Template Justification

Request for Approval under the

“Generic Clearance for the Collection of Routine Customer Feedback”

(OMB Control Number: 1880-0542)

September 15, 2014

T ITLE OF INFORMATION COLLECTION:

NAEP Assessment Literacy Concepts Focus Groups 2014

PURPOSE:

The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) is a federally authorized survey of student achievement at grades 4, 8, and 12 in various subject areas, such as mathematics, reading, writing, science, U.S. history, civics, geography, economics, and the arts, and is administered by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). In 2013, the National Assessment Governing Board (NAGB) undertook a major assessment-literacy initiative to explore current perception and knowledge of educational assessments, in order to promote greater understanding of assessments and of NAEP in particular for three key target audiences: students, parents/guardians, and policymakers. This submission is to conduct focus groups with students, parents, teachers, and educational policymakers to discern the knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs of the participants concerning educational assessments. Topics include the function of formative and summative assessments, interpreting the results of educational assessments, considerations of quality and accuracy of educational assessments, and questions audiences may have about educational assessments. The results will be used to develop communication materials to encourage assessment literacy and engagement. The focus groups will also provide needed feedback on the content, presentation, and usability of materials to be developed in support of the educational literacy initiative.

DESCRIPTION OF RESPONDENTS:

The study will include socioeconomically diverse respondents as follows: 20 parents/guardians of public school students in grades 3-12 (50% low and 50% mid/high income); 10 public school students in grades 7-8 and 10 in grades 9-12, 10 assistant school superintendents; 10 school board members, and 10 teachers in grades 7-8 plus 10 in grades 9-12.

TYPE OF COLLECTION: (Check one)

[ ] Customer Comment Card/Complaint Form [ ] Customer Satisfaction Survey

[ ] Usability Testing (e.g., Website or Software [ ] Small Discussion Group

[X] Focus Group [ ] Other: Respondent Feedback

CERTIFICATION:

I certify the following to be true:

1. The collection is voluntary.

2. The collection is low-burden for respondents and low-cost for the Federal Government.

3. The collection is non-controversial and does not raise issues of concern to other federal agencies.

4. The results are not intended to be disseminated to the public.

5. Information gathered will not be used for the purpose of substantially informing influential policy decisions.

6. The collection is targeted to the solicitation of opinions from respondents who have experience with the program or may have experience with the program in the future.

Name: Kashka Kubzdela ([email protected])

Personally Identifiable Information:

1. Is personally identifiable information (PII) collected? [ ] Yes [X] No

2. If Yes, is the information that will be collected included in records that are subject to the Privacy Act of 1974? [ ] Yes [X] No

3. If Applicable, has a System or Records Notice been published? [ ] Yes [ ] No

Gifts or Payments:

Is an incentive (e.g., money or reimbursement of expenses, token of appreciation) provided to participants? [X] Yes [ ] No

BURDEN HOURS

Type of Respondent	Maximum Number of Respondents	Burden Hours Per Respondent	Total Hours
Initial contact/recruitment	720	10 minutes	120
Focus Groups	80*	1.5 – 2 hours	130
Total	720		250

* Subset of the previous line (this study estimates a total of 720 respondents and 800 responses).

FEDERAL COST: The estimated annual cost to the Federal government is $18,700.

If you are conducting a focus group, survey, or will employ statistical methods, provide answers to the following questions:

The selection of your targeted respondents

1. Do you have a customer list or something similar that defines the universe of potential respondents and do you have a sampling plan for selecting from this universe? [ ] Yes [X] No

If the answer is yes, please provide a description of both below (or attach the sampling plan)? If the answer is no, please provide a description of how you plan to identify your potential group of respondents and how you will select them?

Parents/guardians of children in grades 3-12 in public schools and students attending public schools will be identified initially through the use of opt-in databases of local residents that are maintained by local focus group facilities. Assistant school superintendents, school board members, and teachers will be identified initially through Alan Newman Research’s national database. All identified potential participants will be screened for eligibility according to predetermined criteria using the attached screeners.

Administration of the Instrument

1. How will you collect the information? (Check all that apply)

[X] Web-based or other forms of Social Media

[ ] Telephone

[X] In-person

[ ] Mail

[ ] Other, Explain E-mail

2. Will interviewers or facilitators be used? [X] Yes [ ] No

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