Appendix A.2. Fast Response Survey System

The Fast Response Survey System (FRSS) was established in 1975 to collect issue-oriented data quickly, with a minimal burden on respondents. The FRSS, whose surveys collect and report data on key education issues at the elementary and secondary levels, was designed to meet the data needs of Department of Education analysts, planners, and decisionmakers when information could not be collected quickly through NCES's large recurring surveys. Findings from FRSS surveys have been included in congressional reports, testimony to congressional subcommittees, NCES reports, and other Department of Education reports. The findings are also often used by state and local education officials.

Data collected through FRSS surveys are representative at the national level, drawing from a sample that is appropriate for each study. The FRSS collects data from state education agencies and national samples of other educational organizations and participants, including local education agencies, public and private elementary and secondary schools, elementary and secondary school teachers and principals, and public libraries and school libraries. To ensure a minimal burden on respondents, the surveys are generally limited to three pages of questions, with a response burden of about 30 minutes per respondent. Sample sizes are relatively small (usually about 1,000 to 1,500 respondents per survey) so that data collection can be completed quickly.

Further information on the FRSS may be obtained from

John Ralph
Annual Reports and Information Staff
National Center for Education Statistics
550 12th Street SW
Washington, DC 20202
john.ralph@ed.gov
http://nces.ed.gov/surveys/frss

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Condition of America's Public School Facilities

Condition of America's Public School Facilities: 1999 (NCES 2000-032) is a report that presents national data about the condition of public schools in 1999. It provides results from the survey "Condition of Public School Facilities, 1999" (FRSS 73), which was conducted by NCES using its Fast Response Survey System (FRSS). The survey collected information about the condition of school facilities and the costs of bringing them into good condition; school plans for repairs, renovations, and replacements; the age of public schools; and overcrowding and practices used to address overcrowding. The results presented in this report are based on questionnaire data for 900 public elementary and secondary schools in the United States. The responses were weighted to produce national estimates that represent all regular public schools in the United States.

In 2013, NCES conducted "Condition of Public School Facilities: 2012–13" (FRSS 105), an FRSS survey covering most of the same topics. The First Look report Condition of America's Public School Facilities: 2012–13 (NCES 2014-022) is based on results from this FRSS survey.

Further information on these FRSS reports and surveys may be obtained from

John Ralph
Annual Reports and Information Staff
National Center for Education Statistics
550 12th Street SW
Washington, DC 20202
john.ralph@ed.gov
http://nces.ed.gov/surveys/frss

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Public School Principals Report on Their School Facilities: Fall 2005

This report (NCES 2007-007) presents information on the extent of the match between the enrollment and the capacity of school buildings, environmental factors that can affect the use of classrooms and school buildings, the extent and ways in which schools use portable buildings and the reasons for using them, the availability of dedicated rooms for particular subject areas (such as science labs or music rooms), and the cleanliness and maintenance of student restrooms.

Results from the FRSS survey "Public School Principals' Perceptions of Their School Facilities: Fall 2005" (FRSS 88) form the basis of the report. The survey was mailed to school principals, who were asked to complete it themselves. The sample included 1,205 public schools in the 50 states and the District of Columbia. The sample was selected from the 2002–03 Common Core of Data (CCD) Public Elementary/Secondary School Universe File, the most current available at the time of selection. Of the 1,205 schools surveyed, 47 were determined to be ineligible. Of the remaining 1,158 schools, responses were received from 1,045. Data have been weighted to yield national estimates of public elementary/secondary schools. The unweighted response rate was 90 percent, and the weighted response rate was 91 percent.

Further information on this report may be obtained from

John Ralph
Annual Reports and Information Staff
National Center for Education Statistics
550 12th Street SW
Washington, DC 20202
john.ralph@ed.gov
http://nces.ed.gov/surveys/frss

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Internet Access in U.S. Public Schools and Classrooms: 1994–2005

This report (NCES 2007-020) is based on data collected in the FRSS survey "Internet Access in U.S. Public Schools, Fall 2005" (FRSS 90). The survey was designed to assess the federal government's commitment to assist every school and classroom in connecting to the Internet by the year 2000.
In 1994, NCES began surveying approximately 1,000 public schools each year regarding their access to the Internet, access in classrooms, and, since 1996, their type of internet connections. Later administrations of this survey were expanded to cover emerging issues. The 2003 survey (FRSS 86) was designed to update the questions in the 2002 survey (FRSS 83) and covered the following topics: school connectivity, student access to computers and the Internet, school websites, technologies and procedures to prevent student access to inappropriate websites, and teacher professional development on how to incorporate the Internet into the curriculum.

In 2005, respondents were asked about the number of instructional computers with access to the Internet, the types of internet connections, the technologies and procedures used to prevent student access to inappropriate material on the Internet, and the availability of handheld and laptop computers for students and teachers. Respondents also provided information on teacher professional development in integrating the use of the Internet into the curriculum and using the Internet to provide opportunities and information for teaching and learning.

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Use of Educational Technology in Public Schools

In 2008, the NCES survey on educational technology use in public schools was redesigned and expanded to a set of three surveys (i.e., a school-, district-, and teacher-level survey). The three surveys provide complementary information and together cover a broader range of topics than would be possible with one survey alone. The set of surveys collected data on availability and use of a range of educational technology resources, such as district and school networks, computers, devices that enhance the capabilities of computers for instruction, and computer software. They also collected information on leadership and staff support for educational technology within districts and schools.

Educational Technology in U.S. Public Schools: Fall 2008 (NCES 2010-034) is based on the school-level survey, "Education Technology in U.S. Public Schools: Fall 2008" (FRSS 92); Educational Technology in Public School Districts: Fall 2008 (NCES 2010-003) is based on the district-level school technology survey, "Educational Technology in Public School Districts, Fall 2008" (FRSS 93); and Teachers' Use of Educational Technology in U.S. Public Schools: 2009 (NCES 2010-040) is based on the teacher-level school technology survey, "Teachers' Use of Educational Technology in U.S. Public Schools, 2009" (FRSS 95).

Further information on internet access and technology use in public schools and classrooms may be obtained from

John Ralph
Annual Reports and Information Staff
National Center for Education Statistics
550 12th Street SW
Washington, DC 20202
john.ralph@ed.gov
http://nces.ed.gov/surveys/frss

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Distance Education for Public Elementary and Secondary School Students

The report Technology-Based Distance Education Courses for Public Elementary and Secondary School Students: 2002–03 and 2004–05 (NCES 2008-008) presented data collected in the FRSS survey "Distance Education Courses for Public Elementary and Secondary School Students, 2004–05" (FRSS 89, 2005). The report included national estimates of the prevalence and characteristics of technology-based distance education courses in public schools nationwide in school year 2004–05. The report also compared those data with the baseline data that were collected in the FRSS survey "Distance Education Courses for Public Elementary and Secondary School Students: 2002–03" (FRSS 84, 2003) and provided longitudinal analysis of change in the districts that responded to both the 2002–03 and 2004–05 surveys.

Distance education courses were defined as credit-granting courses offered to elementary and secondary school students enrolled in the district in which the teacher and student were in different locations. These courses could be delivered via audio, video (live or prerecorded), or Internet or other computer technologies.

Distance Education Courses for Public Elementary and Secondary School Students: 2009–10 (NCES 2012–008) presents national estimates about student enrollment in distance education courses in public school districts. The estimates are based on a district survey, "Distance Education Courses for Public Elementary and Secondary School Students: 2009–10" (FRSS 98, 2010), about distance education courses offered by the district or by any of the schools in the district during the 12-month 2009–10 school year. Distance education courses were defined as courses offered to elementary and secondary school students regularly enrolled in the district that were (1) credit granting; (2) technology delivered; and (3) had the instructor in a different location than the students and/or had course content developed in, or delivered from, a different location than that of the students.

Further information on FRSS reports on distance education may be obtained from

John Ralph
Annual Reports and Information Staff
National Center for Education Statistics
550 12th Street SW
Washington, DC 20202
john.ralph@ed.gov
http://nces.ed.gov/surveys/frss

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School Safety and Discipline

The FRSS survey "School Safety and Discipline: 2013–14" (FRSS 106, 2014) collected nationally representative data on public school safety and discipline for the 2013–14 school year. The topics covered included specific safety and discipline plans and practices, training for classroom teachers and aides related to school safety and discipline issues, security personnel, frequency of specific discipline problems, and number of incidents of various offenses.

The survey was mailed to approximately 1,600 regular public schools in the 50 states and the District of Columbia. Recipients were informed that the survey was designed to be completed by the person most knowledgeable about safety and discipline at the school. The unweighted survey response rate was 86 percent, and the weighted response rate using the initial base weights was 85 percent. The survey weights were adjusted for questionnaire nonresponse, and the data were then weighted to yield national estimates that represent all eligible regular public schools in the United States. The report Public School Safety and Discipline: 2013–14 (NCES 2015-051) presents selected findings from the survey.

Further information on this FRSS survey may be obtained from

John Ralph
Annual Reports and Information Staff
National Center for Education Statistics
550 12th Street SW
Washington, DC 20202
john.ralph@ed.gov
http://nces.ed.gov/surveys/frss