ASVAB and Student Rights

It’s ASVAB (Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery…impressed?) time at my school this week. This is a pretty normal occurrence at many high schools across the country. Few however, inform their students of their rights as they relate to the test. Most students do not know that it is their right to refuse the test no matter what a teacher, administrator or guidance counselor tells them.

Naturally my eyebrow rose after I heard a student say that they were required by a teacher to take the test. As someone who firmly believes that student’s rights are often overlooked, (especially when it comes to military recruiting) I was unable to leave this alone so I commenced with the questioning e-mails to the alleged offending teacher. (Some of this has been changed and paraphrased for anonymity and size)

Me: Are all students required to take the ASVAB test? If so, is this a [High School] requirement a [District] requirement or a state or federal requirement?

Teacher: Students who take [This Class] take the ASVAB. It is not a recruiting tool; we use it as a career aptitude test.

Me: I’m not trying to be a jerk I’m just curious about how [Our High School] handles the test. I remember refusing the test because the military was automatically given my personal information and test scores. I assume that since it is not a recruiting tool that [Our High School] has made it so that none of student’s personal information or test scores are given to the military?

Teacher: We have never had a problem with harassment of students by recruiters. After the test results are in someone comes and helps the students interpret their scores then of they choose to do so students may talk to a recruiter at that time.

My question was never answered. Later when I went to talk to the teacher she very artfully avoided the question again. Because the test was already over and since I am very new at this school and out of respect for a senior teacher I dropped it...for now. Rest assured that in the future students will understand their rights at this school by the time next year/semester rolls around.

While looking for reliable information on the ASVAB I found the American Friends Service Committee web site very helpful. They have a section of their site called Youth and Militarism that has all of you information you could want on the choices and rights young people have when it comes to military recruitment.