Law & Courts

GAO Tracks New Measures to Combat Commercialism

By Rhea R. Borja — October 01, 2004 2 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

Responding to heightened advertising and marketing pressure from the corporate world, 13 states have passed laws over the past four years to curtail commercial activities in schools, according to a report released last week by the federal Government Accountability Office. Those states joined 28 others that had already taken such action before 2000.

Four of the 13 states curtailed or prohibited the sale of sodas and sugary foods in schools; others passed laws to prohibit student participation in market surveys without parental consent or to prevent the dissemination of student data for marketing or market research.

The report “Commercial Activities in Schools,” is available online from the Government Accountability Office. (Requires Adobe’s Acrobat Reader.)

Over the past decade, more businesses have partnered with schools, the report by the congressional investigative agency points out. “In some of these relationships,” it says, “business’ apparent focus is on improving teaching and learning, but in others, the apparent focus is on developing product loyalty and increasing sales.”

The commercial environment in schools has become even more pronounced in recent years, as schools have faced budget cutbacks and as the use of the Internet as a marketing tool has expanded, said Eleanor L. Johnson, the GAO’s assistant director for education issues and a co-author of the report.

See Also

See the accompanying chart,

Chart: Student-Data Disclosure

“The Internet has changed the way advertisers get student information,” she said. “It used to be that … you had to go through schools to get lists on student data. Now, advertisers on the Web simply run contests, and to get the prize, the students just answer [personal] questions.”

Districts ‘Confused’

The report, requested by Democratic Sen. Christopher J. Dodd of Connecticut and Republican Sen. Richard C. Shelby of Alabama, also analyzes how and whether school districts have adopted or amended policies on student data use, as required under the No Child Left Behind Act.

The federal law amended the Protection of Pupil Rights Amendment to require not only a student-data-use policy, but one that includes parental notification and permission.

GAO researchers found that of the 61 school district student-data policies they reviewed for the report, only 19 addressed the commercial use of such information.

“Our concern was that districts seemed to be confused,” Ms. Johnson said.

She added that the districts polled created their policies with input from state school boards, even though the U.S. Department of Education had not issued guidance specifically to state boards on commercial activity in schools.

Consequently, the report recommends that the U.S. Department of Education guide state school boards on how to craft policies that address the release of student data for commercial purposes.

Related Tags:

Events

Jobs Virtual Career Fair for Teachers and K-12 Staff
Find teaching jobs and other jobs in K-12 education at the EdWeek Top School Jobs virtual career fair.

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

Law & Courts How a Supreme Court Case on Job Transfers Will Impact Schools
The justices consider whether workers alleging employment discrimination must show that a lateral job transfer harmed them.
8 min read
Photograph of the United States Supreme Court building in Washington DC, USA.
E+/Getty
Law & Courts Wisconsin Teachers Sue to Restore Collective Bargaining Rights
The lawsuit takes fresh aim at a 2011 law that severely restricted bargaining, and has survived several legal challenges since.
6 min read
Wisconsin Education Association Council (WEAC) vice president Betsy Kippers leads a chant during a rally to protest Governor Scott Walker's budget repair bill, at the Brown County Courthouse in downtown Green Bay on February 16, 2011.
Betsy Kippers, vice president of the Wisconsin Education Association Council, leads a chant during a rally to protest Gov. Scott Walker's budget repair bill, at the Brown County Courthouse in downtown Green Bay on February 16, 2011.
H. Marc Larson/The Green Bay Press-Gazette via AP
Law & Courts What Sandra Day O'Connor Did to Shape School Law and Civics Education
O'Connor wrote influential opinions on affirmative action, Title IX, and other education issues. Then she tirelessly worked on civics.
10 min read
Justice Sandra Day O'Connor listens as Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg pays tribute to O'Connor's advocacy work on behalf of civic education, impact on female judges and justice for women and girls worldwide at the Seneca Women Global Leadership Forum at the National Museum of Women in the Arts, on April 15, 2015 in Washington.
Justice Sandra Day O'Connor listens to a tribute to her advocacy work on behalf of civics education and women's role in the legal profession at the National Museum of Women in the Arts, on April 15, 2015, in Washington.
Kevin Wolf/Invision for Seneca Women via AP Images
Law & Courts U.S. Supreme Court Takes Up Major Gun Case With School Safety in Backdrop
The principle that guns may be barred from schools may bolster a federal law restricting firearm possession by domestic abusers.
6 min read
Gun safety and domestic violence prevention organizations gather outside of the Supreme Court before oral arguments are heard in United States v. Rahimi on Nov. 7, 2023, in Washington.
Gun safety and domestic violence prevention organizations gather outside the U.S. Supreme Court before oral arguments are heard in <i>United States</i> v. <i>Rahimi</i> on Nov. 7, 2023, in Washington.
Stephanie Scarbrough/AP