpcab. 

Signed in Washington, DC, on July 28, 

2021. 

LaTanya Butler, 

Deputy Committee Management Officer. 

[FR Doc. 2021–16445 Filed 7–30–21; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6450–01–P 


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