The Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) is an international assessment of fourth-grade studentsâ achievement in reading. PIRLS reports on four benchmarks in reading achievement at grade 4 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 United States 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. 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 studiesâ 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. In preparation for the PIRLS 2021 main study, all countries are asked to implement a field test in 2020. The purpose of the PIRLS field test is 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. Data collection for the field test in the U.S. will occur from March through April 2020 and for the main study from March through June 2021. This submission describes the overarching plan for all phases of the data collection, including the 2021 main study and requests approval for all activities, materials, and response burden related to the field test recruitment, scheduled to begin in May 2019.
There are updated burden estimates for Field Test Recruitment and Field Test Data Collection based on the revised sample numbers of schools and students for the field test and this is the reason for a slight burden increase.
On behalf of this Federal agency, I certify that the collection of information encompassed by this request complies with 5 CFR 1320.9 and the related provisions of 5 CFR 1320.8(b)(3).
The following is a summary of the topics, regarding the proposed collection of information, that the certification covers:
(i) Why the information is being collected;
(ii) Use of information;
(iii) Burden estimate;
(iv) Nature of response (voluntary, required for a benefit, or mandatory);
(v) Nature and extent of confidentiality; and
(vi) Need to display currently valid OMB control number;
If you are unable to certify compliance with any of these provisions, identify the item by leaving the box unchecked and explain the reason in the Supporting Statement.
Appendix A PIRLS 2021 Field Test Communication Materials.docx
PIRLS 2021 Field Test Recruitment Change Sheet.pdf
Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS 2021) Field Test Recruitment