Federal Register, Volume 76 Issue 32 (Wednesday, February 16, 2011)

[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 32 (Wednesday, February 16, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 9003-9004]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-3489]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION


Notice of Submission for OMB Review

AGENCY: Department of Education.

ACTION: Comment request.

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SUMMARY: The Director, Information Collection Clearance Division, 
Regulatory Information Management Services, Office of Management 
invites comments on the submission for OMB review as required by the 
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104-13).

DATES: Interested persons are invited to submit comments on or before 
March 18, 2011.

ADDRESSES: Written comments should be addressed to the Office of 
Information and Regulatory Affairs, Attention: Education Desk Officer, 
Office of Management and Budget, 725 17th Street, NW., Room 10222, New 
Executive Office Building, Washington, DC 20503, be faxed to (202) 395-
5806 or e-mailed to [email protected] with a cc: to 
[email protected]. Please note that written comments received in

[[Page 9004]]

response to this notice will be considered public records.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 3506 of the Paperwork Reduction Act 
of 1995 (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35) requires that the Office of Management 
and Budget (OMB) provide interested Federal agencies and the public an 
early opportunity to comment on information collection requests. The 
OMB is particularly interested in comments which: (1) Evaluate whether 
the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper 
performance of the functions of the agency, including whether the 
information will have practical utility; (2) Evaluate the accuracy of 
the agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of 
information, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions 
used; (3) Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information 
to be collected; and (4) Minimize the burden of the collection of 
information on those who are to respond, including through the use of 
appropriate automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological 
collection techniques or other forms of information technology.

    Dated: February 10, 2011.
Darrin A. King,
Director, Information Collection Clearance Division, Regulatory 
Information Management Services, Office of Management.

Office of Planning, Evaluation and Policy Development

    Type of Review: NEW.
    Title of Collection: Equitable Distribution of Effective Teachers.
    OMB Control Number: Pending.
    Agency Form Number(s): N/A.
    Frequency of Responses: Once.
    Affected Public: State, Local, or Tribal Government, State 
Education Agencies or Local Education Agencies.
    Total Estimated Number of Annual Responses: 42.
    Total Estimated Annual Burden Hours: 135.
    Abstract: The most recent reauthorization of the Elementary and 
Secondary Education Act in 2002 required that states provide assurances 
and develop plans to ``ensure that poor and minority children are not 
taught at higher rates than other children by inexperienced, 
unqualified, or out of field teachers'' (Section 1111 (b)(8)(C)). In 
2009, American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) requirements 
reinforced the focus on equitable distribution of teachers by requiring 
states applying for education stimulus funds to provide updated 
assurances and to publicize their most recent ``equity plans.'' ARRA 
also establishes competitive grants to help states build their pool of 
effective teachers and address inequities in the distribution of 
teachers. In addition to their focus on the equitable distribution of 
teacher quality, federal programs also have been promoting shifts in 
how teacher quality is measured, away from teacher qualifications and 
toward measures of instructional practice and effectiveness at raising 
student achievement. Federal programs such as the Teacher Incentive 
Fund and Race to the Top have provided incentives for states and 
districts to move in this direction, including funds to support some of 
the technical aspects of development.
    Federal policymakers need to know whether the policies and programs 
they sponsor under these laws contribute to teacher quality for 
disadvantaged students. Hence, the U.S. Department of Education 
requires a study documenting the state and local actions to (a) develop 
new measures of teacher quality, (b) analyze the distribution of 
teacher quality, and (c) develop and implement plans to ensure teacher 
quality for disadvantaged students. To inform federal policymakers, the 
study will examine the implementation of these activities with 
attention to implementation challenges, the role of state and local 
context, and the roles of the federal programs designed to foster these 
activities.
    The planned data collections will serve four objectives:
    1. To examine how states and districts analyze the distribution of 
teacher quality, plan actions to address inequities, and monitor 
progress.
    2. To examine how states and districts are changing their measures 
of teacher quality, and to understand their experiences in doing so.
    3. To examine state and local actions to improve teacher quality 
for disadvantaged students (i.e., students in high-poverty or high-
minority schools).
    4. To describe the perceived contributions of federal programs to 
state and local actions aimed at improving the quality of teachers for 
disadvantaged students, and how state and local contexts mediate these 
contributions.
    To address these objectives, our design includes telephone 
interviews with state education agencies and local education agencies.
    Requests for copies of the information collection submission for 
OMB review may be accessed from the RegInfo.gov Web site at http://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain or from the Department's Web site at 
http://edicsweb.ed.gov, by selecting the ``Browse Pending Collections'' 
link and by clicking on link number 4426. When you access the 
information collection, click on ``Download Attachments '' to view. 
Written requests for information should be addressed to U.S. Department 
of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., LBJ, Washington, DC 20202-4537. 
Requests may also be electronically mailed to the Internet address 
[email protected] or faxed to 202-401-0920. Please specify the 
complete title of the information collection and OMB Control Number 
when making your request.
    Individuals who use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) 
may call the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-800-877-
8339.

[FR Doc. 2011-3489 Filed 2-15-11; 8:45 am]
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