[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 216 (Tuesday, November 9, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 68829-68830]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-28210]
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NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION
Agency Information Collection Activities: Comment Request;
Generic Survey Clearance for the Directorate of Education and Human
Resources (EHR)
AGENCY: National Science Foundation.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: The National Science Foundation (NSF) is announcing plans to
request renewed clearance of this collection. In accordance with the
requirement of section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the Paperwork Reduction Act of
1995, we are providing opportunity for public comment on this action.
After obtaining and considering public comment, NSF will prepare the
submission requesting Office of Management and Budget (OMB) clearance
of this collection for no longer than 3 years.
Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the proposed collection of
information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of
the Agency, including whether the information shall have practical
utility; (b) the accuracy of the Agency's estimate of the burden of the
proposed collection of information; (c) ways to enhance the quality,
utility, and clarity of the information on respondents, including
through the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of
information technology; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of the
collection of information on respondents, including through the use of
automated collection techniques or other forms of information
technology.
DATES: Written comments should be received by January 10, 2011 to be
assured of consideration. Comments received after that date will be
considered to the extent practicable.
ADDRESSES: Written comments regarding the information collection and
requests for copies of the proposed information collection request
should be addressed to Suzanne Plimpton, Reports Clearance Officer,
National Science Foundation, 4201 Wilson Blvd., Rm. 295, Arlington, VA
22030, or by e-mail to [email protected].
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Suzanne Plimpton on (703) 292-7556 or
send e-mail to [email protected]. Individuals who use a
telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) may call the Federal
Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-800-877-8339 between 8 a.m. and 8
p.m., Eastern time, Monday through Friday.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Title of Collection: EHR Generic Clearance.
OMB Approval Number: 3145-0136.
Expiration Date of Approval: March 31, 2011.
Abstract: The National Science Foundation (NSF) requests renewal of
program accountability and communication data collections (e.g.,
surveys, face-to-face and telephone interviews, observations, and focus
groups) that describe and track the impact of NSF funding that focuses
on the Nation's science, technology, engineering, and mathematics
(STEM) education and STEM workforce. NSF funds grants, contracts, and
cooperative agreements to colleges, universities, and other eligible
institutions, and provides graduate research fellowships to individuals
in all parts of the United States and internationally.
The Directorate for Education and Human Resources (EHR), a unit
within NSF, promotes rigor and vitality within the Nation's STEM
education enterprise to further the development of the 21st century's
STEM workforce and public scientific literacy. EHR does this through
diverse projects and programs that support research, extension,
outreach, and hands-on activities that service STEM learning and
research at all institutional (e.g., pre-school through postdoctoral)
levels in formal and informal settings; and individuals of all ages
(birth and beyond). EHR also focuses on broadening participation in
STEM learning and careers among United States citizens, permanent
residents, and nationals, particularly those individuals traditionally
underemployed in the STEM research workforce, including but not limited
to women, persons with disabilities, and racial and ethnic minorities.
At the request of OMB an EHR Generic Clearance was established in
1995 to integrate management, monitoring, and evaluation information
pertaining to the NSF's Education and Training (ET) portfolio in
response to the Government Performance and Results Acts (GPRA) of 1993.
Under this generic survey clearance (OMB 3145-0136), data from the NSF
administrative databases are incorporated with findings gathered
through initiative-, divisional-, and program-specific data
collections. The scope of the EHR Generic Clearance primarily covers
[[Page 68830]]
descriptive information gathered from education and training projects
that are funded by NSF. Most programs subject to EHR Generic data
collection are funded by the EHR Directorate, but some are funded in
whole or in part by disciplinary directorates or multi-disciplinary or
cross-cutting programs. Since 2001 in accordance with OMB's Terms of
Clearance (TOC), NSF primarily uses the data from the EHR Generic
Clearance for program planning, management, and audit purposes to
respond to queries from the Congress, the public, NSF's external merit
reviewers who serve as advisors, including Committees of Visitors
(COVs), and the NSF's Office of the Inspector General.
OMB has limited the collection to three categories of descriptive
data: (1) Staff and project participants (data that are also necessary
to determine individual-level treatment and control groups for future
third-party study); (2) project implementation characteristics (also
necessary for future use to identify well-matched comparison groups);
and (3) project outputs (necessary to measure baseline for pre- and
post- NSF-funding-level impacts).
Use of the Information: This information is required for effective
administration, communication, program and project monitoring and
evaluation, and for measuring attainment of NSF's program, project, and
strategic goals, and as identified by the President's Accountability in
Government Initiative; GPRA, and the NSF's Strategic Plan. The
Foundation's FY 2006-2011 Strategic Plan describes four strategic
outcome goals of Discovery, Learning, Research Infrastructure, and
Stewardship. NSF's complete strategic plan may be found at: http://www.nsf.gov/publications/pub_summ.jsp?ods_key=nsf0648.
Since the EHR Generic Clearance research is primarily used for
accountability purposes, including responding from queries from COVs
and other scientific experts, a census rather than sampling design
typically is necessary. At the individual project level funding can be
adjusted based on individual project's responses to some of the
surveys. Some data collected under the EHR Clearance serve as baseline
data for separate research and evaluation studies.
In order to conduct program- or portfolio-level evaluations,
however, both experimental and quasi-experimental evaluation research
studies on STEM education interventions require researchers to identify
individual-level and organization- or project-level control and
treatment groups or comparison groups. NSF-funded contract or grantee
researchers and evaluators in part may identify control, comparison, or
treatment groups for NSF's ET portfolio using some of the descriptive
data gathered through OMB 3145-0136 to conduct well-designed, rigorous
research and portfolio evaluation studies.
In accordance with the 2001, 2005, and 2008 OMB TOCs, NSF requests
separate stand-alone clearance (and separately announces for comment in
the Federal Register) any program or portfolio research or evaluation.
Two examples of third-party evaluations that used EHR OMB 3145-0136
data to inform study design are: OMB No. 3145-0187 (Expiring 8/2011)
Evaluation of the NSF's Graduate STEM Fellows in K-12 Education (GK-12)
Program and OMB No. 3145-0182 (Expiring 3/2011) Evaluation of the NSF's
Integrative Graduate Education and Research Traineeship (IGERT)
Program: Follow-up Study of IGERT Graduates, both conducted by Abt
Associates.
Respondents: Individuals or households, not-for-profit
institutions, business or other for profit, and Federal, State, local
or Tribal government.
Number of Respondents: 8,494.
Burden of the Public: The total estimate for this collection is
65,868 annual burden hours. This figure is based on the previous 3
years of collecting information under this clearance and anticipated
collections. The average annual reporting burden is between 1.5 and 72
hours per ``respondent,'' depending on whether a respondent is a direct
participant who is self-reporting or representing a project and
reporting on behalf of many project participants.
Dated: November 3, 2010.
Suzanne H. Plimpton,
Reports Clearance Officer, National Science Foundation.
[FR Doc. 2010-28210 Filed 11-8-10; 8:45 am]
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