Meetings: National Assessment Governing Board,

[Federal Register: July 26, 1999 (Volume 64, Number 142)]

[Notices]

[Page 40356-40357]

From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

[DOCID:fr26jy99-43]

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

National Assessment Governing Board; Meeting

AGENCY: National Assessment Governing Board; Education.

ACTION: Notice of partially closed meeting.

SUMMARY: This notice sets forth the schedule and proposed agenda of a forthcoming meeting of the National Assessment Governing Board. This notice also describes the functions of the Board. Notice of this meeting is required under section 10 (a) (2) of the Federal Advisory Committee Act. This document is intended to notify the general public of their opportunity to attend.

DATES: August 5-7, 1999.

TIME: August 5--Subject Area Committee #2, 11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m., (closed) 2:30-3:00 p.m., (open); Design and Methodology Committee, 1:00-3:00 p.m., (open)' Joint Meeting of the Design and Methodology Committee and the Reporting and Dissemination Committee, 3:00-4:00 p.m., (open); Executive Committee, 4:00-5:00 p.m., (open), 5:00-6:00 p.m., (closed). August 6--Full Board, 8:00-10:30 a.m., (open), Subject Area Committee #1, 10:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m., (open), Achievement Levels Committee, 10:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m., (open); Reporting and Dissemination, 10:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. (open); Full Board, 12:30-2:00 p.m., (closed); 2:00-4:00 p.m. (open). August 7--Full Board, 8:30-adjournment, approximately 11:30 a.m. (open).

location: Ritz Carlton Hotel, Pentagon City, 1250 South Hayes Street, Arlington, VA.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mary Ann Wilmer, Operations Officer, National Assessment Governing Board, Suite 825, 800 North Capitol Street, NW, Washington, DC, 20002-4233, Telephone: (202) 357-6938.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The National Assessment Governing Board is established under section 412 of the National Education Statistics Act of 1994 (Title IV of the Improving America's Schools Act of 1994) (Pub. L. 103-382).

The Board is established to formulate policy guidelines for the National Assessment of Educational Progress. The Board is responsible for selecting subject areas to be assessed, developing assessment objectives, identifying appropriate achievement goals for each grade and subject tested, and establishing standards and procedures for interstate and national comparisons. Under Pub. L. 105-78, the National Assessment Governing Board is also granted exclusive authority over developing the Voluntary National Tests pursuant to contract number RJ97153001.

On August 5, the Subject Area Committee #2 will meet in closed session from 11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m to review proposed items for the math and science tests to be administered in the year 2000. This meeting must be closed because references will be made to specific items from the assessment and premature disclosure of the information presented for review would be likely to

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significantly frustrate implementation of a proposed agency action if conducted in open session. Such matters are protected by exemption 9(B) of section 552b(c) of Title 5 U.S.C. The Committee will meet in open session from 2:30-3:00 p.m. to discuss plans for the 2004 NAEP mathematics framework and VNT math items.

The Design and Methodology Committee will meet in open session from 1:00-3:00 p.m. The Committee will be taking action on the pilot test design and analysis plans, and the validity research agenda for the proposed Voluntary National Tests. The Committee will hear reports on the provisions that might be made for including special needs students in the Voluntary National Tests, and hear an update on the NAEP evaluations.

From 3:00-4:00 p.m., there will be a joint meeting of the Design and Methodology Committee and the Reporting and Dissemination Committees to review and discuss the sampling and reporting plans for NAEP 2000 assessments in mathematics and science.

Also on August 5, there will be a partially closed meeting of the Executive Committee. In open session from 4:00-5:000 p.m. the Committee will review the NAEP and NAGB reauthorizations preparations, and hear a report on the briefings that were given to Congress and the Secretary.

During the closed portion, 5:00-6:00 p.m., the Executive Committee will discuss the development of cost estimates for the NAEP and future contract initiatives. Public disclosure of this information would likely have an adverse financial affect on the NAEP program. The discussion of this information would be likely to significantly frustrate implementation of a proposed agency action if conducted in open session. Such matters are protected by exemption (9)(B) of section 552b(c) of Title 5 U.S.C.

Also in closed session, the Executive Committee will discuss the qualifications of current Board members to serve as Chairman and Vice Chairman of NAGB. Based upon these discussions, the Board will elect a Vice Chairman and recommend a Chairman to the Secretary. This portion of the meeting will relate solely to the internal personnel rules and practices of an agency and will disclose information of a personal nature where disclosure would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy and, as such, is protected by exemptions (2) and (6) of section 552b(c) of title 5 U.S.C.

On August 5, the full Board will convene in open session from 8:00 to 10:30 a.m. The agenda for this session includes approval of the agenda, the report of the Executive Director, NAEP Update, discussion on Mathematics Framework for Year 2004 Assessment, and NAEP and NAGB reauthorization.

Between 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., there will be open meetings of Subject Area #1, Achievement Levels, and the Reporting and Dissemination committees.

Subject Area Committee #1 will meet to discuss issues related to the NAEP Foreign Language Framework Consensus Project, and the reading assessment issues in the proposed Voluntary National Tests.

The Achievement Levels Committee will hear briefings on three items: Preliminary results of the booklet classification and the similarities classification studies; findings of a research study designed to observe the impact of using different response probability criteria for setting achievement levels; and a report which summarizes the different methods that have been used to set achievement levels on NAEP.

The Reporting and Dissemination Committee agenda includes a series of reviews for the NAEP assessments: Review of plans for releasing results of the 1998 writing and civics assessments; review of the schedule for release of future NAEP reports; and review of the background questionnaires for NAEP 2000 in math and science. For the proposed Voluntary National Tests, the Committee will consider the workplan for score reporting, 4:00 p.m. The Board will hear the results of a research study concerned with the participation rates of special needs students in NAEP; receive a briefings on the current status of the NAEP redesign and the recommendations for NAGP and NAEP reauthorization.

On August 7, the full Board will be in session from 8:30-- adjournment, approximately 11:30 a.m. The agenda includes a briefing on a report titled Increasing Participation of Special Needs Students in NAEP: Results of the 1996 Research Study; and an update on the planning for the foreign language framework. Also, the Board will hear reports from its standing committees and, where appropriate, take action on their work.

Summaries of the activities of the closed sessions and related matters, which are informative to the public and consistent with the policy of section 5 U.S.C. 552b(c), will be available to the public within 14 days of the meeting. Records are kept of all Board proceedings and are available for public inspection at the U.S. Department of Education, National Assessment Governing Board, Suite #825, 800 North Capitol Street, NW, Washington, DC, from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Roy Truby, Executive Director, National Assessment Government Board.

[FR Doc. 99-18932Filed7-23-99; 8:45 am]

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