As a parent of 5 and now a grandparent, I am grateful to have many options and resources at my disposal to help in the most important responsibility of my life; that of being a parent. While I am not an ‘expert’ according to the ‘experts,’ I believe that my field of expertise far exceeds that of any ‘expert’ when it comes to assessing what is best for my own children. Through my own experiences, I have learned that I don’t have to know everything to be a qualified parent. Even the experts would agree with that.

The biggest concern for parents with the SHARP Survey was that they were not given adequate information in order to make an informed decision. Most parents were not aware of what types of questions their children would be exposed to, nor the way drug/alcohol/substances/suicide/etc. information would be provided and encouraged in the survey. Because many of the questions are leading, it caused youth to question themselves and their family situations. (The wording of the gang questions immediately followed by leading negative family questions were very disturbing to me personally.) These reasons have caused great concern to many parents . Additionally, there are many professional experts who have expressed these same concerns about the SHARP Survey.

Whatever intention the SHARP Survey has to “assess the level of risk a child may have,” it is the law that schools must inform parents just what the “tool” is. This is done by making the survey available for review, and then having the parent give written consent to have their child take the survey. The law has not been followed by many school districts in this regard.

I really don’t mean any offense, I hop you don’t take this personally; but since you posted in public, you’ve demanded a public response. My silence would have appeared to be an endorsement.

The quote to “teach correct principles and let them govern themselves” was NEVER meant by the author as an excuse for bad choices. One of the greatest enemies of Truth is relativism (where there are no “wrong” answers, where distorted virtues such as “tolerance” or “equality” reign supreme). The only way to be “wrong” in a relativist world is to advocate absolute truth, which in other words is to claim exclusivity (e.g. “only through Christ can we be saved”). But God IS absolute; therefore all other truth is too. While you (and everyone else) ARE free to choose wrongly, you cannot escape the reality that bad choices are inferior to good ones. Your attempt to wrest the above statement reveals your lack of understanding of it’s true meaning and context.

“I counclude that it is impossible for parents in this age to provide all of the necessary resources needed to do this alone. We are parents! We are not experts in everything.”

This idea is wrong and disturbing. I understand that no parent can get a PhD in every subject; but that doesn’t mean a good parent can’t be responsible for the moral and secular education of their children. Not every family can be ideal, with a stay at home mom and an involved, righteous dad; but that shouldn’t mean we should be so quick to settle for less. To put it bluntly, what you are inferring is that parents should outsource their divine responsibilities because they are incapable of fulfilling them; that is not only WRONG, it is also out of line with your own professed (LDS) beliefs. You’re right, without God, parents are far more likely to be inadequate in providing for their children’s needs. But God stands ready and willing to help any parent who will “ask in faith, believing he/she will receive.” And with God, all things are possible.

“I think the right approach is to look into the source, educate yourself on the SHARP, talk to experts, discuss things with your children, then make an informned decision.”

How about: be diligent, concerned, loving and at-home parents; pray to God for answers; obtain those answers by obedience to predicated laws; then make an INSPIRED decision. Not an “informed” decision. Again, while this is ideal, and therefore sometimes not realistic for everyone in the real world, why not strive for the ideal rather than settle for inferior alternatives?

I wish you the best in your parenting endeavors. A parent myself, I know it can be difficult at times! I know I am inadequate without God’s help, but I also know He won’t forsake me if I put my trust in Him.

What I believe the root of the problem with your post is: you believe the SHARP survey is neutral. This is impossible. What Pamela has uncovered, and what every parent can and should independently verify, is that rather than being beneficial or even neutral (as school officials and SHARP salespeople claim), the SHARP survey is a direct assault on parental rights, it is harmful to good children, and useless in helping troubled children. Therefore, we should do all within our power to shield our own children first (opt out, don’t sign permission slips), then protect children in our community (go to school-board meetings and educate/remove it at the county level), and thereby set an example for good for neighboring counties and communities to follow.

And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather EXPOSE them. -Ephesians 5:11

I think you should let him take the survey and if he feels comfortable with answering those questions it would be alright to let him take it. If he feels strongly you should let himthe biggest part in it is thT they must openly admit to things that may be hard for him. I think you should allow him to.

@Dbags73: Basically it’s a damaging survey because: first, it’s a “recipe card” for kids, meaning it introduces new ideas they would not have thought to try otherwise; second, it invades family privacy (one evil conclusion of which: Hitler Youth were so conditioned that they would turn in their parents for disagreeing with Government policy); and lastly the survey presumes guilt in direct contradiction to the principle of “innocent until proven guilty” which is a pillar of the original U.S. Constitution and legal code. Your question will be answered more thoroughly if you watch the embedded movie. It’s a little long, but not too bad.