81 FR 23692 - Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the Office of Management and Budget for Review and Approval; Comment Request; ED School Climate Surveys (EDSCLS) Benchmark Study 2017 Update

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

Federal Register Volume 81, Issue 78 (April 22, 2016)

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. chapter 3501 et seq.), ED is proposing a revision of an existing information collection.

[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 78 (Friday, April 22, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 23692-23693]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2016-09348]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

[Docket No.: ED-2016-ICCD-0048]


Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the 
Office of Management and Budget for Review and Approval; Comment 
Request; ED School Climate Surveys (EDSCLS) Benchmark Study 2017 Update

AGENCY: 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 (44 
U.S.C. chapter 3501 et seq.), ED is proposing a revision of an existing 
information collection.

DATES: Interested persons are invited to submit comments on or before 
May 23, 2016.

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-2016-ICCD-
0048. 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. 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 Information Collection Clearance Division, U.S. 
Department of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue SW., LBJ, Room 2E-103, 
Washington, DC 20202-4537.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For specific questions related to 
collection activities, please contact Kashka Kubzdela at 
[email protected].

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: ED School Climate Surveys (EDSCLS) Benchmark 
Study 2017 Update.
    OMB Control Number: 1850-0923.
    Type of Review: A revision of an existing information collection.
    Respondents/Affected Public: Individuals or Households.
    Total Estimated Number of Annual Responses: 328,877.
    Total Estimated Number of Annual Burden Hours: 241,265.
    Abstract: The ED School Climate Surveys (EDSCLS) are a suite of 
survey instruments being developed for schools, districts, and states 
by the U.S. Department of Education's (ED) National Center for 
Education Statistics (NCES). This national effort extends current 
activities that measure school climate, including the state-level 
efforts of the Safe and Supportive Schools (S3) grantees, which were 
awarded funds in

[[Page 23693]]

2010 by the ED's Office of Safe and Healthy Students (OSHS) to improve 
school climate. Through the EDSCLS, schools nationwide will have access 
to survey instruments and a survey platform that will allow for the 
collection and reporting of school climate data across stakeholders at 
the local level. The surveys can be used to produce school-, district-, 
and state-level scores on various indicators of school climate from the 
perspectives of students, teachers, noninstructional school staff and 
principals, and parents and guardians. The 2017 national EDSCLS 
benchmark study data collection from a nationally representative sample 
of schools across the United States to create a national comparison 
point for users of EDSCLS was last approved in April 2016 (OMB# 1850-
0923 v.3). Data will be collected from a nationally representative 
sample of 500 schools serving students in grades 5-12 has to produce 
national school climate scores on the various topics covered by EDSCLS, 
which will be released in the updated EDSCLS platform and provide a 
basis for comparison between data collected by schools and school 
systems and the national school climate. This submission requests 
adjustments to the study plan to allow schools participating in the 
EDSCLS benchmark data collection the option to survey a sample rather 
than all students and staff so that participating schools have greater 
control over the amount of burden posed on EDSCLS respondents.

    Dated: April 19, 2016.
Kate Mullan,
Acting Director, Information Collection Clearance Division, Office of 
the Chief Privacy Officer, Office of Management.
[FR Doc. 2016-09348 Filed 4-21-16; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4000-01-P