Student Privacy Rights

In a recent CUSD Board Workshop the issue of student privacy rights came up.

March 16, 2016 Board/Superintendent Workshop: High School Graduation Requirements:

http://capousd.ca.schoolloop.com/file/1218998819331/1455438848279/3795891073422611312.pdf

Health and CCP are not required courses for graduation by Education Code- this is a graduation requirement that is unique to CUSD, which puts students one year behind on completing their A-G requirements (needed to get into UC or CalState). The requirement that students use one year long block to complete Health/CCP is why CUSD students have such a low A-G completion rate (around 50%)

Source: Dataquest: 12th grade students Completing all Courses Required for Entrance into UC and/or CSU

http://data1.cde.ca.gov/dataquest/DistGrad.asp?cSelect=30664640106765--Capistrano+Connections+Academy+Charter&cChoice=DstGrdEth2&cYear=2013-14&cLevel=District&cTopic=Graduates&myTimeFrame=S&submit1=Submit

A-G by High School: CUSD District Total 52.5%

• Aliso Niguel High School: 57.4%
• Capistrano Valley High School: 57.6%
• Dana Hills High School: 57.8%
• San Clemente High School: 51%
• San Juan Hills High School: 51.6%
• Tesoro High School: 63.5%

So immediately, CUSD could improve A-G completion rates by eliminating CP as a graduation requirement and incorporating the 3 units of Health into PE like most other districts do.
State Graduation Requirements:

Page 99 of 209 of the Presentation

http://capousd.ca.schoolloop.com/file/1218998819331/1455438848279/3795891073422611312.pdf

HEALTH

Health is not a required course for graduation. State Law only mandates that districts cover the following units:

• HIV/Aids (you have the right to opt your student out of this unit)
• Tobacco/Drug Prevention
• Personal/Public Safety/Accident Prevention

Most school districts work these three units into their PE curriculum, which then frees up a student block for another class - preferably an A-G required course so that students do not fall behind in meeting their A-G requirements by taking a full year of Health/CCP.

You have the right to opt your child out of the HIV/Aids unit, and you also have the right to see and approve any voluntary and confidential research and evaluation tools to measure students' health behaviors and risks, including test, questionnaires, and surveys containing age-appropriate questions about pupils' attitudes concerning or practices related to sex.

See: CUSD Annual Notice to Parents/Guardians at page 9

http://capousd.ca.schoolloop.com/file/1219972017334/1218998864154/3858667388057893271.pdf

CCP

CCP is also not a required course for Graduation. CUSD is trying to use CCP as a "Career Technical Education" or "CTE" class. AB 1330 is a new law that allows Districts to make CTE a graduate requirement.

Source: Board Presentation page 106 of 2019

http://capousd.ca.schoolloop.com/file/1218998819331/1455438848279/3795891073422611312.pdf

CCP is not really a CTE class

CTE classes must be taught by a teacher who holds a special credential. Most of CUSD's CP teachers are not credentialed to teach a CTE course.

From Board Workshop July 15, 2015 High School Graduation Requirements Slide page 11 of 13

http://capousd.ca.schoolloop.com/file/1218998819331/1218998864154/6554846561788520336.pdf

Which is required:

The other concern regarding CCP is the incorporation of Naviance into CCP which raised some privacy concerns for some parents.

Naviance helps students and families connect what students do in the classroom to their life goals, including finding colleges and careers based on their personal skills and areas of interests.

Naviance collects a wide variety of information from kids like the following:

• Includes academic planner
• Post-secondary options
• Career ideas
• Personality and Learning Style
• Electronic Portfolio
• Resume
• Schools they apply to, and get rejected from
• Their college applications
• Financial aid
• Test Scores

This is all "personally identifiable information" which has always been protected by privacy laws. Now this information is being collected and in some cases being sold to private for profit corporations.

FERPA: Federal Education Rights and Privacy Act

FRPRA - Education records: directly related to a student and maintained by an educational agency must obtain consent from a parent or eligible student prior to the release of student education records.

except when information is being released to:

• To other school officials who have "legitimate educational interests" as defined by the institution, such as “advising”.
• To officials of other schools in which the student seeks to enroll.
• In connection with a student’s application for, or receipt of financial aid.
• If disclosure is necessary to protect the health or safety of the student or other persons (This health or safety exception is discussed below).
• In response to a lawfully issued subpoena. (Note: If you receive a subpoena requesting student records, you should notify the OGC and the Registrar’s Office immediately.)

FERPA requires consent prior to the collection of "protected" information.

Under FERPA parents have Opt Out rights for certain surveys, physical exams and information disclosure for marketing purposes.

So what happens to a student's privacy rights when taking personality tests and completing data mining surveys are required to complete a course that is required by the District to graduate?

That is the issue. Parents who want to protect their child's personally identifiable data from third party, for profit corporations should have the right to do that. It is unclear how CUSD can guarantee parents the ability to opt out of something that is now being incorporated into a "required" class. That question was brought up at the workshop- but never really addressed.

The concern can be illustrated below- as is obvious, CCP is going to be requiring students to take Personalty Test based on C. Jung and I. Briggs Meyers type of tests.

From Myers Briggs own web site: http://www.myersbriggs.org/myers-and-briggs-foundation/ethical-use-of-the-mbti-instrument/ethical-guidelines.htm

So how is it legal or ethical for a school district to require a student to take these test as a requirement for a grade especially when the data being collected will be stored and used by for-profit-corporations for sale to others? Should parents be asked to opt in or opt out?

There is a guidance plan for every high school starting on page 41 of 209 at the following link:

http://capousd.ca.schoolloop.com/file/1218998819331/1455438848279/3795891073422611312.pdf

The one below is an example from Aliso Niguel High.