Legislature(2001 - 2002)
02/20/2002 08:08 AM House EDU
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* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
HB 408-STUDENT QUESTIONNAIRES AND SURVEYS Number 0160 CHAIR BUNDE announced that the first order of business would be HOUSE BILL NO. 408, "An Act relating to questionnaires and surveys administered in the public schools." [Elmer Lindstrom, Deputy Commissioner, Department of Health and Social Services, who had testified previously and was available to answer questions, noted that online was Tammy Green, Epidemiology Section, Division of Public Health, Department of Health and Social Services, who has run the Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) for the department.] Number 0250 REPRESENTATIVE PORTER reported that Mr. Lindstrom had responded to his questions via a memorandum that addressed how school districts obtain active consent and where the breakdown occurs. Representative Porter explained that unfortunately a high percentage of parents don't get involved. He noted that based on that fact and since the survey is anonymous, he will be supporting the bill. Number 0330 RIC IANNOLINO, Chair, Youth on the Street, explained that this citizens group had conducted a survey with the McDowell Group in 1998. Homeless teens were interviewed for this survey. He explained that homeless teens are different from [homeless] adults. These homeless teens have homes, but the home atmosphere is intolerable at times due to [substance abuse] and dysfunctional behaviors. This, he noted, is what distinguishes a homeless teen from a homeless adult. MR. IANNOLINO reported that most of these homeless teens, to their credit, attend school. Current law, however, precludes [Youth on the Street] from conducting these interviews in the schools, he said. He explained that the police were contacted [for data], but he indicated that the police had little reported [data] because parents don't report their children as missing. MR. IANNOLINO reported that schools' experience has been that parents don't look for their children when they are absent from school; these parents are uninvolved. It is difficult to obtain parental consent with this population of parents. He indicated [Youth on the Street] will need a valid assessment tool in order to seek funding from foundations and the federal government. The McDowell Group has indicated a valid assessment tool requires a large number of respondents; this is unavailable under current law. Number 0460 REPRESENTATIVE STEVENS asked if funding had been lost or would be lost in the future due to the inability to conduct surveys. MR. IANNOLINO replied, "We don't have accurate information on the population, and of course, if you're going for a half- million or a million-dollar grant, they're going to want a valid tool." REPRESENTATIVE STEVENS inquired, "Has that occurred yet?" MR. IANNOLINO answered, "We could apply for a grant, but we would never get it ... in a national competition." He added that [the application would contain] no proof that such a problem exists. REPRESENTATIVE STEVENS queried, "Has there been an event in the past where you have not been able to apply for a grant or get a grant because of lack ... of statistics?" MR. IANNOLINO said, "We can apply for grants. ... Anybody can apply for a grant, but you don't get them if you don't have ... valid statistics." CHAIR BUNDE asked, "Have you applied and been refused?" MR. IANNOLINO replied: We've not applied yet. We don't have our [501(c)(3)] at this point. We are sponsored by the Glory Hole, so we can receive funding. ... Our group is one of the groups that participated [in] reading the Alaska Housing Finance Corporation grants ... on homelessness; they're funded, of course, by the ... Mental Health Trust Fund. ... We really had to not accept one of those grants on this basis specifically. Number 0582 KATHRYN ARLEN, Public Relations Liaison, Youth on the Street, thanked members for the opportunity to testify. She referenced her written testimony submitted to the committee. She reported that she does a lot of service work in the community, especially at the Johnson Youth Center detention section. She offered her concurrence with Mr. Iannolino's testimony. She pointed out that the quality of data is vital to successfully obtain grant funding. MS. ARLEN turned members' attention to her concluding [written] statement, offering that [the passage of HB 408] will lead to more accurate, thorough, and pertinent data. This, in turn, will contribute to better grant-writing aimed at creating and promoting necessary, improved, and expanding services to all young people, especially those at risk. She noted that "we" can't really reach the young population because there is no specific base from which to survey them. However, "the grapevine" is an excellent source of information for [young people]. Ms. Arlen commented that this proposal seems to respect the rights of both parents and students; therefore, this is a win-win situation. She expressed hope that through the grapevine, more of the types of necessary information can be obtained to develop a successful grant. Number 0734 DAVID MOORE, Ph.D., Associate Director, Safe and Drug-Free Schools (SDFS), University of Washington College of Education, informed the committee that since the early 1990s [the university] has done a variety of work with [Alaskan] school districts by providing technical assistance, program evaluation, and assistance with federal grants in Alaska. DR. MOORE pointed out that the committee packet should include a one-page summary of [his testimony]. Although the Office of National Drug Control Policy pioneered active parental consent [surveys] in the early 1990s, he told members, it has since announced it isn't a valid way to measure what is occurring with the youth population. That office found that surveys requiring active parental consent underreport significant problems, especially in regard to marijuana use and other risky, illegal behaviors. DR. MOORE said that furthermore, there is no way to really see the value for the money being spent without [conducting] a valid statewide measurement on a local level regarding substance-abuse treatment, violence prevention and other such health behaviors. The Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) is the best way to measure community-to-community impact of the dollars being spent in areas that attempt to improve health behaviors. "By way of this process, you inadvertently give up your best quality control and ability to measure value on behalf of the citizens," he remarked. DR. MOORE referred to the "definite loss of federal funds to other states." He informed the committee that there was a $500,000-a- year National Institutes of Health grant to increase treatment funds to communities in need of additional substance- abuse treatment funds. He said [SDFS] was told by the National Institutes of Health that if an active parental consent form were used, the score in the evaluation section of the grant proposal would be substantially lower. DR. MOORE indicated that it's difficult to draw a direct correlation between the [lack of reliable data] and the failure to receive grants; however, 15 to 30 points of every 100 points in a grant is scored on the evaluation [section]. The people conducting the grant review have clearly stated that using the active parental consent model, because it is not valid, will substantially reduce grant scores, he explained. For this reason, an application for a $500,000-a-year grant was not even submitted for an Alaskan [grantee]. Number 0947 DR. MOORE reported that similar debate has been conducted at the federal level. He acknowledged that everyone involved desires parental control and involvement. The recent federal education bill [the No Child Left Behind Act] removed the active consent provision in favor of passive consent for the sake of validity, he explained. This federal Act directed local school districts to communicate with parents before a survey is conducted and to get parental involvement to establish the level of local control that the community desires. He explained that in Delaware, 18 of 19 districts opted for passive consent; [the state] allowed districts to have local control over this decision. He expressed his appreciation for the ability to convey this information to members. He said, "I would certainly support you ... simply turning this back over to local control and removing a statewide mandate on active parental consent." Number 1022 REPRESENTATIVE PORTER asked Dr. Moore about his knowledge of the types of internal reliability checks for validating anonymous surveys. DR. MOORE explained that both active and passive consent models have similar types of internal reliability [measures]. These determine reliability by administering questions about nonexistent drugs, for example; students who are "faking bad" will answer "yes" to using all kinds of drugs, indicating that survey response is therefore invalid. Another type of reliability measure is a response pattern that can be detected from the larger [aggregate] reports using psychometric tests which indicate if a student is trying to "fake good" or "fake bad." He said the problem with validity is that the group of students who fail to get active parental consent is substantially different from the group of students who get consent; thus the [survey results] are invalid, he concluded. Number 1110 CHAIR BUNDE recounted a comment by a psychologist about the Kinsey Report, which indicated in order for the [report's findings] to generalize to the population at large, one would have to question the number of people willing to volunteer information about "some of these very bizarre things." He said, "The reverse of that is, ... how do we take what is negative behavior and consider that that can ... apply to the general population?" He expressed his uncertainty that he would have - as a teen - admitted to things that would get him in "hot water." DR. MOORE added, "Particularly if somebody [were] ... close enough to you to see your paper when you're filling it out." He agreed with Chair Bunde that a bit of underreporting takes place. The underreporting stays the same from year to year; therefore, a change in the trend line can be observed. He said, "You're probably right: if you look at survey results, you can figure that they're probably underreporting the risk behaviors. But at least they're validly underreporting them." Number 1190 CHAIR BUNDE asked if he had traveled from the University of Washington to testify today. DR. MOORE answered, "No. ... And it would be unfair for me to tell you the people I'm working with ... because then it'd be inferred that I represent them." He explained that he works with communities to establish prevention-and-treatment networks for kids using the local school district as a hub. He said, "That's been my love for 20 years." Alaska is a state that still has a sense of community at a local level in which the results of work can be evidenced, he offered. Number 1234 REPRESENTATIVE GREEN queried whether Washington has [passive parental consent] for anonymous surveys. DR. MOORE replied that Washington has local control. Washington has a statewide survey similar to [the YRBS] for which it has passive consent. Local school districts may invoke active consent for other surveys. Number 1275 REPRESENTATIVE GREEN said, "As an old fuddy-duddy, [I've] read some horror stories of school districts where young girls are taught how to put on condoms, ... things like that." He asked what assurance exists, either statewide or locally, that there wouldn't be inappropriate, anonymous questions asked, if this should pass. DR. MOORE offered his understanding that Alaska's survey method is similar to Washington's. The YRBS is administered by the Department of Education and Early Development (EED). He explained that legislators "definitely have their fingers in that review process." He noted that most [legislators] have been comfortable with the [survey that is administered], which is why school districts tend to feel comfortable with this survey. He indicated that for a survey without this level of checks and balances, however, a district might want to invoke active consent. Number 1339 CHAIR BUNDE pointed out that local districts can choose active or passive consent. DR. MOORE added that the federal government has directed schools to consider these surveys with parents to determine how they will be conducted. Number 1360 CHRISTIE McINTIRE, American Lung Association, explained that she is also speaking on behalf of the Alaska Tobacco Control Alliance and Alaskans for Tobacco-Free Kids. From the tobacco- control community's perspective, active parental consent has virtually shut down the ability to measure progress in teen tobacco-use rates. This is because the state has not had a statewide sample of statistical significance since 1995 from the YRBS, she reported. Active parental consent has been sought, but these attempts have proven unsuccessful. She said: In Anchorage, we worked with the school district - actually, gave them some extra funds ... for sending out permission slips as well as phone-banking to try to get these things back. And it just was not successful. So I do feel that we've made attempts. MS. McINTIRE added that other ways to get this data have been researched with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the state. Telephone surveys have been considered, but these [result in] skewed data; parental permission must be gained to talk to the child, and the parent could be listening to the conversation and therefore it would result in unreliable data. She stated that an anonymous survey in the school is the best way to gain this information. The YRBS is the national standard for gathering youth data. MS. McINTIRE explained that the [inability to gather reliable data] is crippling the tobacco-control community as it continues to build the tobacco-control program. The legislature is asking for evidence that the program is working, but it cannot be determined whether youth tobacco use is increasing or decreasing. She said, "We want to be able to show you that our program is working, and we'd like to be able to have the data to do that." She thanked members for their time and offered her appreciation for their support of HB 408. Number 1482 CHAIR BUNDE observed that it is important to know if the youth tobacco-use rate is declining. Number 1490 DEBBIE OSSIANDER, Legislative Chair, Anchorage School District School Board, testified via teleconference. She referenced a three-page statement and offered to fax it. She noted, "Generally, we're supportive." REPRESENTATIVE GREEN asked for a summary of her statement. MS. OSSIANDER explained that the [Anchorage School District (ASD)] has lost money from grants due the active-consent requirement. The ASD has also worked with other agencies to contact parents. The data collection for permission has been cumbersome, she reported. [The board] has been following the recent changes to federal law and believes that significant protection for families exists in that legislation, she said. She offered specific information on grants "that we feel we have lost" and information on how the ASD has sought parental permission before the surveys' administration. CHAIR BUNDE thanked Ms. Ossiander for her participation. Number 1596 JULIE McWILLIAMS, Education Specialist, Lower Kuskokwim School District, testified via teleconference in support of HB 408. She noted that the committee packet should include her written testimony. Number 1650 BETH SHOBER, Health Education Specialist, Teaching and Learning Support, Department of Education and Early Development (EED), said that she would defer her testimony and speak to some of the questions she has heard. She first turned to Representative Porter's question regarding the reliability of this survey. Ms. Shober explained that the CDC created the YRBS and spent several years performing reliability and validity studies on the test. Over the past 10-12 years of the existence of this survey, [the CDC] has become more adept at fine-tuning the test's reliability and validity. She offered to provide the committee with the report from the CDC. MS. SHOBER then addressed Representative Green's earlier remarks regarding the horror stories. She acknowledged that [EED] has heard some of the same horror stories. These horror stories are applicable statewide; that is, judgment isn't always the best when it deals with health education curriculum in schools. She pointed out that YRBS doesn't specify a curriculum for health education, including prevention initiatives. However, the survey does [specify] the behaviors in which the students are engaging. Ms. Shober pointed out that the CDC also publishes the School Health Education Profile, which surveys teachers and administrators regarding what is actually being taught. Therefore, the [two surveys] attempt to obtain balance between what the teachers and principals are reporting as happening academically with health education and what students are reporting they are engaging in. Both the YRBS and the School Health Education Profile surveys are published and administered in Alaska. MS. SHOBER continued with Representative Stevens' questions regarding grants that weren't funded due to the lack of data. Specifically, in the [Anchorage School District], the Safe Schools/Healthy Students grant, which is a multimillion-dollar, multiyear grant, wasn't funded due to the lack of accurate data relevant to that district. This isn't only occurring in school districts; different parts of the Department of Health & Social Services use this data for alcohol- and tobacco-prevention initiatives that complement what is done in the schools. Therefore, the impacts of not having current data are far- reaching. Number 1831 REPRESENTATIVE STEVENS inquired as to the difference between passive and active parental [permission]. He furnished his view that HB 408 doesn't allow local control. MS. SHOBER explained that under the current legislation, a school district must obtain active parental permission before administering any anonymous survey. Therefore, every student surveyed must have returned a slip from the parent stating that it's permissible for his/her child to be surveyed. The differences and the enormity of that task vary from district to district. MS. SHOBER noted that the current legislation includes a provision that allows a parent to provide an annual signature for permission. She explained that the hope is that the annual permission could be obtained during registration in order to avoid the additional burden of sending things to parents throughout the year. However, not all parents register their children, as was mentioned earlier. Under HB 408, it is allowable for the school district to, in writing, inform the community that a survey will be conducted. The district [shall] offer review of the survey to parents as well as hear parental concerns, Ms. Shober explained. Therefore, a parent would have to inform [the school district] that he/she did not what his/her child to participate in the survey, rather than the school district having to receive permission for those who want their child to participate in the survey. CHAIR BUNDE said nothing in HB 408 would prevent a school district from choosing to require active parental permission. MS. SHOBER agreed, pointing out that passage of HB 408 doesn't take away parents' authority to disallow their children to participate in these surveys. Rather, HB 408 provides schools, communities, and nonprofits the ability to determine what is best for their community. Number 2014 REPRESENTATIVE GREEN posed a situation in which a questionnaire is administered in the Anchorage School District and the parents of a child provide the school notice that their child is not to participate in the questionnaire. He asked if there is a way that this questionnaire could be administered such that this child would not be "held out as being weird." MS. SHOBER pointed out that students opt out of various programs and courses all the time. Therefore, she didn't feel that there would be any stigma. CHAIR BUNDE closed public testimony. REPRESENTATIVE GREEN commented that he has no problem with passive [permission] for a survey. Number 2150 REPRESENTATIVE GUESS moved to report HB 408 out of committee with individual recommendations and the accompanying fiscal note. There being no objection, HB 408 was reported from the House Special Committee on Education.
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