Program for the International
Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC) Cycle II 2022 Operational
Field Test
Revision of a currently approved collection
No
Regular
03/17/2021
Requested
Previously Approved
36 Months From Approved
12/31/2022
1,250
5,611
293
1,258
0
0
The Program for the International
Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC) is a cyclical, large-scale
study of adult skills and life experiences focusing on education
and employment. PIAAC is an international study designed to assess
adults in different countries over a broad range of abilities, from
simple reading to complex problem-solving skills, and to collect
information on individuals’ skill use and background. PIAAC is
coordinated by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and
Development (OECD) and developed by participating countries with
the support of the OECD. In the United States, the National Center
for Education Statistics (NCES), within the U.S. Department of
Education (ED) conducts PIAAC. The U.S. participated in the PIAAC
Main Study data collection in 2012 and conducted national
supplement data collections in 2014 and 2017. All three of these
collections are part of PIAAC Cycle I. A new PIAAC cycle is to be
conducted every 10 years, and PIAAC Cycle II Main Study data
collection will be conducted from August 2022 through March 2023.
In preparation for the main study collection, PIAAC Cycle II begins
with a Field Test in Spring of 2021 in which 33 countries will
participate with the goal of evaluating newly developed assessment
and questionnaire items and to test the operations for the PIAAC
2023 Main Study (2022-2023). PIAAC 2022 defines four core
competency domains of adult cognitive skills deemed key to
facilitating the social and economic participation of adults in
advanced economies: (1) literacy, (2) numeracy, (3) reading and
numeracy components, and (4) adaptive problem solving. The U.S.
will administer all four domains of the PIAAC 2022 assessment to a
nationally representative sample of adults, along with a background
questionnaire with questions about their education background, work
history, the skills they use on the job and at home, their civic
engagement, financial literacy and sense of their health and
well-being. The results are used to compare the skills capacities
of the workforce-aged adults in participating countries, and to
learn more about relationships between educational background,
employment, and other outcomes. The request to conduct the PIAAC
Cycle II Field Test in April-June 2020 was approved by OMB in
December 2019 (OMB# 1850-0870 v.7-8). As described in the
previously approved amendment in September 2020 (OMB# 1850-0870
v.9), the 2020 PIAAC Cycle II Field Test, scheduled to begin in
April 2020, was postponed due to the 2020 novel coronavirus
(COVID-19) global pandemic. The OECD has delayed both the Field
Test and Main Study by 12 months, meaning that the Field Test was
due to be carried out in respondent homes beginning in April 2021.
In recognition of the continued constraints that countries face in
meeting the current Field Test goals and timeline during the
continuing global pandemic, the OECD has relaxed the current field
test standards to allow for a smaller Operational Field Test of
survey implementation. Currently, none of the 13 areas of the US in
the PIAAC field test sample has low enough rates of new daily cases
of COVID-19 for safe and productive field interviews. After several
months of careful monitoring of new daily case rates and
considering OECD guidance, NCES has elected to conduct an
Operational Field Test. Therefore, this request updates the package
to reflect the change to an Operational Field Test. Additionally,
NCES has imposed new requirements on study nomenclature that
require changes to the U.S. outreach and recruitment materials and
program nomenclature in the instruments. The revisions made do
include changes to respondent burden and the cost to the federal
government.
US Code:
20
USC 9543 Name of Law: Education Sciences Reform Act
Since PIAAC is a cyclical
study, the PIAAC Cycle II Field Test and Main Study data
collections are building on the Cycle I content and procedures. The
most significant changes or adjustments result from the timing and
design changes resulting from the inability to safely conduct
in-home face-to-face interviewing during the ongoing novel
coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. The original 2020 approved Cycle
II Field Test featured a stratified purposive subsample of 20 PSUs
selected from the PIAAC Cycle I 2017 sample of 80 PSUs. The target
sample yield of 1500 was required to estimate item parameters for
all newly developed assessment items and to test the stability of
the trend item parameters for each tested language in a
participating country. Achieving the target sample yield required a
three month field period, April through June. This was true for
both the original 2020 Field Test and the modified 2021 Field Test.
This field period allowed for data processing and tabulation in
time for inclusion in the International Consortium required
deadline of August 15th. The current Operational Field Test,
reduced in both scope and number of respondents, in consideration
of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic will run June through early-August
2021. The current Operational Field Test approach tests survey
implementation as well as tests the functionalities of the tablet
device and the ease of use of the device and interface for adults
with low levels of familiarity with tablet devices. As presented in
more detail within Part B, a convenience sample of volunteers in
the greater Washington DC metropolitan area will be recruited to
achieve a total of 250 completed cases. Volunteers will be screened
on relevant demographic characteristics: age, gender, level of
education, English language proficiency and computer/tablet
familiarity. Recruitment quotas will be set within each of these
characteristics’ categories. Additional changes to the program from
PIAAC Cycle I to PIAAC Cycle II, beyond the changes in the Field
Test, include the use of a tablet computer to administer the study
instruments, modules added to the background questionnaire, and the
elimination of paper booklets during the Field Test (to be included
in the Main Study).
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 E PIAAC Cycle II COVID-19 Interviewer Procedures Manual.docx
Program for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC) Cycle II 2022 Operational Field Test