[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 125 (Thursday, June 28, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 38611-38613]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-15886]
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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
Privacy Act of 1974; System of Records--Study of Promising
Features of Teacher Preparation Programs
AGENCY: Institute of Education Sciences, Department of Education.
ACTION: Notice of a new system of records.
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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Privacy Act of 1974, as amended
(Privacy Act), the Department of Education (Department) publishes this
notice of a new system of records entitled ``Study of Promising
Features of Teacher Preparation Programs'' (18-13-29). The National
Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance at the
Department's Institute of Education Sciences (IES) awarded a contract
in September 2011 to Abt Associates to conduct a rigorous study of the
effect on student learning of teachers who have experienced intensive
clinical practice in their teacher preparation programs. The system of
records will contain records on approximately 5,000 students and 360
teachers from 125 school districts and will be used to conduct the
study.
DATES: In accordance with the requirements of the Privacy Act, the
Department seeks comments on the new system of records described in
this notice and in particular on the proposed routine uses for the new
system of records. We must receive your comments on or before July 30,
2012.
The Department filed a report describing the new system of records
covered by this notice with the Chair of the Senate Committee on
Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, the Chair of the House
Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, and the Administrator of
the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management
and Budget (OMB) on June 25, 2012. This system of records will become
effective at the later date of--(1) the expiration of the 40-day period
for OMB review on August 6, 2012, unless OMB waives 10 days of the 40-
day review period for compelling reasons shown by the Department, or
(2) July 30, 2012, unless the system of records needs to be changed as
a result of public comment or OMB review. The Department will publish
any changes to the system of records or routine uses that result from
public comment or OMB review.
ADDRESSES: Address all comments about the proposed routine uses to Dr.
Audrey Pendleton, Associate Commissioner, Evaluation Division, National
Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance, Institute of
Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education, 555 New Jersey Avenue
NW., Room 502D, Washington, DC 20208-0001. Telephone: (202) 208-7078.
If you prefer to send your comments through the Internet, use the
following address: comments@ed.gov.
You must include the term ``Study of Promising Features of Teacher
Preparation Programs'' in the subject line of the electronic message.
During and after the comment period, you may inspect all public
comments about this notice at the Department in Room 502D, 555 New
Jersey Avenue NW., Washington, DC, between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and
4:30 p.m., Washington, DC time, Monday through Friday of each week
except Federal holidays.
Assistance to Individuals With Disabilities in Reviewing the Rulemaking
Record
On request we will provide an appropriate accommodation or
auxiliary aid such as a reader or print magnifier to an individual with
a disability who needs assistance to review the comments or other
documents in the public rulemaking record for this notice. If you want
to schedule an appointment for this type of accommodation or aid,
please contact the person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Audrey Pendleton Associate
Commissioner, Evaluation Division, National Center for Education
Evaluation and Regional Assistance, Institute of Education Sciences,
U.S. Department of Education, 555 New Jersey Avenue NW., Room 502D,
Washington, DC 20208-0001. Telephone: (202) 208-7078. If you use a
telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) or a text telephone (TTY),
call the Federal Relay Service (FRS), toll free, at 1-800-877-8339.
Individuals with disabilities can obtain this document in an
accessible format (e.g., braille, large print, audiotape, or compact
disc) on request to the contact person listed in this section.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Introduction
The Privacy Act (5 U.S.C. 552a) requires the Department to publish
in the Federal Register this notice of a new system of records (5
U.S.C. 552a(e)(4) and (e)(11)). The Department's regulations
implementing the Privacy Act are contained in the Code of Federal
Regulations (CFR) at 34 CFR part 5b.
The Privacy Act applies to information about individuals that
contains individually identifying information and that is retrieved by
a unique identifier associated with each individual, such as a name or
social security number (SSN). The information about each individual is
called a ``record,'' and the system, whether manual or computer-based,
is called a ``system of records.''
Whenever the Department publishes a new system of records or makes
a significant change to an established system of records, the Privacy
Act requires it to publish a system of records
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notice in the Federal Register. The Department is also required to
submit reports to the Administrator of the Office of Information and
Regulatory Affairs at OMB, the Chair of the Senate Committee on
Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, and the Chair of the House
of Representatives Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. These
reports are intended to permit an evaluation of the probable effect of
the proposal on the privacy rights of individuals.
Electronic Access to This Document: The official version of this
document is the document published in the Federal Register. Free
Internet access to the official edition of the Federal Register and the
Code of Federal Regulations is available via the Federal Digital System
at: www.gpo.gov/fdsys. At this site you can view this document, as well
as all other documents of this Department published in the Federal
Register, in text or Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF). To use PDF
you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available free at the
site.
You may also access documents of the Department published in the
Federal Register by using the article search feature at:
www.federalregister.gov. Specifically, through the advanced search
feature at this site, you can limit your search to documents published
by the Department.
Dated: June 25, 2012.
John Q. Easton,
Director, Institute of Education Sciences.
For the reasons discussed in the preamble, the Director of the
Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education
(Department) publishes a notice of a new system of records to read as
follows:
System Number: 18-13-29
System Name:
Study of Promising Features of Teacher Preparation Programs.
Security Classification:
None.
System Locations:
(1) Evaluation Division, National Center for Education Evaluation
and Regional Assistance, Institute of Education Sciences (IES), U.S.
Department of Education, 555 New Jersey Avenue NW., Room 502D,
Washington, DC 20208-0001.
(2) Abt Associates, 55 Wheeler Street, Cambridge, MA 02138-1168
(contractor).
(3) Chesapeake Research Associates, 708 Riverview Terrace,
Annapolis, MD 21401-7119 (subcontractor).
Categories Of Individuals Covered By The System:
The system will contain records on approximately 5,000 students and
360 teachers from 125 school districts.
Categories Of Records In The System:
The system of records will include information about the students
and teachers who participate in the study. For students, this
information will include, but will not necessarily be limited to, name;
birth date; demographic information such as race, ethnicity, gender,
and educational background; information on attendance and disciplinary
incidences; and scores on reading and mathematics achievement tests.
For teachers, this information will include, but will not necessarily
be limited to, name and contact information; demographic information
such as race and ethnicity; information on postsecondary institution
attended and teaching experience; scores on postsecondary entrance
exams; and will possibly include scores on teacher licensure exams.
Authority For Maintenance Of The System:
The study is authorized under section 9601 of the Elementary and
Secondary Education Act of 1965, as amended (ESEA) (20 U.S.C. 7941).
Purpose(s):
The information contained in the records maintained in this system
will be used to conduct a rigorous study of the effect on student
learning of teachers who have experienced intensive clinical practice
within their teacher preparation programs.
The study will address the following central research question:
What is the impact on students' reading and math achievement of novice
elementary school teachers who experienced intensive clinical practice
as part of their pre-service teacher preparation programs compared to
students of novice elementary school teachers who did not have the same
experience as part of their pre-service teacher preparation programs?
Secondary research questions for the impact study are: Among the
teachers studied, what are the core features of teacher preparation
programs? In particular, to what extent does preparation vary on the
basis of selected dimensions of clinical practice? What is the impact
on the classroom practices of novice elementary school teachers who
experienced intensive clinical practice as part of their pre-service
teacher preparation programs compared to novice elementary school
teachers who did not have the same experience as part of their pre-
service teacher preparation programs? What teacher preparation features
(such as opportunities to teach throughout the preparation program,
extent or nature of the clinical practice, and structured feedback
during clinical practice) are associated with teacher effectiveness?
Routine Uses Of Records Maintained In The System, Including Categories
Of Users And The Purposes Of Such Uses:
The Department may disclose information contained in a record in
this system of records under the routine uses listed in this system of
records without the consent of the individual if the disclosure is
compatible with the purposes for which the record was collected. The
Department may make these disclosures on a case-by-case basis or, if
the Department has complied with the computer matching requirements of
the Privacy Act of 1974, as amended (Privacy Act) (5 U.S.C. 552a),
under a computer matching agreement. Any disclosure of individually
identifiable information from a record in this system must also comply
with the requirements of section 183 of the Education Sciences Reform
Act (ESRA) (20 U.S.C. 9573), which provides confidentiality standards
that apply to all collection, reporting, and publication of data by
IES.
Contract Disclosure. If the Department contracts with an entity to
perform any function that requires disclosing records in this system to
the contractor's employees, the Department may disclose the records to
those employees who have received the appropriate level of security
clearance from the Department. Before entering into such a contract,
the Department will require the contractor to establish and maintain
the safeguards required under the Privacy Act (5 U.S.C. 552a(m)) with
respect to the records in the system.
Disclosure To Consumer Reporting Agencies:
None.
Policies And Practices For Storing, Retrieving, Accessing, Retaining,
And Disposing Of Records In The System:
Storage:
The Department maintains records on CD-ROM, and the contractor (Abt
Associates Inc.) and sub-contractor (Chesapeake Research Associates)
maintain data for this system on computers and in hard copy.
Retrievability:
Records in this system are indexed and retrieved by a unique number
assigned to each individual that is cross-
[[Page 38613]]
referenced by the individual's name on a separate list.
Safeguards:
All physical access to the Department's site and to the sites of
the Department's contractor and subcontractor, where this system of
records is maintained, is controlled and monitored by security
personnel. The computer system employed by the Department offers a high
degree of resistance to tampering and circumvention. This security
system limits data access to Department and contract staff on a need-
to-know basis and controls individual users' ability to access and
alter records within the system.
The contractor and subcontractor will establish a similar set of
procedures at their sites to ensure confidentiality of data. The
contractor and subcontractor are required to ensure that print data
identifying individuals are in files physically separated from other
research data and electronic files identifying individuals are
separated from other electronic research data files. The contractor and
subcontractor will maintain security of the complete set of all master
data files and documentation. Access to individually identifying data
will be strictly controlled. At each site, all print data will be kept
in locked file cabinets during nonworking hours and work on hardcopy
data will take place in a single room, except for data entry.
Physical security of electronic data will also be maintained.
Security features that protect project data include: password-protected
accounts that authorize users to use the contractor's system but to
access only specific network directories and network software; user
rights and directory and file attributes that limit those who can use
particular directories and files and determine how they can use them;
and additional security features that the network administrators will
establish for projects as needed. The Department's, contractor's, and
subcontractor's employees who ``maintain'' (collect, maintain, use, or
disseminate) data in this system must comply with the requirements of
the Privacy Act and the confidentiality standards in section 183 of the
ESRA (20 U.S.C. 9573).
Retention And Disposal:
Records are maintained and disposed of in accordance with the
Department's Records Disposition Schedules (GRS 23, Item 8).
System Manager And Address:
Associate Commissioner, Evaluation Division, National Center for
Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance, Institute of Education
Sciences, U.S. Department of Education, 555 New Jersey Avenue NW., Room
502D, Washington, DC 20208-0001.
Notification Procedure:
If you wish to determine whether a record exists regarding you in
the system of records, contact the system manager at the address listed
under System Manager and Address. Your request must meet the
requirements of the Department's Privacy Act regulations at 34 CFR
5b.5, including proof of identity.
Record Access Procedure:
If you wish to gain access to a record about you in this system of
records, contact the system manager at the address listed under System
Manager and Address. Your request must meet the requirements of the
Department's Privacy Act regulations at 34 CFR 5b.5, including proof of
identity.
Contesting Record Procedure:
If you wish to contest the content of a record regarding you in the
system of records, contact the system manager at the address listed
under System Manager and Address. Your request for access to a record
must meet the requirements of the Department's Privacy Act regulations
at 34 CFR 5b.7, including proof of identity, specification of the
particular record you are seeking to have changed, and the written
justification for making such a change.
Record Source Categories:
This system will contain records on teachers, and students
participating in a study of promising features of teacher preparation
programs. Data will be obtained through human resource and student
records maintained by the school districts, assessments administered to
students, and surveys of teachers.
Exemptions Claimed For The System:
None.
[FR Doc. 2012-15886 Filed 6-27-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P