CR3 News Magazine 2020 VOL 4: September Radon, Schools & Home Study | Page 34

Martin et al. 5
Figure 4. Comparison of radon knowledge and likelihood to support radon testing in schools based on child’s grade level
The *** indicates that there is a significant difference with a p-value ≤ .05. Error bars represent the standard deviation for each of the means.
regarding this important health topic. This gap in communication
may improve with parent and faculty education about
radon and its potential health impact, and certainly with legislation
enforcing disclosure of testing results. A website
publicly disclosing the results of radon testing, such as the
one developed for the new lead testing legislation in Vermont,
may help address the issue of disclosure of radon test results
to parents (Vermont, 2020; Vermont General Assembly (No.
66), 2019a).
Parents and guardians with more knowledge about radon
were significantly more supportive of radon testing in
schools. This is consistent with prior studies conducted in
homeowners, which established that homeowners who knew
the health risks associated with radon were more likely to
have their homes tested (Duckworth et al., 2002; Ferng &
Lawson, 1996; Ford et al., 1996; Howland, 1996; Neri et al.,
2018). Our study builds on this finding by demonstrating that
parents with a higher level of education are more supportive
of regulating radon in schools in addition to homes. Although
we found no significant difference in support for mitigation
of elevated radon levels based on participant knowledge of
radon, both groups overwhelmingly supported mitigation
and there appears to be a ceiling effect in this category, as
demonstrated in Figure 3. While support for legislation was
not significantly higher among parents with more knowledge
about radon, there was still an overwhelming majority of survey
participants who supported radon regulation. This finding
suggests that parents and guardians are a demographic
that could play a pivotal role in supporting legislation to
mandate radon testing in schools.
None of the following demographic factors significantly
correlated with level of support for radon regulation: level
of education, household income, rural versus urban residence,
and radon testing status of the home, age, or gender.
Prior studies have identified that low education and low
income predict decreased knowledge of radon and decreased
residential testing and mitigation of elevated radon levels
(Ferng & Lawson, 1996; Halpern & Warner, 1994; Wang
et al., 1999). We suspect that our relatively small study was
not powered to detect small differences in support for radon
testing based on income or level of education, or that the
difference in support between these groups is less substantial
when discussing exposure in schools as opposed to
exposure in the home.
The Parent and Guardian Insight
The three predominant themes identified during the discussion
group are a clear qualitative reflection of the quantitative
data. Despite only 39% of survey participants identifying
radon as a carcinogen, 87% support mitigation of elevated
school levels. These numbers indicate a majority concern for
public safety even in the absence of widespread knowledge.
“We put smoke alarms, exit signs, and sprinkler systems . . .
in these buildings to protect people . . . and yet we don’t do
anything to protect them against a known carcinogen.” These
qualitative reports support the quantitative conclusion that
more awareness will likely bring about more support for
radon regulation.
What This Means for Our Schools
The majority of individuals in the United States attend school
for part or all of the K-12 grades. In addition, most school
employees including teachers, administrators, counselors,
and maintenance workers spend much of their professional
lives in the school environment. This represents the two populations
which would derive the most benefit from reductions
in radon levels in affected schools. Radon is the leading
cause of lung cancer among nonsmokers in the United States