A proposal that could give parents greater control over what their children participate in sparked a lengthy and, at times, tense discussion at Monday night’s Lehighton Area School District board workshop.

Directors debated whether to replace the district’s current opt-out policy with an opt-in system that would require parents to grant permission before students take part in certain classroom lessons or surveys.

Board President Joy Beers said the discussion began after concerns were raised about the Pennsylvania Youth Survey (PAYS), which includes questions about drug use, alcohol and family behavior.

“I have learned that other districts are doing an opt-in for specific things, specifically because of the PAYS surveys,” Beers said. “Some of the questions are worded in ways that parents may not even want their children reading.”

Several directors said the issue touches on larger questions of parental rights and transparency. Barbara Bowes said she understood why some parents object to the survey.

“It was kind of invasive into the family life,” she said.

The change, Bowes said, could require more administrative work.

“We might want to look at whether that would cause a delay or more staff involvement to track that,” she said. “And it may be negligible — I don’t know.”

Superintendent Jason Moser agreed.

“By nature, it would be more labor,” he said. “It would be another task. How much — that’s hard to determine.”

The current opt-out system, he said, rarely causes confusion.

“It doesn’t happen frequently,” he said. “When an opt-out occurs, it’s so infrequent that it’s noticed immediately.”

Beers said she planned to collect examples from other districts that have made the switch.

“If we had a class where 90 percent of the parents did not opt in to something, then the question would be, why aren’t they opting in?” she said. “Maybe the class needs to be restructured to make it more acceptable.”

Lehighton resident Ryan Bowman opposed the idea, arguing that it would weaken the district’s ability to educate students.

“We are taking the education system and flushing it down the toilet by giving parents an option,” he said. “Stop giving people an option and start teaching kids.”

Bowman said the proposal could invite parents to challenge curriculum decisions.

“We’re opening the door to having parents come in and say to the district, ‘I don’t want my kid in social studies. I don’t want him in English,’ ” he said.

Beers responded that the proposal would not give parents veto power over classes but would apply narrowly to specific materials or surveys.

“They have that right anyway,” she said. “This would be a very narrow focus.”

Gretchen Laviolette, LASD director of Academic Programs and Technology, shared recent data from a fourth-grade PAYS survey that used an opt-in format.

“There were 84 students who participated out of about 154,” she said. “That’s how many parents allowed it.”

Beers said she and Moser would gather information from other districts before bringing the issue back for further discussion.