Johnstown, PA (WJAC) — A recent student survey in the Westmont Hilltop School District has some parents asking questions.

The district says the survey is designed to get information on students’ attitudes about their school and classroom work, but some parents want more transparency on what’s being asked and what is being done with the data.

On Tuesday, parents received a letter informing them of their child's participation in a brief survey to assist the district in uncovering and addressing the social and emotional barrier that affects the wellbeing of the students.

In the letter, parents are given the option to opt their child out of the survey, called the “Pupil Attitudes to Self and School” survey, or P.A.S.S.

According to the survey’s website, P.A.S.S helps identify fragile learners who are held back by factors such as a lack of confidence, motivation, or connection to school.

Students are asked to respond with either yes, a lot, yes, somewhat, no, not much, or no, not at all.

“They phrase it so that it seems to be innocuous and a benefit for the kids, but it’s not.”

The site goes on to say that by uncovering how students feel about themselves and school, educators can give them the support they need to thrive.

But Patrick O’Connor, a parent in the district, says the questions this survey asks are invasive.

“These are questions that should be asked my medical professionals with parental consent.”

However, this is not the first time the district has given the survey to students.

According to district Superintendent Thomas Mitchell, this survey was first given back in March of this year.

But, according to O’Connor, the parents that opted into the survey in March, never received data from the survey.

“I said no, but did other parents get the results back from March? No. None did, that's just it; they are using it for themselves.”

“What are you doing with the data, where is it going? Is it going to the state the Department of Education, to some company that owns the data?”

According to Superintendent Mitchell, the vendor will not permit the district to release the survey in its entirety to the public based on the company's proprietary rules.

O’Connor says he reached out to the school to see the questions students will be asked and out of the 50 questions on the survey, he was only given a sample of five.

“I do believe this is being handed down from the Department of Education however, that does not justify the lack of transparency and why tell us you can only have 4 questions, and again, where is the data, where is the feedback from the data?”

Superintendent Mitchell provided a sample of the questions on the survey, which is given to third graders through 12th graders.

All the questions are similar: they ask things like can you do your homework easily; do you find schoolwork too difficult, and do you worry about getting your work right?

“If you look at the way its phrased, emotional and social welfare of the students, that’s a parental role, that’s not their role.”

We asked Superintendent Mitchell why this survey is given, and he provided me the following statement saying:

We are constantly working to increase our students' academic success and safety. The PASS survey measures both students’ attitudes toward themselves as learners and their school. PASS plays a role in helping uncover social and emotional barriers that, if left unaddressed, can undermine a student’s wellbeing, and academic success, or potentially lead to security concerns. One of the primary causes of school violence is a feeling of isolation and lack of connection to the school. Through the survey results, we have been able to improve areas that students identify, leading to a stronger connection and a sense of belonging for students to their school and classmates.

O’Connor says he has taken legal action to make sure the P.A.S.S survey stops in schools.

“I'm very concerned that they presented us one thing and it’s something different. They are digging and it’s not a onetime thing.”

As of now, the district is planning to give the survey again to its students in May.

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