The CDC and your children - Granite Grok

The CDC and your children

CDC

I have two sons in high school, 15 and 16 years old.  This week, I received an email from the school, informing me that they were going to be taking a “Youth Risk Behavior” survey, which is a component of the CDC’s “Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System” (YRBSS), in conjunction with the US Department of Health and Human Services.

Right out of the gate, I have measurable trepidation about schools (and teachers) and their assumed role as surrogate parents; a role which I do not subscribe to, opting to actually play the role myself. Sadly, many parents don’t feel this way and have subtly and unknowingly abdicated much of their parental duty to the schools and to the ever-encroaching State and Federal governments.  This dovetails with the disturbing trend away from personal responsibility and accountability across much of our current society.

So, you can imagine how I felt after reading the survey, itself.


It purportedly monitors six types of health-risk behaviors that contribute to the leading causes of death and disability among youth and adults”, including “unintentional injuries and violence“, “sexual behaviors“, “alcohol and drug use“, “tobacco use“, “dietary behavior“, “inadequate physical activity“, and “obesity“.

As many of us know, survey questions, as well as the available answers, can be misleading and hard to put into context.  Also, many of these questions dive right into the most sensitive level of various topics.  Take a gander at a few of the questions I found to be “questionable”:

* During the past 30 days, how many times did you ride in a car or other vehicle driven by someone who had been drinking alcohol?

* During the past 30 days, on how many days did you carry a weapon such as a gun, knife, or club?

* During the past 30 days, on how many days did you carry a gun?

* During the past 30 days, on how many days did you carry a weapon such as a gun, knife, or club on school property?

* During the past 12 months, how many times did someone you were dating or going out with physically hurt you on purpose? (Count such things as being hit, slammed into something, or injured with an object or weapon.)

* During the past 12 months, did you ever seriously consider attempting suicide?

* How old were you when you smoked a whole cigarette for the first time?

In my humble opinion, schools are for things like reading, writing, mathematics, science, and history.  Discussions about sex, drugs, alcohol, suicide, diet, and safety belong in the family.

Fortunately, for the sake of the school, a parental opt-out form was sent out (only after some complaints were made), otherwise, they might be in violation of Federal Law…

Update 03/25/13: A group of parents visited Hollis-Brookline High School today – to review the survey – but were DENIED the right to see it.  How can a parent opt-out, or give permission that wasn’t even requested, if they are unable to see the material?  Is this in the spirit of “mutual trust and respect” the school administrators express as their mission, on their website?  More to come on this…

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Right to review Curriculum (United States Code, Title 20 1232h)

1232h Protection of pupil rights

(a) Inspection of instructional materials by parents or guardians

All instructional materials, including teacher’s manuals, films, tapes, or other supplementary material which will be used in connection with any survey, analysis, or evaluation as part of any applicable program shall be available for inspection by the parents or guardians of the children.

Limits on Survey, Analysis, Evaluations, or Data Collection (United States Code, Title 20 1232h)

(b) Limits on survey, analysis, or evaluations

No student shall be required, as part of any applicable program, to submit to a survey, analysis, or evaluation that reveals information concerning—

(1) political affiliations or beliefs of the student or the student’s parent;

(2) mental or psychological problems of the student or the student’s family;

(3) sex behavior or attitudes;

(4) illegal, anti-social, self-incriminating, or demeaning behavior;

(5) critical appraisals of other individuals with whom respondents have close family relationships;

(6) legally recognized privileged or analogous relationships, such as those of lawyers, physicians, and ministers;

(7) religious practices, affiliations, or beliefs of the student or student’s parent; or

(8) income (other than that required by law to determine eligibility for participation in a program or for receiving financial assistance under such program), without the prior consent of the student (if the student is an adult or emancipated minor), or in the case of an unemancipated minor, without the prior written consent of the parent.

 

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