Capturing information about students' perceptions of school climate and their mental and physical well-being can provide critical information about factors that influence students' experiences in school.

Some states, like Iowa and Kansas, recently passed laws that require schools to obtain permission from students’ caregivers before administering student surveys that cover sensitive topics, such as mental or physical health. These laws may pose a barrier to the use of school climate surveys and hinder educators’ ability to improve school conditions for equitable learning. In these situations, it is especially important for districts to communicate with caregivers about the value of surveys in supporting student well-being.

This blog post provides practical strategies for schools and districts to communicate about school climate surveys to caregivers. The strategies also may be useful to schools looking to broaden the impact of their efforts to improve school climate.

REL Midwest partners with school districts to build leaders’ capacity using data to reduce disparities among middle school students’ sense of belonging, disciplinary actions, and absenteeism—factors that contribute to student disengagement in schools.

What are schools measuring and why?

School climate and youth development are two broad topics related to mental or physical health that many schools track over time. Since measuring aspects of these topics in some states now may require permission from caregivers, it is important for schools and districts to explain why school climate and youth development surveys are key tools for supporting student success. One vital point for schools and districts to share with caregivers is that student voice matters. It is not enough to know what educators think; it also is critically important to hear from students themselves. Students in grades 4 and higher are generally able to give meaningful answers to survey questions.¹

School climate

School climate includes many aspects of a student’s educational experience. Schools with positive climates are safe; provide a supportive academic, disciplinary, and physical environment; and encourage respectful, trusting, and caring relationships throughout the school community.² By measuring school climate, educators can identify needs, set goals, and track progress.³ Improvements in school climate can enhance the well-being and academic success of students, teachers’ job satisfaction, and overall school effectiveness.⁴

A sense of belonging or school connectedness is an additional aspect of school climate that can be useful to measure. School connectedness refers to a student’s feeling that adults and peers in school care about their learning and about them as individuals. This perception includes a sense of being supported and belonging at school. Student sense of belonging is linked to positive educational, behavioral, and health outcomes in adolescence and into adulthood.⁵ In 2021, 61.5 percent of U.S. high school students reported feeling connected to others at school, and this sense of connectedness was associated with more positive mental health, less substance use, fewer sexual health risks, and less experience of physical violence.⁶ Schools that take action to help students feel connected can improve student health and development.

Youth development

Measuring topics related to youth development is another way that districts and schools can support students’ mental and physical well-being. Youth development is a broad topic that includes how students grow academically, socially, and emotionally. It includes risk and protective factors that affect well-being, such as social skills; mental health (including suicide); bullying, violence, and unintentional injuries; sexual behaviors related to unintended pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases; alcohol, tobacco, and other drug use; and obesity, dietary behaviors, and physical activity.⁷

Asking students to share information about their development helps schools better understand what is happening with students, where needs exist, and how to strengthen any programming to address issues. For example, in 2021, the U.S. surgeon general issued an advisory because youth mental health concerns, which had been increasing generally over the past decade, became worse during the pandemic.⁸ Ongoing monitoring of student well-being gives schools and communities the information they need to act to make conditions better.

A common misperception about the administration of these surveys is that asking about sensitive topics encourages the behaviors. However, there is no evidence that asking students about health behaviors will encourage them to try those behaviors.⁹ Studies indicate that asking young people about suicide, for example, actually makes it less likely that they will consider or attempt suicide.^10,11

How can schools engage caregivers in giving permission for surveys?

Schools have the opportunity to communicate with caregivers in many ways. Asking caregivers for permission for their student to participate in a survey is an opportunity for a positive connection between caregivers and schools. Caregivers are most likely to provide permission (for example, through completing an online form or returning a paper form) when there is effective communication and a strong sense that their child’s participation will have a positive effect on the school community.

One important message to convey is that a caregiver has a right to say “no” to their child’s participation in a survey. Any strategy designed to maximize caregiver permission and the return of permission forms should focus on whether a caregiver has registered their decision—not on whether that decision was a yes or no. Caregivers should never feel coerced into allowing their child to take part in a survey, no matter how valuable the survey may be.

Below are a variety of strategies that research and practice suggest may help promote the return of survey permission forms.^12,13

Creating permission forms

• Translate permission forms into multiple languages. If your school serves a population of students and families who speak different languages, provide permission forms in multiple languages to make them accessible to all households.
• Clearly communicate the purpose. Explain in plain language why the survey is important and how the information will be used to benefit students and the school community. Consider developing an FAQ document to attach with the permission form. Caregivers who understand that their student’s input matters and that it will drive positive change may be more likely to allow participation.
• Share how information from past surveys has been used. Share how findings from previous surveys have led to positive changes or improvements. Such examples demonstrate that the school values input and acts upon it.
• Ensure anonymity if relevant. Privacy matters, especially for students. Unless there is a compelling reason to link students’ survey responses to their school records, surveys can be anonymous. This means that no names are used in administering the survey, and there is no way to link survey answers to the individual student who provided them. True anonymity is the strongest privacy protection and also can make students feel more comfortable sharing honest information. However, there are benefits to surveys that are not anonymous. For example, information about who has completed the survey could help schools understand which groups of students’ perspectives and voices are underrepresented.
• Provide clear instructions. Make sure caregivers understand how to access and complete the permission form. Clear and simple instructions can minimize any potential barriers.
• Personalize invitations. Personalize permission form requests whenever possible. Use names and highlight the specific areas of interest or concern that the permission form covers.
• Set a deadline for permission. Clearly communicate the permission form deadline to create a sense of urgency. Let caregivers know how much time they have to complete or return the form.

Distributing and collecting permission forms

• Identify a district or school point of contact to respond to questions about the survey. Include this person’s contact information in all communications about the survey.
• Engage teachers and other school staff in outreach. Encourage teachers to promote the permission form and mention it in communications with caregivers during teacher conferences. Ensure that staff know the key points to communicate when distributing permission forms, including the benefits of participation as well as the need to avoid pressure and coercion.
• Choose a good time for collecting permission. Select an appropriate time to collect the permission forms. Avoid peak holidays, events, or busy times of the year when caregivers may be less available.
• Use multiple communication channels. Send permission information to caregivers through multiple communication channels, such as email, text messages, paper forms, social media, and conversations. Not all caregivers prefer the same method, so providing the information in various ways increases the chances that caregivers will complete the permission forms.
• Package forms with other materials. Include a copy of the permission form with other forms that caregivers need to complete for student enrollment or other documents that may require a family member’s signature, like report cards.
• Take advantage of in-person events. Ask caregivers to complete permission forms during in-person events, such as back-to-school nights, school or district assemblies, curriculum nights, parent–teacher association (PTA) meetings, or meet-the-teacher events.
• Offer incentives. Consider offering small incentives or rewards for completing permission forms (not only for granting consent). For example, students might be offered a pencil when turning in a form, or a classroom with an 80 percent return rate might receive extra outdoor time. Teachers or caregivers might be entered into a raffle for a gift card or school supplies.
• Engage with caregiver organizations. Partner with PTAs and caregiver coalitions to encourage participation. These groups can help spread the word throughout the community and emphasize the importance of returning the permission form and the value of the survey and its results.

Monitoring permission forms and following up

• Monitor progress. Regularly provide teachers and school leaders with information about who has and has not returned the permission forms—but not whether permission was granted. This information may help make this effort feel like a shared responsibility among district and school staff.
• Follow up with reminders. Send reminder messages, emails, texts, or phone calls to caregivers who have not responded. Be respectful in your follow-up communication and consider sending multiple reminders over time, potentially via multiple communication channels.
• Share survey findings. Once survey results are available, share them with the school community and explain how the findings will be used to make improvements. This step reinforces the point that student input is meaningful.

Caregivers can be powerful allies in school improvement. Engaging with them to obtain permission for their children to participate in surveys should be part of a broader effort to communicate what the school is doing to support students and why.