ISMS data request memo

Memo

To: [District Name]

From: [Data Collection Liaison]

Date: XX/XX/XXXX

Subject: Administrative Data Collection for the Impact Study of Magnet Schools

Thank you for participating in the Impact Study of Magnet Schools, a study that Mathematica Policy Research is conducting for the U.S. Department of Education (ED). This evaluation seeks to learn more about whether magnet schools promote diversity and improve student achievement, and whether particular features of magnet schools are associated with greater success. This memo outlines our planned requests to [district name] for data on students for the 2016-2017 through 2021–2022 school years.

We will request data for a specific sample of students in your district: students who applied to particular magnet schools and were part of an admissions lottery in 2018 or 2019. The study team will coordinate with your district to create a list of these students and provide it to you in a data file. If you would find it more efficient to share data on all district students, including identifying information that would allow us to match it to our sample list, we can accommodate that instead.

Table 1 provides a description of the school-years of administrative data that will be requested and the timing of each request. During fall 2020 (Round 1 of data collection), we will reach out to request student data for the four prior school years: 2016–2017, 2017–2018, 2018–2019, and 2019–2020. During fall 2022 (Round 2 of data collection), we will reach out to request student data for the two intervening school years: 2020–2021 and 2021–2022.

Table 1. Administrative data collection timeline

Data requested	School years of data requested, by round of data collection
	Fall 2020 (Round 1)	Fall 2022 (Round 2)
Student demographic characteristics, assessment and other test score data, attendance, behavioral measures, and high school graduation	2016-2017 2017–2018 2018–2019 2019–2020	2020–2021 2021–2022

We will work with your district to determine the appropriate timing of data delivery. In addition, we realize that some data elements listed in this memo might not be collected by your district. If a data element is not available in your district’s data systems, please let us know, and we will work with you to determine if another, similar data element may be used instead. When you provide data, please include a data dictionary or codebook that explains what the variables and values mean.

A. Student demographic, assessment, and other data

Table 2 lists the demographic, behavioral, attendance, and high school graduation data we are requesting for all students in the study sample. Please provide these data for all students in each year for each school attended. The assessment/test data we are requesting are described in Tables 3 and 4 below.

Table 2. Student Demographic, Attendance, and Behavioral Data

Data element	Description	Notesa
School year	School year to which the record pertains (for example, 2016–2017, 2017–2018, 2018–2019, or 2019–2020)
Student ID	Number that uniquely identifies each student across multiple files, records, and years. We prefer that the ID number not be personally identifiable information such as a Social Security number. This student ID number should link student records to the school admissions lottery data file your district provided to this study previously.
School ID: beginning of the school year	Number, such as NCES ID, that uniquely identifies the school in which the student was enrolled at the beginning of the school year
School name: beginning of the school year	Name of school corresponding to School ID for beginning of school year
School ID: end of the school year	Number, such as NCES ID, that uniquely identifies the school in which the student was enrolled at the end of the school year
School name: end of the school year	Name of school corresponding to School ID for end of school year
Gender	Gender of student
Year of birth	Year of birth of student
Race	Race of student
Ethnicity	Hispanic or Latino indicator for student
Grade level	Grade level of student at the beginning of the school year
Free and reduced-price lunch (FRPL) status	Student’s eligibility for free or reduced-price lunch as of the beginning of the school year
English learner status	English learner status of student, with English language proficiency level if available, as of the beginning of the school year
Special education status	Special education status of student, such as having an Individual Education Plan, as of the beginning of the school year
In-school suspensions (days)	Total number of days during the school year that the student was suspended (in-school)
In-school Suspensions (times)	Total number of times during the school year that the student was suspended (in-school)
Out-of-school suspensions (days)	Total number of days during the school year that the student was suspended (out-of-school)
Out-of-school suspensions (times)	Total number of times during the school year that the student was suspended (out-of-school)
Expulsions	Indication if the student was expelled at any point during the school year from any school in the district
Attendance	Total number of days the student attended school in the district during the school year requested. This should be a total for all schools attended in the district during the year; not only for those schools listed in Table 2.
Days enrolled	Total number of school days the student was enrolled in the district during the school year requested. This should be a total for all schools attended in the district during the year; not only for those schools listed in Table 2.
Days in school year	Total number of school days for the schools in the district attended by the student during the school year requested
High school graduation indicator	Indicator or code (such as Y or N) for whether student graduated from high school during the school year
High school graduation date	If student graduated from high school, the date of graduation
High school diploma type	The type of diploma received by the student

^aThe notes column will be completed by study staff using information provided during the initial call to discuss the data request.

Table 3 describes the specific state assessment data requested for students in our sample in tested grades at any point during the school years requested (2016–2017 through 2021–2022).

Table 3. Student state and district assessment data

Data element	Description	Notesa
A. State assessments in math, reading, science, and social studies (if available)
School year	School year to which the record pertains (for example, 2016–2017, 2017–2018, 2018–2019, or 2019–2020)
Student ID	Number that uniquely identifies each student across multiple files, records, and years. We prefer that the ID number not be personally identifiable information such as a Social Security number.
Score on the state assessment for the school years requested, as available	Student’s score on the math, reading, science, and social studies sections of the state assessment. Please provide all available scores for each subject area (for example, scale score, normal curve equivalents, and number correct). If a student retook a test, please provide the most recent score(s) in that year; not the highest score.
Test grade level for each state test	Grade level of each test taken by the student
Test description for each state test	Name of test and test form information for each state test. Please indicate if a modified or alternate form of a state test was taken.
Test language indicator (if other than English) for each state test	For each state test, an indicator of whether the test was taken in a language other than English, such as Spanish
Test date for each state test	Date of each test taken by student. If no date is available, then “spring,” “fall,” or similar qualifier can be provided.
Test exemption or invalidation code, as applicable, for each state test	Code or indicator if a student received an exemption from taking a test (such as a medical exemption) or a test was found to be invalid
School identifier at time of testing	Number, such as NCES ID, that uniquely identifies the school in which the student was enrolled at the time of testing for each subject
School name at time of testing	Name of the school in which the student was enrolled at the time of testing for each subject
B. District assessments (subject area and readiness tests)
Score on all district assessment for the school years requested, as available	Student’s score on all district assessments for each year requested, such as district assessments in math, reading, and other subject areas and early childhood/primary assessment (kindergarten or school readiness). If a student retook a test, please provide the most recent score in that year; not the highest score.
Test grade level for each district test	Grade level of each test taken by the student
Test description for each district test	Name of test and test form information, as available, for each district test. Please indicate if a modified or alternate form of a district test was taken.
Test language indicator (if other than English) for each district test	For each district test, an indicator of whether the test was taken in a language other than English, such as Spanish
Test date for each district test	Date of each district test taken by student. If no date is available, then “spring,” “fall,” or similar qualifier can be provided.
Test exemption or invalidation code, as applicable, for each district test	Code or indicator if a student received an exemption from taking a test (such as a medical exemption) or a test was found to be invalid
School identifier at time of testing	Number, such as NCES ID, that uniquely identifies the school in which the student was enrolled at the time of testing for each district assessment
School name at time of testing	Name of the school in which the student was enrolled at the time of testing for each district assessment

^aThe notes column will be completed by Mathematica staff using information provided during the initial call to discuss the data request.

Table 4 provides the data requested on End of Course (EOC) exams, Advanced Placement (AP) tests, the American College Test (ACT), and the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) for students in our sample who were enrolled in the district at any point during the school years requested (2016–2017 through 2021–2022).

Table 4. Student EOC, AP, ACT, and SAT Test Data

Data element	Description	Notesa
School year	School year to which the record pertains (for example, 2016–2017, 2017–2018, 2018–2019, or 2019–2020)
Student ID	Number that uniquely identifies each student across multiple files, records, and years. We prefer that the ID number not be personally identifiable information such as a Social Security number.
Score for each end of course (EOC) exam for the school years requested, as available	Student’s score for each EOC exam taken. If a student retook the test, please provide the most recent score in that year; not the highest score.
EOC: subject for each exam	Subject of each EOC exam taken
EOC: grade level for each exam	Grade level of each EOC exam taken
EOC: test date for each exam	Test date for each EOC exam taken
EOC: test exemption or invalidation code, as applicable, for each exam	Code or indicator if a student received an exemption from taking an EOC exam (such as a medical exemption) or the test was found to be invalid
EOC: school identifier at time of testing	Number, such as NCES ID, that uniquely identifies the school in which the student was enrolled at time of testing
EOC: school name at time of testing	Name of the school in which the student was enrolled at time of testing
Score for each Advanced Placement (AP) test for the school years requested, as available	Student’s score for each AP test taken
AP: subject for each test	Subject of each AP test taken
AP: test date for each test	Test date for each AP test taken
AP: school identifier at time of testing	Number, such as NCES ID, that uniquely identifies the school in which the student was enrolled at the time of testing
AP: school name at time of testing	Name of the school in which the student was enrolled at the time of testing
Score for each American College Test (ACT) taken during the school years requested, as available	Student’s score for each ACT taken
ACT: subject for each test	Subject of each ACTtaken
ACT: test date for each test	Test date for each ACT taken
ACT: school identifier at time of testing	Number, such as NCES ID, that uniquely identifies the school in which the student was enrolled at the time of testing
ACT: school name at time of testing	Name of the school in which the student was enrolled at the time of testing
Score for each Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) taken during the school years requested, as available	Student’s score for each SAT taken
SAT: subject for each test	Subject of each SAT taken
SAT: test date for each test	Test date for each SAT taken
SAT: school identifier at time of testing	Number, such as NCES ID, that uniquely identifies the school in which the student was enrolled at the time of testing
SAT: school name at time of testing	Name of the school in which the student was enrolled at the time of testing

^aThe notes column will be completed by Mathematica staff using information provided during the initial call to discuss the data request.

B. Justification for requested data

We greatly appreciate your assistance with this data request. We want to assure you that the evaluation team and the U.S. Department of Education carefully considered this request to ensure it includes only the data necessary to conduct a high quality evaluation. We will use the student demographic data to describe the characteristics of students in the study sample. We will use the student attendance, behavior, high school graduation, and test data to examine the effects of attending a magnet school on student achievement and other outcomes.

C. Data confidentiality

Mathematica and its subcontractors follow the confidentiality and data protection requirements of The Education Sciences Reform Act of 2002, Title I, Part E, Section 183. We will use the data provided in response to this request for research purposes only. The reports prepared for the study will summarize findings across the sample and will not associate responses with a specific district, school, or individual. We will not provide information that identifies respondents to anyone outside the study team, except as required by law.

D. File format

You may provide the data in a single file or multiple files, whichever the district prefers. We can work with almost any file format, including Excel, comma delimited or fixed-width text files, SAS, SPSS, Stata, and Access. If it would be helpful for the study team to provide guidelines on a potential file format and structure, we would be happy to do so. Please also provide documentation of the data, including definitions of variables/fields, any codes used, and contact information for someone who can answer questions about the data.

Thank you very much for your assistance with this data request! We greatly appreciate your assistance. Please do not hesitate to contact me with any questions or concerns at [liaison phone number and email].

According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, no persons are required to respond to a collection of information unless it displays a valid OMB control number. The valid OMB control number for this information collection is 1850-0943. The time required to complete this voluntary information collection is estimated to average 8 hours per district, including the time to review instructions, gather the data needed, and complete and review the information collected. If you have any comments concerning the accuracy of the time estimate(s) or suggestions for improving this form, please write to:  U.S. Department of Education, Washington, DC  20202. If you have comments or concerns regarding the status of your individual submission of this form, write directly to:  U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, 555 New Jersey Avenue, NW, Washington, DC  20208.

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