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Participant Guide

Presented byPrevention First and Lighthouse Institute

Promoting the Illinois Youth Survey to Schools Participant Guide © 2009, Prevention First PG 1

Promoting the Illinois Youth Survey to Schools

Module One:Understanding the

Illinois Youth Survey

Contents

Module Overview..........................................................................................PG-10

Introduction to the Illinois Youth Survey........................................................PG-11

Benefits and Purpose of the IYS...................................................................PG-12

Participation Rates........................................................................................PG-15

Advantages of Using the IYS........................................................................PG-16

Job Aid: Overview of Common Youth Surveys.............................................PG-19

Activity: Benefits of the IYS...........................................................................PG-21

Job Aid: Facts About the Illinois Youth Survey .............................................PG-23

Activity: IYS Trivia.........................................................................................PG-24


Module Overview

PURPOSE: This module will provide a review of the Illinois Youth Survey, beginning with its history as a selective sampling survey to how the survey is currently being administered throughout the state of Illinois to interested eligible schools. This module will also go into detail about the advantages of the IYS and how it compares to other like surveys.

OBJECTIVES: Upon completion of the course, you will be able to: Discuss the background information of the IYS Describe the benefits and purpose of the IYS Locate the IYS participant rates for your schools Discuss the advantages of the IYS over other

surveys

KEY CONTENT & CONCEPTS:

Illinois Youth Survey (IYS) Lighthouse Institute (Chestnut Health Systems) Survey Content Optional Questions Eligible Schools Problem Behaviors


Introduction to the Illinois Youth Survey

The first substance use survey of Illinois youth by the state was conducted in 1990 by the Illinois Dept. of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse (DASA). A weighted scientific sample of schools was surveyed. DASA did not have the internal resources to repeat the survey, but found the results to be very important for planning substance abuse prevention initiatives. They contracted with Lighthouse Institute at Chestnut Health Systems to administer the survey in 1993, 1995 and 1997.

In 1998, DASA was merged with other state human service departments to create the Illinois Department of Human Services (DHS). Also in 1998, Illinois became one of seven states to participate in a study led by the University of Washington. As a result, survey administration was changed from odd years to even years, and the survey instrument used by Lighthouse Institute in 1998, 2000 and 2002 was mostly developed by the University of Washington. The survey is now reviewed after each survey year and updated to reflect current concerns, with additions and deletions balanced to keep the classroom time needed to administer the survey to 45 minutes or less.

The biggest change to the project occurred in 2000. Rather than being available to just a select sample of schools, the survey became available to all schools in the state meeting eligibility requirements, including private schools. This was done because DHS recognized that the quality of local prevention efforts could be improved if local survey results were available to those planning the efforts. In 2000, 2002, 2004 and 2006 the survey was offered to schools at no charge for participating grade levels. In 2004 a short 6th grade form was developed, and schools were invited to survey any of four grade levels (6th, 8th, 10th, and 12th). That invitation is now being given to schools for the 2010 Illinois Youth Survey.Currently, the Illinois Youth Survey is conducted in the spring of even-numbered years with students from 6th, 8th, 10th, and 12th grades. Responses from a scientific sample of youth are tallied to give statewide figures. Methodological changes in state sampling and interpretation of conflicting responses for the 2008 state report make those results non-comparable to previous results. As part of the change, private schools are no longer included in the state sample, but are still able to participate in the survey. Through all of these changes, the purpose of the IYS has not changed: to provide schools and communities the knowledge they need to develop localized, targeted and effective solutions to youth substance abuse and related issues.

* Source: Lighthouse Institute


Benefits and Purpose of the IYS

The IYS provides each school with data about their specific school, and allows them to compare their data to district, city, regional and statewide information. It provides specific information to schools on statewide substance abuse and related issues trends and patterns.

Benefits include:

Each participating school receives their own individual school results. Initial reports tabulate all responses to all survey items. Follow-up reports include regional and state comparisons on past 30-

day gateway drug use, including binge drinking and inhalants. Also included are ratings on 8 or 9 risk and protective factors most associated with substance use.

The data can be useful for a variety of school- and community-planning efforts.

No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Safe & Drug Free Schools and Communities (SDFSC)

The data can be used for grant reporting purposes to leverage additional funding and for some state-required data.

For one class period every 2 years, schools can receive invaluable data that can help plan effective efforts to decrease teen substance use and increase academic success.


Benefits and Purpose of the IYS (continued)

Why is the IYS Data Important? The IYS data provides information to schools about what their students are doing and thinking regarding substance use and related issues. This information can be used for school improvement planning to ultimately decrease substance abuse and increase academic performance and healthy behaviors. Research shows that in order to maximize effectiveness and minimize cost, prevention strategies should be based on specific youth risk and protective factors from local up-to-date data sources. The IYS is designed to obtain this kind of specific data for each school that participates in the survey.

Having accurate data can drive the decisions that are being made in order to target prevention programming. Data provides the following:

1. Data establishes a clear and objective profile for your community. Data can provide the framework for prevention by giving you the information on existing student behaviors toward substance abuse and related issues. Data can assess incidence/prevalence, risk/protective factors and demographics. This allows communities to give consideration to populations in schools that are more prone to substance abuse behaviors.

2. Data can assist in identifying how to focus your resources and efforts. Even in tough fiscal times, there are inherent resources in communities. While funding may often be difficult to obtain, a broad-based understanding of what the data is saying can provide schools with an understanding of what their needs are in order to better identify and prepare resources.

3. Data can assist in developing effective and relevant strategies. If a school has a prevention program geared toward tobacco prevention, but the data indicates that there should be priority focused on alcohol-related issues, data will help schools to adjust their priorities. Data can assess existing measures are in place to address a need before developing any new programs. This assessment is crucial as it enables schools to move ahead by anticipating potential barriers that could have been anticipated and allows for more careful planning.


Benefits and Purpose of the IYS (continued)

IYS data provides information regarding substance abuse issues. These issues have been specifically linked to negative school outcomes such as:

Absenteeism Academic Difficulties Lack of Motivation Interpersonal Violence

The links between youth substance abuse and student achievement have been measured by the IYS. There is a the well-established (negative) correlation between student substance use and academic achievement involving a three-way causation among substance use, achievement, and other youth problems. The link between substance use and low achievement is increasingly being documented as a substantial part of the problem. For example, a longitudinal study in California tracked school achievement gains and losses, as well as a large number of non-academic student attributes. They found that, “Schools with proportionately large numbers of students who reported using alcohol, tobacco or marijuana during the 30 days prior to the survey or reported ever being intoxicated exhibited smaller test score gains than other schools.”* The study also found that, “For many of the measures considered, substance use has more deleterious consequences for the academic progress of high-performing schools than of low-performing schools.”

Just as educators know to measure achievement rather than assume it, prevention science has shown the need to plan and track prevention initiatives with dependable data. Other sources of information such as disciplinary records are also helpful, but none provide the breadth of information available through survey data. The IYS is designed to give schools a relatively easy way to gather valid information needed to do something about substance use and related problems, with potential long-term advantages in decreasing absenteeism and increasing academic scores.

Youth substance use is a community problem, but it also directly affects how well schools can do their job. Schools that want to be active in decreasing the problem can be greatly helped by obtaining the information available through the Illinois Youth Survey.

Participation Rates

*Source: Lighthouse Institute

* Hanson, T.L. and Austin, G. (2003). Student Health Risks, Resilience, and Academic Performance in California: Year 2 Report, Longitudinal Analyses. Los Alamitos, CA: WestEd.


Schools’ Role: Why is the survey conducted through schools?Youth substance use is a community and school problem that requires the cooperative effort of both local and state level experts to address. The Illinois State Board of Education has always supported DASA/DHS’s survey efforts. If the survey were to be administered using an alternate approach such as a phone survey, the following disadvantages would occur:

The results would not be as valid because no other approach offers the anonymity and degree of participation as a classroom survey.

DHS would have to pay more money for less valid results, due to the time and expense involved in other kinds of surveys.

Schools would not have the benefit of individual results for their schools and district.

Lighthouse Institute and DHS have decided to conduct this survey with all schools interested in participating. The potential availability of local statistics with all costs covered by the state has been an incentive for schools to participate. Participation rates have increased since the inception of the survey in 1990.

IYS ParticipationNumber of Schools by Survey Year

91 89 75 82

280

394 416

555

884

0

100

200

300

400

500

600

700

800

900

1000

1993 1995 1997 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008

Num

ber o

f Sch

ools

Advantages of Using the IYS


There are other surveys that collect data regarding youth behavior within the state of Illinois. These surveys also attempt to improve prevention programming by providing information about students so schools can provide more precisely targeted and effective solutions.

So how is the IYS different and why should schools use the IYS instead of other surveys to collect data?

It costs schools nothing: Sponsorship is provided from the Illinois Dept. of Human Services for use

in grades 6, 8, 10 and 12. Other surveys can cost upward to $1.65 per student, or require additional

cost for school-specific data analysis.

Participation is confidential:

Individual Confidentiality is a core principle of the Illinois Youth Survey. The identity of the youth who participate is not collected in any form. Full instructions accompany the survey to help educators create an environment that protects privacy and promotes truthful responses.

School Confidentiality of survey results is also protected. While aggregated results are used to create a statewide profile of youth substance abuse and trends, the results for individual schools are shared only with representative administrators at the school.

Surveys are administered every two years:

Surveying is consistently administered at the 6th, 8th, 10th and 12th grade levels.

It is available to schools in even-numbered years, so changes over time can be monitored and your prevention efforts can be adjusted accordingly so they can be most effective.

Sound Measurement:

It is based on measured substance use rates. It matches community risk profiles with proven ways to decrease risks. It measures progress made in strengthening protective factors, decreasing

risk factors and decreasing substance abuse. It addresses most National Outcome Measures.

Advantages of Using the IYS (continued)


Types of Questions:

Questions are not limited to the use of gateway drugs. Problem behaviors such as bullying, other violence and gambling are also surveyed.

Questions also measure key risk factors and protective factors, such as access to drugs, peer drug attitudes and family rules.

Schools have the option of adding up to 15 local user-defined questions to their surveys, whether participating by paper or online. The results of these questions are also included in their report.

Survey Administration:

It can be administered in 45 minutes or less every 2 years. It's available in an online or print format. The print format is available in Spanish, and arrangements can be made

for students participating online that need to survey in Spanish.

Results Analysis:

One of the only surveys to provide schools with their individual detailed report at no cost.

Other reports available at no cost include:

o Follow-up analysis report, district reports, city reports, county reports, regional reports, state reports and population subgroup reports.

o Reports available in print or electronic versions (PDF files).

Advantages of Using the IYS (continued)


The IYS Addresses the Whole StudentIf students are distracted from learning by any of a wide variety of developmental or special concerns faced in their lives, they and their schools may be unable to reach their academic goals. Some problems are thankfully rare, but others such as alcohol and other drug use can be widespread in a community, even among middle school students. The Illinois Youth Survey is designed to get information needed to solve community-wide problems. Youth substance use is especially well covered, but over the years the survey has increasingly gained content to address a wide variety of problems. They may not all be problems that are apparent in the classroom, but they all can affect classroom learning and/or the capacity of students to stay alive and well enough to complete their school career and thrive as adults.


Job Aid: Overview of Common Youth Surveys (For full version of this sheet please refer to the Appendix Section)


Job Aid: Facts about the Illinois Youth Survey

(Job Aids can be used as pull-out reference sheets in your workspace)

Why Participate?• Covers a number of problem behaviors, including bullying and other violence, the use of gateway (alcohol, tobacco, marijuana, inhalants) and other drugs, and other factors such as nutrition, fitness,

gambling and depression• Measures the key risk and protective factors that strongly contribute to community-wide substance use rates• Provides figures required for local and state prevention funding• Helps plan and evaluate effective prevention efforts• Costs the school nothing to participate and obtain their individual school results because it’s completely funded by the Illinois Department of Human Services• Puts local results in context through comparisons with county, regional and statewide results• Compares your results across time if you participate every 2 years• Provides schools a follow-up report which analyzes their local key risk and protective factors in comparison with state figures• Gives schools the option of adding up to 15 individualized questions to get data on local issues, whether participating by paper/pencil or online• Welcomes all public and private schools in Illinois to participate at the 6th, 8th, 10th and 12th grade levels• Takes approximately 1 class period (about 45 minutes) to administer• Is available in English and Spanish in the paper/pencil format• Can be administered online (English only)• Releases individual school results only to school administration• Provides everything you need including survey booklets, pencils, detailed instructions and even shipping costs• Can be administered on any date(s) of your choice in February, March or April of even-numbered years. Survey materials are shipped 30 days prior to the survey date you choose.

Additional information, including previous statewide and county results, is available on the Web site at: illinoisyouthsurvey.org

Sources: Lighthouse Institute


Module Two:Technical Aspects of

the IYS

Contents


Survey Tools and Process............................................................................PG-27

Activity: Designing Additional Questions.......................................................PG-32

Survey Content and Questions.....................................................................PG-34

Job Aid: Content Areas of the IYS ................................................................PG-35

Validity...........................................................................................................PG-37

Confidentiality ...............................................................................................PG-40 Student and Parental Consent......................................................................PG-41

School Registration Process.........................................................................PG-45

Job Aid: Registration Process .....................................................................PG- 47

Quality Implementation of the Survey...........................................................PG-50

Activity: IYS Trivia.........................................................................................PG-54


Survey Tools and Process

There are three different IYS forms: 6th grade, 8th grade and one for high school (10th and 12th grades). Each survey adds additional questions appropriate to the developmental level of each grade. The major variation in the survey form can be found in the 6th grade version as it is shorter and has content variations specifically designed to be age appropriate. The sections on each survey are: Demographics, Community, Drug Use, Physical and Other Injury, Individual/Peer, Nutrition/Fitness, School and Family.

Additional Surveying Options:Some schools choose to survey their entire student body at an additional price. If surveying by paper/pencil, there is a one dollar fee charged for every student taking the survey that does not fall within the state-funded grade levels (6, 8, 10, and 12), and for students within the state-funded grade levels but over the percentage of students per grade level that the state designates.

Survey Participation Formula:At the 6th and 8th grade levels, all students participate regardless of the schools’ grade level enrollment numbers. In 10th and 12th grades, if the grade level enrollment is 450 or less, all students in that grade level participate. If the grade level enrollment is over 450 students, then a sample of half of the students participate. If surveying a sample at the 10th and/or 12th grade levels, results accurately represent the whole grade level as long as the set of classes chosen by the school to participate is representative of the grade level.

School Eligibility:All public and private schools in Illinois are eligible to participate in the IYS as long as:

1. They have a year-round student population that is capable of comprehending and responding to the question contents (for example, Dept. of Corrections schools are not eligible).

2. The school has at least one of the four eligible grade levels, with at least 20 students in one or more of the eligible grade levels

At the beginning of each survey cycle, we acquire the most recent school listing from ISBE, and remove schools that do not meet eligibility requirements. Because of the continually changing nature of a school’s student population, occasional registrations from schools that do not meet eligibility requirements are received, mostly in regard to grade level size.

Survey Tools and Process (continued)


Survey Administration:The survey is administered every two years in even-numbered years. The school can choose one or more dates in February, March or April to administer the survey. If the school chooses multiple survey dates, Lighthouse Institute recommends that the dates are as close together as possible to reduce or eliminate chances of cross-talk between students that have already taken the survey and students that have not taken the survey. If the school finds that additional survey materials are needed, they should contact the IYS office to obtain additional surveys. Schools should not photocopy survey forms, since copied forms cannot be tabulated. Surveys received from any grade levels other than 6th, 8th, 10th, and 12th.will not be processed unless the school has made prior arrangements with the IYS office to survey additional grade levels. Schools should make sure that the appropriate survey is being used for each grade level.

The survey takes approximately 45 minutes, or one class period, to complete for most students. Lighthouse Institute asks classroom teachers administering the survey to make sure that students have a quiet activity to do if they finish the survey before their classmates. If there are students who don’t complete the survey by the end of the class period, teachers have the choice of either giving those students a little more time to finish or asking the students to place their unfinished surveys in the classroom survey return envelope.



Online Administration of the Illinois Youth Survey

How do students take the survey online? Schools can choose the online option if they have enough computers with internet access to accommodate students who will be surveyed, and if there is enough school staff willing to help coordinate and schedule time for every participating student to have a turn at a computer and act as proctors during survey administration. Students do

not need to take the survey all at the same time. Each student would need approximately 45 minutes at the computer, and all participating students would have to have a turn during the survey dates you choose.

The online English versions of the IYS have the same questions as the paper English versions for grades 6, 8, 10 and 12. Arrangements can be made for schools participating online that need Spanish versions of the survey. These schools should contact the IYS office for more information.

The online survey is administered using the “SmartTrack™” system and like the paper survey, is available free of charge to schools that register to participate and meet the eligibility requirements. The online survey is subject to the same guidelines as the paper survey regarding the designated survey period (February through April of 2008), eligible grade levels (6, 8, 10, and/or 12), and number of students to be surveyed at each grade level. Most schools will survey all students in a participating grade level, but large high schools will survey half of the student enrollment number at each grade level (10th and 12th) that exceeds 450 students.

What kind of equipment do schools need?Must have: An Internet connection, either through a LAN (T1, etc.) or with an individual modem (56kbs), connected to an Internet Service Provider (ISP).

For PC users: A PC configured to run Windows 95 or greater is needed, with either Microsoft Internet Explorer™ version 5.2 or greater (available free from Microsoft), or Netscape version 6.0 or greater. The memory requirements are the same as with most Windows applications: 16MB RAM will work; 32-64 MB is excellent if a few tasks are running; and 72-144 MB is best for a user who multitasks heavily.

For Macintosh users: A Macintosh configured to run Mac OS 9 or greater is needed, with either Microsoft Internet Explorer version 5.01 or greater (available free from Microsoft) or Netscape version 6.0 or greater. Note: Results can only be viewed on a PC.



How do schools register for online administration?When registering to participate in the 2010 IYS on the Web site at www.illinoisyouthsurvey.org/register/, there is a question asking schools to choose either the paper or online survey.

What happens after your school is registered and confirmed for online participation? The school selects participating students, if necessary, at the 10th and 12th

grade levels using a random selection process and schedules participating students to complete the survey.

The staff member designated as “proctor” by the school oversees participation, including having computers available when needed, ensuring students arrive and begin at designated times and keeping track of which students have already participated. Keeping track of which students have completed the survey is critical to ensure that each student only surveys once, and that all identified students have participated in each grade level for the results to be valid. Each school participating online will receive a Proctor’s Users Guide along with a unique Proctor ID code and password to be used to set up all computers to survey.

When all participating students have completed the survey, your school’s results become immediately available to the principal of that school (or other contact person designated by the Principal) via the SmartTrack™ Web site by entering your secure Administrator ID and password. Upon completion of surveying at the school, the contact person should notify the IYS office in order to receive their unique Administrator ID and password used to access their results. This information will be sent by e-mail, along with an Administrator’s Users Guide, which explains the many different reports available. A series of Web-based trainings will be conducted by the IYS office to help schools maximize their online experience. Schools that are surveying online for the first time as well as those who would like a refresher are welcome to participate. Trainings will include survey set-up, administration, report creation and other online topics. Go to the IYS Web site’s blog for more information and to sign-up.



Developing Additional QuestionsSchools that participate in the Illinois Youth Survey have the option of adding up to 15 additional questions. We will discuss ideas for developing questions and how they would be included in the survey.

There’s a large variety of information that local schools or prevention groups may want in addition to that currently included in the survey. Some questions may pertain to substances and others may pertain to behaviors such as gambling or sex, or attitudes about those behaviors. Still others may pertain to youth involvement in particular school/community-based prevention activities.

Additional questions are composed by the local school or an agency partnering with the school, according to local information needs. Each school can have up to 15 additional questions, with each question having up to eight possible answer choices (a – h). The IYS office is able to review questions on request for suggestions of wording, if contacted at least several weeks ahead of survey administration. Important goals for wording include clarity and precision of meaning.

Including Questions in Survey AdministrationIn order to match the response spaces available at the end of either the paper or online survey, questions should be numbered sequentially starting with “1”, and the answer choices for each question should be labeled sequentially starting with “a”. A question may have as few as two choices or up to eight.

Once a school has finalized its list of additional questions, the next step is to make enough copies of the list to give to all participating students a copy along with the survey booklets when the IYS is administered. Students will read the questions from their question sheet and answer them in the corresponding space of the grid on the last page of their survey booklet.

When schools receive their initial report, the results for the additional questions will be given according to question number and answer letter. Schools should therefore keep copies of the questions so that they can be matched with the results by question number and answer letter. If your school develops different additional questions lists for specific grade levels, be sure to keep copies of the lists used for each grade level. After initial results are received, schools can request additional analysis. For example, if a school asks about participation in specific prevention activities, it can ask to have the substance use results divided into the students who participated in those activities and other students who participated very little or not at all.


Survey Content and Questions

To make Illinois data comparable to other similar surveys, most of the questions are drawn from larger-scale surveys, though there have been some questions that have been developed to meet specific data needs in Illinois. In addition to substance use and demographic questions, the survey covers some risk and protective factors for youth drug use. These are specific kinds of information about a youth’s community, peers, school and family that are statistically associated with degree of drug use among groups of youth. Questions about violence

and a few other "problem behaviors" are also included. The number of questions was cut in 2004, and a particularly abbreviated 6th grade form was created.

The current version of the IYS covers a number of problem behaviors, including bullying, other violence, and the use of gateway (alcohol, tobacco, marijuana, inhalants) and other drugs. It also measures key risk and protective factors that strongly contribute to community-wide substance use rates. By collecting data from several varied content areas, the IYS is able to offer schools a follow-up report analyzing their local key risk and protective factors. When sharing this information with concerned community groups, schools can make an important contribution to community prevention efforts.

Additionally, in order to stay current with trends, survey content is reviewed every survey period, and questions are added, deleted or adjusted accordingly. For example, the 2010 surveys include new questions for schools concerned with social/emotional learning. There are 59 questions in the 6th grade survey, 74 questions in the 8th grade survey and 89 questions in the high school version of the survey. Questions are designed to address these specific grade levels.


Job Aid: Content Areas of the IYS


(Job Aids can be used as pull-out reference sheets in your workspace)

DemographicsAge, grade, gender, race, zip code, free/reduced lunch

CommunityHow easily youth can get gateway drugsPerception of community’s attitude toward youth substance useParticipation in community youth activities

Drug UseGateway use ratesMisuse of prescription drugs*Other drug use (cocaine, meth, etc.)*Places youth get alcohol and cigarettes*Effect of anti-drug commercials

Physical and Other InjuryPerception of harm caused by alcohol, cigarettes and marijuanaRiding with a drunk or drugged driverPhysical violence

Individual/PeerBullyingLatchkey situationsPeer substance use normsGambling*Depression*

Nutrition/FitnessHeight and weightFruit, vegetable and milk consumptionPhysical activity

SchoolGradesSchool attendanceSense of belonging, safety

FamilyParents’ attitudes toward youth substance useFamily rules

*Not included in 6th grade survey Validity


The IYS is designed to produce valid results when conducted according to the survey directions. This type of survey has been researched to ensure adequate validity. There are safeguards in the analysis of the survey that tend to identify any over-reporting of use. Under-reporting has not been a major problem so long as:

Youth are assured that the survey is anonymous and their responses cannot be tracked back to them.

Adults conducting the survey present it seriously and conduct the administration in a manner conducive to student cooperation, such as seating youth apart from each other so that they cannot see each other’s responses. These details are addressed in the instructions that are sent to participating schools.

Each time this survey and similar ones in other states are conducted, the results show similar patterns (e.g., high prevalence of alcohol as the drug of choice for youth), similar levels of use for each drug (with variation according to locale and year given), and drug use patterns consistent with other indicators such as the number of youth in treatment and drugs of choice for those youth. Some youth enjoy completing the survey, but even those who don’t will usually be truthful if the survey is administered as suggested. Under the recommended conditions, this kind of survey is remarkably valid.

When a similar national youth survey, called “Monitoring the Future,” was studied for consistency, the results indicated that confidence intervals for lifetime prevalence for Seniors averages less than +/- 1.5% across a variety of drug classes. That is, if we took a large number of samples of this size from the universe of all schools containing 12th graders in the coterminous United States, 95 times out of 100 the sample would yield a result that would be less than 1.5 percentage points divergent from the result we would get from a comparable massive survey of all seniors in all schools. This is a high level of sampling accuracy, and it should permit detection of fairly small changes from one year to the next. Confidence intervals for other prevalence periods (past 12 months, past 30 days and current daily use) are generally smaller than those for lifetime use.


Source: Lighthouse Institute

Validity (continued)


Threats to ValidityIn considering whether to participate in the Illinois Youth Survey, schools sometimes wonder whether such surveys produce accurate, valid results. Although no measurement method is perfect, youth surveys such as the IYS have been shown to be very valid. The threats to validity, in approximate order of importance, are sampling error, non-standard administration, missing data, survey construction, and untruthful responses.

1. Sampling Error - This is not a problem for schools that survey 100% of the target grade levels, but the larger schools that survey a sample and the state report are both vulnerable to this kind of error. There are various steps taken to get the sample to be as representative as possible of youth in the state. Guidance is provided to large schools about sampling, and that advice is followed to greater or lesser extents in different schools.

2. Non-Standard Administration - Perhaps one of the most important things a school can do to ensure validity is to follow the survey administration instructions. Most importantly, the instructions stress ways to make students comfortable with the fact that the survey IS ANONYMOUS and will not be traced back to them. Anonymity is the key to maximizing truthful reporting. A second important aspect of survey administration is acknowledgement from school staff administering the survey that the survey is an important source of information about problems facing young people today. If staff view the survey as unimportant, and communicate that attitude (intentionally or not), youth will also tend to devalue the survey and their participation in it.

3. Missing Data - Some threat to validity depends on who DOESN'T participate. For example, if the survey is given on a day with a high absentee rate, validity can be compromised. Similarly, surveying on a day during which there are many activities that keep specific groups of students from participating in the survey can lower validity. This kind of problem doesn’t affect validity as it applies to the students who take the survey, but affects the accuracy of generalizing to a whole grade level. By keeping track of the percent of eligible students who actually participate, a school can get some indication of whether it avoided this kind of problem.

4. Survey Construction - This is perhaps the traditional view of validity - questions that don't ask what you think they ask. In order to prevent this there is a continuous quality check and revision as needed process. The questions about past month use of specific substances are pretty hard to misinterpret, but as one gets to larger classifications of substances, such as "other illegal drugs", it gets tricky. Similarly, to avoid validity issues with the risk and

Validity (continued)Promoting the Illinois Youth Survey to Schools Participant Guide © 2009, Prevention First PG 26

protective factors, the survey has switched from factor “scales” used on some similar surveys to specific risk and protective factor questions, which are narrower and more precise.

5. Untruthful Responses – There are two different screenings for over-reporting, one being a "fake" drug and the other simply being a question at the end of the survey asking how truthful the student was. Either can result in a survey being labeled "invalid" and stricken from group results. The number stricken is pretty low (usually less than 5%). Based on analyses done in the past, it's probably likely that the survey is eliminating some relatively valid responses in order to get most or all of the invalid over-reporting out. In terms of under-reporting, there are four protections against that kind of invalidity. The first and most important is the assurance of anonymity, already discussed above as a key point of survey administration. A second is that studies of similar surveys that check substance use responses against actual drug tests have showed substantial validity. A third is that the patterns of use revealed by the survey are consistent with other measures such as differential treatment rates for different substances. The final protection is that, to the extent that a community wishes to measure relative change in rates, keeping the questions identical from year to year will eliminate the opportunity for variation due to under-reporting, in that if the measure does slightly under-report, it will do so consistently with each administration.

Source: Lighthouse Institute, Alan MarkwoodConfidentiality


School ConfidentialityParticipation at all levels is confidential; while results as a whole are used to create regional and statewide profiles, the results for individual schools are classified and shared only with the school representative. The survey data of each participating school is protected. Lighthouse Institute will list the schools that have participated in the survey but will never release school specific data without the school’s consent.

In small schools with less than approximately 20 students per grade, school reports may be aggregated with neighboring schools to maintain the anonymity of the schools who are participating. Similarly, for data to be released about a particular county or region, there must be another school or at least two sources of data for data to be released countywide or region wide.

Individual Confidentiality Individual confidentiality is a core principle of the Illinois Youth Survey. The identity of the youth who participate is not collected or revealed. Full instructions accompany the survey to help educators create an environment that protects privacy and promotes truthful responses. In the instructions facilitators are reminded to tell their students not to write their name on the survey packet or associate themselves somehow with the survey. Additionally, the survey forms request that the student not write their name on the form, and assures the student that no one at the school will see their answers.

Student and Parental Consent


Student PermissionSurvey administration instructions make clear that participation is entirely anonymous and voluntary: students may decline to participate or may leave any items blank if they do participate.

Parental PermissionMany educators are aware that parents need to be

notified about their child’s potential participation in any survey, but generally are unsure whether active permission is required. Using active permission means no child will be surveyed unless their parent or guardian returns a signed statement consenting to the child’s participation.

Active and Passive ConsentIt is recommended that schools send parents notification about the survey and a "passive" permission form. Both "passive" and "active" permission involve fully alerting parents to the nature of a survey and giving them the option whether their child participates. The difference is that with "passive" permission a parent sends in a slip only if they want to exclude their child, while with "active" permission a parent would send in a slip to indicate whether or not to include their child. Regardless of their opinion about the survey, many parents simply fail to respond to any communication about a survey. The use of an active permission form requires more effort on the part of schools to follow-up on getting permission slips back, and still may not give as valid a result. Because the IYS is funded by the Department of Human Services and not the Department of Education, federal law does not require active permission for participation in the IYS. Rather, schools need only to notify parents of the survey, have access to the survey form, and provide the opportunity to opt their child out of participation in the survey.

Lighthouse Institute provides a sample parent letter to all participating schools that can be tailored to each school and sent out to parents. In addition, Lighthouse can give schools additional consultation regarding parent contact and permission.

Student and Parental Consent (continued)


Active Consent and ValiditySome studies have found that seeking active parental consent can compromise the response rate for studies in schools. Some research indicates that active consent procedures introduce some degree of selection bias into studies of adolescents' substance use and may compromise the external validity of prevalence estimates produced, especially among younger students. Therefore, Lighthouse Institute recommends the use of passive consent as the best way to reduce this selection bias that may occur.



What if my district requires use of active consent?

Local school districts may choose to use active consent for all surveys regardless of the funding source, particularly if they use Dept. of Education funds to pay for additional surveying beyond the grade level samples covered by the Dept. of Human Services. If active consent is sought, it is recommend that the following steps be taken to increase participation:

1. Develop a consent form that requires parents to sign and expressly indicate whether they consent to their child’s participation in the survey, or do NOT consent to their child’s participation in the survey. As opposed to a form requesting a response only if a parent consents to participation, this "no consent" option allows schools to focus follow-up efforts on parents who are undecided about participation.

2. If possible, include the survey parent letter and consent form with registration materials at the beginning of the school year, to gather maximum response.

3. Assign responsibility for follow-up with parents who don’t return the form. This can be done by classroom teachers or other staff.

4. Ensure that only those youth whose parents have given affirmative consent are included in the survey, and that other students have an alternative activity (such as silent reading).

5. Maintain the file of consent forms for 12 months.

Ideally, participation is needed by 90-95% of the students eligible to participate. If less than 80% will participate (for example, if only 85% give consent and absence rates are tending to be near or above 5%), it is recommended to not conduct the survey as the data can be biased.



Sample Parent Notification/Consent Letter, Passive FormBelow is a sample parent notification letter for the Illinois Youth Survey. It is recommended to send a letter two weeks in advance of the survey to give teachers of participating classes a list of those youth (if any) who should be excluded from the survey at parents’ request. Please note that students who are excluded or who choose not to participate should be given an alternate assignment, such as reading, during the survey period. Before mailing the letter, please be sure that school office personnel have a blank survey form available to show parents who request to see it.

Dear Parent,

One of your ____ grade child’s classes has been randomly chosen to participate in a statewide student survey. The survey is being offered to our school at no cost through the Illinois Dept. of Human Services. The purpose of the survey is to gather information needed to plan important prevention and intervention programs to reduce youth drug use and associated risk behaviors.

The survey is entirely anonymous. Students will not put their names or any other identifying information on the survey booklet. Our school will receive a report of overall results, but we and the sponsoring agencies will not know which students gave which responses. All results from the survey will be presented in a group summary format only, like many opinion polls.

The survey is voluntary, so your child will participate only if you and your child agree to do so. Please use the form below if you would like to exclude your child from participation. There is no penalty for you or your child for not participating in the survey. The survey will take one class period. Students who choose not to participate will be assigned an alternate activity.

A blank copy of the survey is available for your review at the school office. If you have any questions about the survey, call me [or other school contact person] at [insert phone number].

We are hoping that most or all students in the class will participate in order to give the most valid results, but the decision regarding your child’s participation is up to you and your child. If you don’t want your child to participate, complete the form below and return it to the school office by [insert date]. The survey will be conducted a few days later.

“ To solve youth problems such as substance abuse, we (parents, schools, churches,agencies, and communities) must work together. We hope you appreciate our

school’s sincere attempt to cooperate with important prevention efforts. ”

Please exclude my child, ___________________________, from the Illinois Youth Survey beinggiven at [insert name of school].________________________ _____________________________________ Date Parent’s Signature

School Registration Process


Registration Timeline The first invitational (recruitment) e-mail is sent to all eligible schools early in the second semester of the non-survey year. Recruitment e-mails are then sent periodically to unregistered schools until a few weeks prior to the end of the survey period (February, March and April of even-numbered years). Schools can register to participate at any time by visiting the IYS Web site at www.illinoisyouthsurvey.org/register and clicking the

“Register for 2010 Using Zoomerang” link.

Late registrations will be accepted as long as there is enough time to send the school their survey materials and for the school to complete surveying before the end of April.

Comprehensive Grant Providers and the Registration Process

Helping schools complete the survey registration on the IYS Web site is one of the most important ways that CGPs can assist with the survey. The survey registration has been streamlined to help schools complete it in only a few minutes. Schools that complete the registration will receive a confirmation e-mail from the IYS office within a few days to let them know we received their registration. In fall of the survey year, another confirmation e-mail is sent to all registered schools along with their registration information, and schools can make any changes needed at that time.


Job Aid: Registration Process(Job Aids can be used as pull out reference sheets in your workspace.)

Timeline for Registration

Date: Process:

Early in the second semester

of non-survey years

First e-mail invitation sent to schools to register for the IYS for the following school year

Ongoing through summer, fall, and

spring

Periodic recruitment e-mails are sent to unregistered eligible schools

End of October of survey years

Registration is strongly encouraged to be completed by this time (however, late registrations are accepted)

1 Month Prior to Survey Date

Survey materials are shipped to schools. Schools should send notification/permission forms to parents and keep a list of students that are opted-out by their parents or legal guardians.

February-April Students take the survey

School Registration Process (continued)

Illinois Youth Survey Online Zoomerang RegistrationSpring 2010 Administration

(http://www.zoomerang.com/Survey/survey-intro.zgi?p=WEB228JTJ98CKW)

Quality Implementation of the Survey


Teacher Classroom Instructions for Administering

In order to reduce survey error, shipments of survey materials come with precise instructions for classroom teachers (or proctors if surveying online) to follow. Following these instructions will assist the classroom teacher or proctor to administer the survey and provide students with assistance on completing the survey that will not interfere with data collection procedures.

The teachers’ approach to administering the survey plays a large part in determining whether students give sincere and

valid responses to the survey questions. The survey should be administered to students in an environment that allows them to think seriously about each question and respond in an honest manner. Schools can greatly enhance students’ perceptions of privacy and comfort by attempting to make students feel comfortable and by following the measures below:

1. Ensure that teachers have needed materials. Teachers will need: A list of students (if any) to be excluded from survey participation by

request of their parents Sharpened No. 2 pencils (with erasers) for any students who lack them. A copy of these instructions The appropriate survey booklet for each participating student (see #2

below) A survey return envelope, which has the “Classroom Participation

Information Form” printed on one side, to be completed by the teacherThis is very important in assuring accurate results for each school.

2. Eligible grade levels: The grade levels that are eligible to be included in this survey are grades 6, 8, 10, and 12. If the teacher’s classroom includes some students that are in grade levels that are not eligible (grades 7, 9, or 11), it is preferable that these students don’t participate in the survey (see # 3 below). Only the results from students in eligible grade levels will be tabulated and included in your school report. Grade level forms: 6th grade students should have pink forms labeled “Illinois Youth Survey,

2010 6th Grade Form" 8th grade students should have light orange forms labeled “Illinois Youth

Survey, 2010 8th Grade Form" 10th and 12th grade students should have light red forms labeled “Illinois

Youth Survey, 2010 High School Form” Spanish-speaking (ESL) 6th grade students should have a light orange

form labeled “Encuesta Juvenil de Illinois para 6th Grado”Quality of Implementation of the Survey (continued)


Spanish-speaking (ESL) 8th grade students should have a light pink form labeled “Encuesta Juvenil de Illinois para 8th Grado”

Spanish-speaking (ESL) 10th and 12th grade students should have a blue form labeled “Encuesta Juvenil de Illinois 2006 para Bachillerato”

3. Teachers should have an alternate activity identified for any non-participating students. Students may be non-participating for a few different reasons: their parents returned permission slip requesting that their child be excluded; the student decided to not participate (the survey is voluntary); or the student is in a grade level other than 6, 8, 10, or 12. The alternate activity should be something that students can perform quietly at their desk while the other students are taking the survey. It is important that teachers select a neutral alternate activity so students aren’t discouraged from participating in the youth survey. Some possible alternate activities include reading or working quietly at their desk.

4. Seating should be arranged so that others cannot see a student’s answers to the survey questions. If desired, students may use an extra sheet of paper to cover their responses as they complete the survey.

5. The student survey may last an entire class period. Teachers should reserve the whole class period on the selected survey date so that students have time to finish the survey without feeling rushed.

During Class

1. Since completing the survey is voluntary, students may personally decide to not participate even if their parent(s) did not sign a form excluding them from participation. These students should be allowed to do the alternate activity.

2. If the school has added local questions to the survey; teachers should have a separate copy of those questions numbered from 1 to 15 (or less). Those should be distributed at the same time as the survey forms. Students should be shown the place on the back of the survey form where those questions can be answered. Emphasize that the additional questions are to be answered on the back of the survey form, and not on the sheet with the local questions.

3. Once the surveys are distributed, teachers should read aloud the text above the instructions on the first page. There should be a stress on the anonymity of the survey, so students are assured that their responses cannot, and will not, be connected individually with them.

4. Students should completely darken the circles on the survey. Any mistakes should be erased carefully and completely.

Quality of Implementation of the Survey (continued)Promoting the Illinois Youth Survey to Schools Participant Guide © 2009, Prevention First PG 36

5. If students need assistance in reading survey items, teachers should be instructed to read the items in a very even, non-suggestive tone to avoid influencing the students’ responses. This would apply to any special education students who can understand the meaning of the questions, but cannot read well.

6. Answer student questions about survey items as suggested below:

A student doesn’t understand the question or a particular word: “If you are not sure what that means, just answer to the best of your ability.”

A student is not sure if they know the right answer: “I want to stress that there are no right or wrong answers. Just answer the best that you can.”

A student cannot find a response option that fits exactly: If you can’t find an answer that fits exactly, choose the one that comes closest.”

A student says the question doesn’t apply: If the question does not apply to you, you can just leave it blank.”

7. Teachers should remain at the front of the classroom while students are completing the survey. It is important that the students feel assured that no one will see their answers to survey questions. Students should not be allowed to wander around the room.

8. It is important that students use #2 pencils because the surveys will be scanned to tabulate the data. Students should not be allowed to use markers, pens, or colored pencils.

9. Students should work quietly at their desk when they are finished with the survey.

10.While students are completing the survey, teachers should fill out the Classroom Participation Form on the front of your survey return envelope.

a. This information is very important to ensure the validity of the data, and to make sure that the completed surveys from your classroom are included in your school report.

b. If the Classroom Participation Form is not completed, the Lighthouse Institute cannot guarantee the accuracy of the schools report.Quality of Implementation of the Survey (continued)


11.The survey return envelope is large enough to allow surveys to be placed inside without bending or folding. Teachers should monitor this process to ensure that students do not take any surveys out of the envelope as it goes around the room. Only completed surveys should be put in the envelope. Instruct the last person in class to seal the envelope before returning it to you, or seal the envelope yourself if it is returned unsealed.

12.Teachers should return the sealed envelope containing the completed surveys to the designated school survey coordinator, along with any unused surveys.


Contents

Module Overview....................................................................................PG-56

Types of Survey Reports........................................................................PG-57

Activity: What Can Be Learned? - Initial Report Charts..........................PG-65

Types of Survey Reports (continued).....................................................PG-67

Activity: What Can Be Learned? - Section 1 of the Follow-Up Report....PG-71

Activity: What Can Be Learned? - Section 2 of the Follow-Up Report....PG-73

Using the Data........................................................................................PG-75

Activity: Talking About the Data.............................................................PG-77

Activity: IYS Trivia..................................................................................PG-79


Module Three: Using the Results of

the IYS Reports

Types of Survey Reports

Initial Report:Schools that administered the paper and pencil version of the survey will typically receive their initial school results (frequency report and grade level charts) 4-6 weeks after surveying is completed. Schools that conduct the survey online can access their results immediately, if they know how to use the Smart Track system. Schools using the online version don’t get grade level charts, but can request those charts from Lighthouse Institute the school year following survey administration.

Specialized Report:Schools may also request specialized reports after all initial reports have been processed. Specialized reports include information of particular interest to each school including analysis of gender, race, zip code, city and economic indicators.

Follow-Up Report:Between the completion of the school report and the statewide report, interested schools may request a follow-up local report that focuses on key prevention issues. The report includes two sections for all schools, and an additional third section for high schools. The first section gives comparisons for use rates of the main substances. The second section gives information about key risk and protective factors. The third section, for high schools, gives the percentage of youth who are neither regularly using a substance nor reporting signs of abuse or dependence.

County Report:Approximately 2-4 months after all surveys are completed, Lighthouse Institute can issue county frequency reports with the same format as the Initial School Reports. County reports are available only when two or more districts from a county participate in the IYS at any particular grade level. Unless all schools in a county participate, the results from participating schools may not accurately reflect results that would be obtained if all schools participated.

Statewide Report:Lighthouse Institute analyzes statewide results and in conjunction with the Department of Human Services, develops a report about statewide results. This report is not available until the calendar year between survey years (for example, 2008 state survey report in 2009).

Types of Survey Reports (continued)


Initial Report: Frequency Report

Illinois Youth Survey 2008MCLEAN COUNTY – Page 1

Survey Validity

Valid surveys are those that have 40% or more of the questions answered, report no derbisol use, indicate that the respondent was honest at least some of the time, and report a grade in school that matches an intended target grade.

Age

Gender

Race / Ethnicity



Initial Report: Frequency Report (continued)


In the past 2 weeks, how many times have you had five or more alcoholic drinks in a row?

Illicit drugs: number of occasions of past month use

Illicit drugs: number of occasions of past year use





During the past year, how often did you get ALCOHOL from the following sources?:

(cont.) Types of Survey Reports




How much do you think people risk harming themselves (physically or in other ways) if they:

Types of Survey ReportsPromoting the Illinois Youth Survey to Schools Participant Guide © 2009, Prevention First PG 44



How many times in the past year (12 months) have you:

During the past 12 months, has another student at school:



Initial Report: ChartsIn addition to frequency reports with results from every item, the initial report for schools that use the paper survey includes some charts (bar graphs) that summarize the percent of youth in each grade reporting use of each substance and some other problem behaviors. A standard two-page chart section is included for each participating grade. To see an example, look at the following report for the 8th grade at “Somewhere Junior High School”.



Once all the surveying is complete in the state, Lighthouse Institute can begin work on school follow-up reports that give some context for interpreting substance use prevalence (Section One of the report) as well as risk and protective factor results (Section Two).

Follow-up Report Section One Description Section One of each follow-up report has a one-page bar graph for each grade level. The graph focuses on a few of the most pertinent substance use questions. The graph covers binge drinking in the past two weeks and past month use of alcohol, cigarettes, marijuana, or inhalants.



Rationale for Section One Design The four covered substances, particularly alcohol, are very prevalent among youth. They also can function as “gateway” substances, in that other substances are rarely used by youth who haven’t been using one or more of the gateway substances first. “Gateway” doesn’t necessarily mean use of one substance causes use of another, or that most who use one substance go on to use another. It does mean that increases in other drug use are unlikely unless preceded by higher rates of use of tobacco, alcohol, marijuana, or inhalants.

Because the meaning of “high rates of use” is relative, Section One gives the regional rates, for comparative purposes. This is not to imply that any use is acceptable, but to give an additional measure of degree of the problem. A region consists of schools in one of four categories:

Chicago Public Schools Other metro-Chicago schools (in Cook and

surrounding counties) Rural schools Schools that are in an urban county (as defined by

the U.S. Census Bureau) other than the metro-Chicago area

The comparison is based on use in the past thirty days because this is considered a good measure of “current use”, in contrast to young people who tried a drug once previously and then did not use again. For schools that participated during a previous year in statewide IYS surveying, the graph includes another column for each drug, with the most recently surveyed previous rate for that school.

Follow-up Report Section Two Description Section Two reviews levels of “risk factors” that make substance use and abuse more likely when present, and “protective factors” that make those problems less likely. For each grade level there is a one-page graph showing ratings of each factor. The ratings are based on comparison with all other participating schools in the state. A rating of “one” means a school’s level of that factor is much better than average, with “better” meaning a lower amount of a risk factor or a higher amount of a protective factor. A rating of “five” means a school’s level of that factor is much worse than average. “Two,” “three,” and “four” are intermediate, with “three” being average. The text in Section Two describes each factor and why it is important.


Rationale for Section Two Design Researchers have identified literally dozens of risk and protective factors for substance use and abuse. In order to focus this section, a limited number of factors (eight or nine, depending on grade level) were chosen. The list of potential factors was shortened by the following considerations:

Many factors identified by research operate mainly at the level of individual youths, but factors included in this survey tend to be characteristics that are community-wide.

Even a factor that applies at a community-wide level may not have a strong influence on substance use in a community, compared to others.

Finally, for practical purposes a school or community wants most of all to know about risk or protective factors that can be improved.

The reported risk and protective factors are therefore not an all-inclusive set, but are ones that tend to have a substantial impact on use. Factors with worse scores are important to address as part of school and community prevention strategy. Factors with better scores can suggest potential assets to use as part of a prevention strategy. Schools that survey two grades (typically 6th and 8th or 10th and 12th ) have the advantage of two sets of measures of the risk and protective factors. In some cases there may be great similarity between the two sets of ratings. If not, then the report is suggesting that factors rated as worse on just one of the grade levels either depend on age or are specific to one cohort of youth.



Using Sections One and Two Together Nearly all of the risk/protective factors reported in Section Two are specific to one substance. This allows comparison between Section One report of use of a substance and Section Two results about risk or protective factors that pertain to that substance. For example, if percent of youth using alcohol is high for 8th grade in your school, look at the factors of Adult Norms Favorable to Alcohol Use, Perceived Peer Approval of Alcohol Use, Parent Approval of Alcohol Use, and Parental Monitoring of Alcohol Use. The closer any of these scores is to “5”, the more likely it is playing a role in your community’s youth alcohol problem.

Follow-up Report Section Three Description The high school survey allows for measurement of two different (though closely related) dimensions of severity of substance use. One is based on questions about specific symptoms of abuse or dependence, the other on amount of past month use. Section Three gives a single percentage for 10th grade and a single percentage for 12th grade (if both participated) that tells how many students were in neither of the severe use categories. In other words, these youth are either not using any substances or are using very infrequently and without symptoms of substance abuse or dependence.

Rationale for Section Three Design Youth who have already become engaged in frequent substance use typically need individual professional assessment and either counseling or substance abuse treatment (depending on severity of their problem) to stop using. Section Three attempts to give schools and communities some idea of the proportion of their youth who are still a good target for “primary” (prior to use) prevention efforts, and the proportion who are likely to need more individual interventions for success in stopping use.


Using the Data

The specifics of what goes into a particular prevention initiative depends on additional information beyond the scope of the state survey, such as studies of prevention effectiveness or how to formulate effective public information campaigns. The survey information is therefore one important piece of a larger set of information needed by the state, communities, and by schools to plan prevention initiatives.

The IYS is the beginning towards promoting evidence-based prevention in your community, but will need to be supplemented by additional information you gather over time. The only risk factors measured on the Illinois Youth Survey are those that can be reasonably measured through a youth survey. So, for example, although media images promoting alcohol or tobacco are known to be a risk factor for youth, media images are not a topic covered in the survey.

Using the Data (continued)


Relationship Building to Use the DataAlthough the Illinois Youth Survey is administered in schools, most of the risk and protective factors that can lead to youth substance use have more to do with a whole community than with schools specifically. The school may be an important partner in addressing these factors, but in many cases success may not be possible without an effort that unites many of the concerned organizations in the community. It is therefore encouraged that schools share this information with concerned community groups or stakeholders willing to work with them. By measuring these factors among students, a school makes an important contribution to community prevention efforts.

While the report is designed to give schools some of the information they need, you as a prevention professional have additional training to assist local prevention efforts in using this data. Prevention professionals need to work with the schools to develop the necessary relationships and contacts in order for the school to share that data with you. You can in turn assist them with planning appropriate prevention programming using this data. There are successful ways of lowering rates of youth substance use. The art of matching a prevention strategy to a particular community is better carried out by the combined effort of prevention professionals and other concerned community members using the appropriate data that can be found in the IYS and other places from your community and schools. Prevention professionals can help to:

Match risk and protective factors to effective prevention strategies. Judge whether particular prevention programs are appropriate for your

community, considering not only risk and protective factors addressed but also what is known about the program’s effectiveness with particular types of communities.

Plan for program implementation, since success depends not only on program or strategy selection but also correct implementation.


Contents


Module Four:Promoting the IYS


Identifying Schools for Participation .............................................................PG-84

Setting Realistic Participation Goals.............................................................PG-85

Possible Schools to Target for Promotion ....................................................PG-86

Building Relationships...................................................................................PG-88

Writing a Promotion Goal..............................................................................PG-89

Activity: Writing a Promotional Goal..............................................................PG-90

Developing a Message Strategy ..................................................................PG-92

Identifying Barriers........................................................................................PG-93

Additional Barriers.........................................................................................PG-95

Highlight the Benefits to Encourage Participation in the IYS.........................PG-96

Activity: Determining Solutions to Barriers....................................................PG-97

Job Aid: Addressing Common Barriers with Possible Solutions ...................PG-98

Tips to Consider When Building a Message Strategy.................................PG-100

Activity: Developing a Presentation Strategy for Your School.....................PG-101

Planning Your Presentation to Schools.......................................................PG-102

Identifying/Creating Your Presentation Tools..............................................PG-105

Delivering Your Presentation.......................................................................PG-108

Activity: Practicing Your Presentation.........................................................PG-109

Conducting Follow-Up.................................................................................PG-110

Sharing the Results.....................................................................................PG-111

Identifying Schools for Participation


As you being to think about expanding the reach of the IYS in your service area, one important piece of information you will need to know is which schools in your service area are not currently registered to participate in the IYS. The key decision makers in these schools will be the target audience for your promotional efforts. You can access information regarding which schools in your area are registered by contacting the Lighthouse Institute directly or by using their Web site. The following is a link to the page on the

site that provides you with this information.

www.illinoisyouthsurvey.org/register/

Using this Web page, you can check to see which of the schools in your service area are currently registered to participate in the spring, 2008 Illinois Youth Survey. The Web site provides a list of registered schools. Registered schools are listed by county. Once you access the list scroll down to your county, and check for the name of the school. The listing designates the school name, city and school district. If your county is not listed, that means no schools in your county have registered yet. This list is updated weekly on Monday.

Tip: Once your have begun the promotion process in your schools, this list is a great tool to see whether or not the schools have completed the registration process.

Setting Realistic Participation Goals


Once you know how many schools in your service areas are and are not participating in the IYS you can determine a realistic promotional goal. Although 100% participation of area schools is ideal, it is not necessarily always feasible. Here are some things to consider.

Determine how many schools in your area are eligible to participate in the IYS.

Examine the existing relationship you have with the school and its key decision makers.

Revisit whether or not this effort has been made with the school in the past and their overall interest in the IYS.

Examine your current workload and the number of service hours you have dedicated to this activity in your comprehensive work plan.

Estimate the number of hours it may take you to fulfill the promotion efforts with each school.


Possible Schools to Target for Promotion: Use the chart below to assist you in determining the amount of effort you can feasibly extend to convince schools in your area to participate. A sample entry has been provided for you.

School Name Current Relationship Previous Contact Regarding the IYS

Key Decision Maker (s)

Estimated Time Commitment

Riley Middle School

Our prevention staff currently assists Riley Middle School with implementing a youth prevention education curriculum in the 6th and 7th grade. We have a strong relationship with the teachers in those grades but little contact with the principal.

This school has not been approached about using the IYS in the past.

Mr. Hagerman, Principal

Contact would need to be made with the principal.

A presentation would need to be developed. Approx – 15-20 hours.

Promoting the Illinois Youth Survey to SchoolsParticipant Guide © 2009, Prevention First PG 59

Building Relationships

Once you determine which schools you want to target, knowing exactly who to talk to is important. In some schools you may have strong relationships with the key decision makers, in other schools you may not have even identified the person(s) who holds the key to getting the survey implemented. In these cases your promotional efforts will take much longer than in cases where you

have already built a strong relationship.

In order to assist the school in adopting the IYS, you will want to target the individual or individuals who have direct decision-making power over whether or not the school will participate in the survey. However, gaining access to that person or persons is often a challenge.

It is important that before you approach school personnel with whom you have no relationship that you “do your homework.”

Think about the following:

Are there key school staff members with whom you do have a relationship that might become allies in your efforts? What are their strengths and assets?

What PTA /PTO, SAP or other organizations (such as a Health Department, Sheriff’s office, or ROE) exist in the community that does have relationships in the school that can support your promotional strategy?

What opportunities for collaboration with those organizations might exist? Which staff members of those organizations might be an asset to the project?

Is there a local coalition with whom you can partner to gain access to the school?

Accessing existing groups can be an important asset to your efforts. Remember, building relationships often takes time and a great amount of effort. Gaining trust with school personnel takes patience and in some cases you may have to become involved with them in their current efforts prior to advancing with your own agenda. It is important to be realistic about the strides you can make in getting them to participate in the IYS.

Writing a Promotion Goal


After you have evaluated all the schools in your service area you can write a promotional goal. Be realistic about what you can feasibly accomplish. Below are some sample goals.

Gain participation from all 5 schools in the service area in the IYS in order to collect this data. Obtain a data sharing agreement from all 5 schools.

Increase the number of schools that participate in the IYS to 100% participation in our service area.

Maintain current level of school participation (6 schools) in the IYS during each survey year. Gain participation of schools where we are already providing services (3 schools).

Gain participation of 2 schools within our service area in 2006. Increase the number of schools who participate by 2 each subsequent survey year, for full participation by 2009.


Developing a Message Strategy

Message Content One of the most important components of your message is anticipating and identifying the barriers that your target audience identifies as reasons for not participating in the Illinois Youth Survey.

When building relationships with the schools, you may have already determined some of the reasons that schools choose not to participate in the IYS. This information will further help you tailor your presentation message for the school. Anticipating these barriers will also make you better prepared and more effective with your presentation and help meet your promotional goals.

Note some reasons why schools in your community do not participate in the Illinois Youth Survey.

Identifying Barriers


Barriers may be real or perceived, but they must be addressed in order for the school to commit to participating in the Illinois Youth Survey.

Some of the common barriers that have been identified by schools are:

1) Competing Priorities Loss of class time or academic focus in class

“With PSAE, ISAT and ACT prep testing, we lose instructional time and have no other time for surveys”

“Our school is on the Illinois warning list. As a result, we have an academic focus and no time for a survey.”

Staff time or other competing priorities “I don’t have the time to conduct and supervise the survey and no

one else wants to do this project” “We are committed to a new discipline system, new advisories

and a huge interdisciplinary unit. We do not want to commit to anything else.”

Other survey participation: “We did a local survey through the Health Department” “We only do a county wide needs assessment every four years.

We conducted this survey the last school year”o Communities that Careo PRIDE Surveyo American Drug and Alcohol surveyo CPRD Social Norms surveyo Various local surveys

2) School or Community Problem with Questions “This is a waste of taxpayer money. Wouldn’t it be better to use this

money to fund schools?” “These questions are not appropriate for our age group of 6th grade

students.” “We would have a community concern because of parents being upset

about invading their rights to privacy.” “Some church members object to the 6th graders being exposed to the

survey questions”

3) Staff Changes or Cuts Our district has cut so many programs and staff, no one needs another

thing to do” “Staff person is retiring and do not want to commit the new person to a

survey”

Identifying Barriers (continued)

4) Board Policy “It’s against district policy to survey students” “Our school board is adverse to outside surveys”

5) No Clear Benefit (to participate) “I want to know how doing this survey will benefit my school and our

ability to serve our students?”


Additional Barriers

It’s also important to think about other and sometimes underlying reasons that schools may not want to participate in the Illinois Youth Survey. It is important to also craft a presentation that addresses some of these “hidden” reasons.

FearSchool administrators can be careful with their school’s reputation and standing in the community. They may perceive that this survey will highlight what is wrong with their schools, especially regarding student substance use. Schools may also have had bad press or experiences with the media, and may not want to invite more media attention on their school.

This can be especially challenging for private schools that fear negative survey results would negatively effect student enrollment. Additionally, it may be difficult to get schools on academic watch status or other types of academic probation to participate because of their fear of adding another potential negative characterization.

DenialSchools may be in denial about substance use issues or problems within their student body. When schools are in denial, they are able to protect themselves from perceived threats and facing possible uncomfortable truths about substance use. If a school continues to deny these issues, then everything remains “fine” and they can continue to go about their daily routine.


Highlight the Benefits to Encourage Participation in the IYS

BenefitsOne of the most common ways to address school barriers to participation is to present them with the benefits of using the IYS. These benefits should be framed as solutions to the barriers that the school specifically identifies.

Each school has different reasons for not participating in the survey. As a refresher from Module 1, some of the identified benefits of the Illinois Youth Survey are listed below. These benefits may apply to more than one audience:

Schools: Measures youth substance rates, violence rates and other key risk and

protective factors

Is funded by the Illinois Department of Human Services, so it is FREE

Takes 40 minutes to administer

Survey is available online or by paper

Is available in Spanish and English versions

Schools can add up to fifteen user-defined questions to get data on local issues

Provides a follow-up analysis school results, focused on key risk and protective factors

Helps to put your local results in context through local, regional and statewide results

Comprehensive Grant Providers: Provides information for local and State prevention funding

Helps plan and evaluate effective prevention efforts

Coalition Members: Helps provide local information for grant writing opportunities

Job Aid:


Addressing Common Barriers with Possible Solutions (Job Aids can be used as pull out reference sheets in your workspace)

Barriers Possible Solutions Loss of class time or academic focus in class

Solution: Highlight that the IYS can point to specific problems or issues that are taking away from a focus on academics, such as alcohol or other drug use. Once specific problems are pinpointed, schools can begin to address them which can result in students paying more attention to school and school work. Taking one class period (or 45 minutes of one class) can have a long lasting impact on the school’s overall academic success.The IYS survey is only 45 minutes (or one class period every two years). The data that schools will receives out weighs the time that it takes for schools to participate in the survey.

School or Community problem with questions

Solution: Mention that the survey is designed to address developmental learning stages and that the 6th grade survey does not ask some of the questions that the 8th-12th grade survey addresses.

Fear Solution: The IYS does not release school specific data to anyone but the school. No other institution or persons can get the specific data about the school unless the school chooses to release their own data. Stress that the survey can be a planning tool to begin addressing substance use issues in a positive way.

Denial Solution: The IYS does not only assess substance abuse, but nutrition, wellness, bullying and other components that might be useful for the school. Even if the school is not interested in any of these components either, they will also have the demographic data for future applications forms of grants and funding. Additionally, if a school does not believe they have issues with the existing components of the IYS, they can add 15 additional questions the paper-based version so they can assess the areas they do feel are relevant to them.

Other Survey Participation

Solution: The school may take other surveys like the IYS, but using the Overview of Common Youth Surveys table (page 124) highlight reasons why the IYS may be a more comprehensive survey and better choice for the school.


Tips to Consider when Building a Message Strategy for Your Target Audience

Connect the IYS to the WIIFM (What’s In It for Me) Principle

Imply the need for data-driven decision making

Connect/package the survey to/with existing programs and services (making it a part of a life skills program and/or linkage agreement)

Inform schools of the number of other schools in the area or state that are participating- using a positive “peer pressure” approach

Sell community partnership/collaboration to the school-substance use among youth is a shared issue that everyone can play a role in addressing

Reinforce that the school isn’t to blame for youth substance abuse issues, but they do need to be a part of the solution

Promote a youth voice-the importance of hearing from youth what their needs are

Tie data collection from the IYS into funding opportunities such as the Drug Free Communities Support Grant, Enforcing Underage Drinking Laws and Strategic Prevention Framework-State Incentive Grants

Planning Your Presentation to Schools


Remember the old proverb, it is not what you say, it’s how you say it? While the content of your presentation is extremely important, equally important is the way in which you present it. An unsuitable style of delivery could well render any good message ineffective, regardless of its’ substance. It will be up to you to determine the best way to get information to the school(s) about the IYS.

As stated earlier in the Module, you must truly know your audience and plan what you say based on information about who you’ll be speaking with. In addition, knowledge about the school culture and the personalities of the administrators you’ll be speaking with are important when determining how you will present the information you have to share about the survey.

In planning your presentation, make initial contact with the school(s) you’ve identified, schedule your presentation/meeting and engage your allies in the process.

Approaching SchoolsUsing personal contacts and existing relationships is often noted as the most used and most successful strategy for approaching schools. Take the time to get to know key school personnel and administrators, understand the school culture, and build the school’s trust in you and your organization. If you take the time to build critical relationships before asking for a favor, you’re more likely to be successful.

If you do not have an already-existing relationship with one or more schools in your service area, these strategies might help you get your foot in the door:

Send letters to schools in your service area (after Lighthouse Institute has sent the registration packets), and then follow-up with an e-mail or phone call to request a phone or in-person meeting (see the sample letter on the next page).

Cold calling. This method has limited effectiveness. You’re more likely to be effective here if you have a credible reputation in the school/community – or if you’re able to reference a person of influence (i.e. Mayor Greenburg suggested I give you a call…)

Work with existing community coalitions. Work toward getting administration of the IYS on their agenda, as well as yours. As a group of community stakeholders you might be more successful than if you were on your own.

SAMPLE School Letter


[On Organization Letterhead]

[Date]

[Name, Title][Organization][Address]

Dear [Name],

[Insert your organization name] is working together with Lighthouse Institute to encourage public and private schools to take advantage of a free opportunity to participate in the 2008 Illinois Youth Survey. This project, funded through the Illinois Department of Human Services, will provide data that you can use to understand behaviors and attitudes of students regarding drug use, bullying, and nutrition. The survey measures key risk and protective factors, which can be used to select the most effective, research-based prevention programs for your school and community.

Enclosed is a folder containing information about the Illinois Youth Survey. Additional information is available at www.illinoisyouthsurvey.org. I am also sending along a copy of the 2008 Illinois Youth Survey forms for 10th and 12th grade students.

I would be happy to talk with you by phone or meet with you at your school to discuss survey administration options, explain how to register, review applications of the data results, and address any other questions you might have.

All public and private schools were recently contacted by Lighthouse Institute to determine which schools planned to administer the survey this school year. A reply regarding the 2008 survey was not received from [insert school name].

You can register your school for the Illinois Youth Survey by completing the enclosed form and fax it to [your name], at [your number]. We will be happy to forward your registration to the Lighthouse Institute. We truly hope that you will take part in this opportunity, and we would be happy to assist you in any way necessary.

Please contact me at [your number] if you need additional information about the Illinois Youth Survey.

Sincerely,

[Your Name][Your Organization]

Source: Education Service NetworkPlanning Your Presentation to Schools (continued)


Scheduling Your Presentation Once you make initial contact with a school, you’ll need to set up a meeting (phone or face-to-face) to present the message you crafted in Module Two. The school or school district will most likely dictate the forum for which you have to present the information to them. You of course will want to request the forum that is most comfortable for you, but be prepared to take what you can get.

Here are some ways Illinois prevention providers have presented information to schools about administering the IYS:

Conducted an in-person meeting with school administrators.

Presented information at a superintendents and/or principals meeting.

Held an informal meeting or phone call with school administrators (with whom there was an already-existing positive relationship).

Engaging AlliesYou’ll probably only get one chance to make your case – so it’s crucial that you put your best foot forward. You’ll need to identify the most appropriate person(s) to meet with school representatives about the IYS. An appropriate candidate is someone who has a positive reputation within the community, has influence with school representatives, is articulate, is personable and has the ability to think fast on their feet. In some cases you might have influential allies that could help support your cause.

Consider using one or more of the following strategies in your efforts:

Ask principals/superintendents from other schools/districts who had already administered the survey before to advocate for the survey to be administered in other schools.

Ask school allies (social workers, Student Assistance Coordinators, teachers, students, Regional Office of Education etc.) to encourage school administration to take part in the survey.

Ask community allies (coalition leaders, health department, law enforcement, elected officials, parents, other organization leaders etc.) to encourage school administration to take part in the survey.

Ask an established “expert” in evaluation or prevention, for example, Lighthouse Institute, to serve as a resource, when appropriate.

Identifying/Creating Your Presentation Tools


Determining What Tools are NeededYou must determine what materials / tools you will need to help you get your message across, but you’ll need to know the forum for your presentation before you make that determination.

For example:

Will your presentation be in-person or over the phone?

How many people will be participating?

How much time will you have?

If it’s in person, is a Power Point presentation feasible, or even appropriate?

If you can’t connect with the school in person or by phone, can you send information via mail?

Whatever the case may be, you want to make sure that the materials you use look professional, provide concrete and necessary information, and do not overwhelm the reader.

Schools especially are often crunched for time, and you may have only 10 – 15 minutes to get your key points across. Leaving them with written materials can be very helpful, but you want to make sure you don’t bombard them with so much information that they don’t know where to start, and thus read nothing.

Identifying/Creating Your Presentation Tools (continued)


Promotion MaterialsThere are a few already-existing resources that might be useful for you:

IYS Recruitment Folder: All schools receive the recruitment folder from Lighthouse Institute. You should consider providing extra/additional copies for the school representatives during your meeting/discussion. Especially useful handouts within this packet of material include:

Frequently Asked Questions Illinois Youth Survey Newsletter Survey Forms Registration Form/Return Envelope

Sample Power Point Presentation: This presentation was specifically developed for Illinois prevention providers to use when discussing the survey with schools. It can be tailored to fit your needs and provides common talking points for your presentation.

AgendaIn addition to these already existing promotion materials, you should develop an agenda or outline of key points for your meeting at the school. An agenda lets meeting/discussion participants see your plan and trace your movement from one section of your presentation to another.

Identifying/Creating Your Presentation Tools (continued)


Select and Use Visual Aids Because we live in a time when communication is visual and verbal, visual aids that reinforce your meaning can enhance any oral presentation. Research has shown presentations that use visuals are more persuasive, more interesting, more credible, and more professional (i.e., more effective than presentations without such aids).

The benefits of using visual aids include: They help your audience understand your ideas. You can use visual aids to

announce each main point as you begin discussion of that point. You can also use visual aids to accentuate and illuminate important ideas. However, the message that the visual carries should be immediately apparent. If audience members have to study the visual to interpret its meaning, they will not be listening to you.

They help the audience follow your argument, your "train" of thought. In both oral and written presentations, readers/listeners must perceive the pattern of organization to comprehend effectively.

They make your presentation more memorable and thus increase the chances that what you said will be remembered.

How do I use my visual aids effectively?The key to using graphics and visual aids effectively requires using them so that they make the maximum impact. Present the aid; give your audience a few seconds to comprehend it, and then comment on the aid. Use a pointer to focus your audience on the part of the graphic you are discussing.

Talk to your audience members, keeping eye contact with them, not your visual aid.

When you use Power Point slides, tell the audience what they will see, show them the slide; give them time to digest what they are seeing; then comment on the slide. Do not read slides verbatim.

Delivering Your Presentation


It is important to identify how you will present the information to your audience. Given the different individuals you may speak with you may want to vary your presentation style to fit the situation.

Formal vs. Relaxed AtmosphereIf you are speaking to an individual one on one, you may consider having a more relaxed approach. But if you are presenting to the school board you may want to use a more formal presentation style. Choose the most appropriate approach for the situation.

Tips for Delivering a Successful Presentation First and foremost, pay attention to detail. Make sure that you’re on time, dressed appropriately and prepared to represent yourself in a professional manner. In many ways you will transform into a salesperson when you set out to work with schools to gain their participation in the IYS. You want to give as compelling a reason as you possibly can for why the school should participate…here’s where the powers of persuasion come into play!

See handout: Tips for Delivering a Successful Presentation

Conducting Follow-UpPromoting the Illinois Youth Survey to SchoolsParticipant Guide © 2009, Prevention First PG 74

You will need to follow-up with the school(s) after you make your presentation. You may also need to provide support and resources to the school(s) to help them complete the survey process. Some ways you might consider assisting the school(s) include:

Call your main contact a few days after your presentation/discussion. Ask whether they have any questions and if there is any additional information you can provide. Inquire as to whether they plan to administer the survey, if you don’t already have their commitment.

Refer schools to Lighthouse Institute for any questions you’re unable to answer.

Offer to complete and send in the registration form for them.

If the school sends in the registration form, follow-up with Lighthouse Institute to see if the school is registered. If not, follow-up with the school to remind them to send in the form. Ask if there is anything you can do to help.

Offer to help administer the survey, if possible.

After the survey, follow-up with the school to make sure they’ve sent in the completed surveys for analysis. Again, ask if there is anything you can do to help.

Sharing the Results


The data gathered from the Illinois Youth Survey can be an invaluable asset for schools and communities to use during their assessment and prevention planning processes. Ideally you will have built strong relationships with school representatives and have created a partnership for addressing the substance abuse issues within your community. If that type of relationship didn’t exist in the first place, hopefully the process of planning for and administering the IYS will help to increase your connection to the schools in your service area.

Ideally, both you and the school(s) will make good use of the results once you receive them. Here are a few tips for getting and sharing the results:

In order for you and your organization to receive a copy of the results, your will need written authorization from the school sent to Lighthouse Institute.

After Lighthouse Institute sends the initial reports to schools, offer to discuss the results and assist schools in analyzing the data.

Alert schools to the fact that they can obtain more detailed information by requesting a follow-up report and that additional analysis can be conducted upon request. Additionally, a statewide results report will be available approximately one-year after the survey has been administered.

Working together, assist the schools and other community partners (if applicable) in using the data to:

Put local results in context through county, regional and statewide comparisons.

Track trends and measure progress over time. Fulfill local and state prevention funding requirements. Plan, implement and evaluate local prevention efforts.

TIP: As we all know from our personal and professional lives, all good relationships take effort to maintain. Frequent communication is essential to productive partnerships. If the school hears from you only when you need

them to do something or want something from them, they will be much less receptive to respond to you. Maintain a positive relationship with schools by being present and invested in their efforts.


Appendix A:References

Contents

References.............................................................................................PG-119


References:

The Lighthouse Institute. Illinois Youth Survey: Background. Retrieved October 22, 2007, from: www.illinoisyouthsurvey.org/background/

The Lighthouse Institute. Student Achievement in Two Steps.

Hanson, T.L. and Austin, G. (2003). Student Health Risks, Resilience, and Academic Performance in California: Year 2 Report, Longitudinal Analyses. Los Alamitos, CA: WestEd

The Lighthouse Institue.2008 IYS Content Areas. Illinois Youth Survey News August 2007: No. 2: 8. August 2007

The Lighthouse Institute. Frequently Asked Questions. Retrieved October 22, 2007, from: www.illinoisyouthsurvey.org/faq/

The Lighthouse Institute. About the Illinois Youth Survey. Retrieved October 22, 2007, from: www.illinoisyouthsurvey.org/about/

The Lighthouse Institute. Survey Content. Retrieved October 22, 2007, from: www.illinoisyouthsurvey.org/content/

The Lighthouse Institute. Register. Retrieved October 22, 2007, from: www.illinoisyouthsurvey.org/register/

The Lighthouse Institute. Sample School Reports. Retrieved October 22, 2007, from: www.illinoisyouthsurvey.org/reports/

The Lighthouse Institute. Overview of the Common Youth Surveys. Illinois Youth Survey News August 2007: No. 2: 6-7. August 2007

The Lighthouse Institute. Understanding the School Reports. Retrieved October 22, 2007, from: www.illinoisyouthsurvey.org/reports/School_Follow-Up_Report.pdf


Appendix BForms/Tables

Contents

Overview of Common Youth Surveys ....................................................PG-123

Online vs. Paper/Pencil Surveys ...........................................................PG-125


ame of Survey Origin Content Grade Levels Cost Administration What Results Do Schools Receive?

Americn Drug and Alcohol Survey (ADAS)

Marketed and supported by the Rocky Mountain Behavioral Science Institutes.

Rates of use, attitudes, and perceptions about alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs, including ease of obtaining drugs, peer influences, age of onset, and personal problems experienced due to drug use.

6th through 12th grades use the Adolescent survey, and 4th to 6th grades use the Children's survey.

$1.25 per student for 4th through 12th grade surveys, plus $250.00 for a detailed adolescent ADAS report, and $125.00 for a detailed children's ADAS report. A multi-year comparison report is an additional $125.00.

There is no standard administration cycle. Schools conduct the survey based on their own schedule.

No reports are included in the cost of the surveys, but schools can purchase a detailed school report or other reports.

Illinois Yaouth Survey (IYS)

The Illinois Dept. of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse (DASA), which is now the Illinois Department of Human Services (DHS), and the University of Washington.

Use of gateway drugs (alcohol, tobacco, marijuana, inhalants), problem behaviors such as bullying, other violence, and nutrition/fitness, and key risk and protective factors. In addition, schools can develop up to 15 local questions to add to each grade level survey. Results on these questions are included in their report.

6th, 8th, 10th, and 12th grades

No cost to any Illinois public or private school to participate and all reports are free. Sponsored by DHS and administered by Lighthouse Institute of Chestnut Health Systems, Inc.

The IYS is conducted in every even-numbered year.

Schools receive their individual detailed report at no cost, and a free follow-up analysis report is available on request. Other reports available at no cost include: district reports, county reports, regional reports, state reports, and population subgroup reports. Reports are available in print or electronic versions.

Illinois Youth Tobacco Survey (IYTS)

Developed and administered by the Illinois Department of Public Health, in collaboration with the CDC Office on Smoking and Health.

Originally conducted to establish a state baseline on smoking and tobacco behaviors, perceptions and general knowledge.

6th through 12th grades

Free if your school is invited to participate as part of the state sample.

The IYTS is conducted in even-numbered years.

No school level reports are available. In some cases, local health departments may support the survey costs to gather and report county level data only.

PRIDE’S “Communities That Care” Survey

Created by the University of Washington, this survey is now available from SAMHSA or Pride

Covers a variety of alcohol and other drug usage behaviors, delinquency behaviors, academic achievement, and risk and protective factors for adolescent problem behaviors.

Geared towards 6th to 12th grades.

Schools can order surveys from SAMSHA free of charge, but SAMSHA will not process completed surveys. Pride will process surveys ordered from SAMSHA for $1.45 per survey, or they can provide the surveys, processing, and feedback for $1.65 per survey.

There is no standard administration cycle. Schools conduct the survey based on their own schedule.

A printed executive summary of findings based on the machine-scored form and computerized data analyses (student surveys only). Reports come with a free chapter on the core measures required by the Drug Free Communities Support Program. Other reports are available to purchase, such as a multi-year comparison report for $325.00.

YRBS - Youth Risk Behaviors Survey

National survey developed by the Division of Adolescent and School Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Includes questions about six categories of priority health risk behaviors—behaviors that contribute to unintentional injuries and violence; tobacco use; alcohol and other drug use; sexual behaviors that contribute to unintended pregnancy and STDs, including HIV infection; unhealthy dietary behaviors; and physical inactivity—plus overweight and asthma.

Grades 7 and 8 use the middle school survey, and grades 9 through 12 use the high school survey.

Free if your school is invited to participate as part of the national or state sample. Otherwise, since this is a publicly owned instrument, schools can use the questions on this survey, but would need to find a resource to process their results.

The state and national sample schools are surveyed in the odd-numbered years (e.g. 2001, 2003, 2005, etc).

Individual school reports are not available. State and national results are available online on the CDC's YRBS Web site.


Overview of Common Youth Surveys

Online vs. Paper/Pencil Surveys

ONLINEPros Cons

Immediate access to survey results Ability to print specialized reports whenever you need them No paper survey materials to handle No cost to school for participation or reports

More responsibility for proctor to monitor the student surveying process so all students have a chance to survey, but no student takes the survey more than once

Depending on computer availability, may require multiple survey days if not all students can participate at once

Additional reports can be printed for schools by request to the survey administrator, Chestnut Health Systems, but there is a time delay

Schools cannot add any local, user-defined questions

PAPER/PENCILPros Cons

Familiar testing procedure Your initial school report is automatically sent to the

school, and additional reports are available upon request

All participating grade levels can complete surveying in one day

All materials are shipped to you free of charge, no cost to school for participation or reports

Schools can add up to 15 local, user-defined questions

Survey results available approximately 6 weeks after submission

Specialized reports are printed only after all schools have received their initial report

Physical survey materials can be misplaced


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