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I don't think there is any school without drugs. You don't have to be rich to use drugs Unfortunately they all, rich or poor, have the same chance to get hooked. One big difference is the richer spend less time paying back what is owed. Until they become too deeply involved.
I agree with the others, though, that involvement in their lives is extremely important and is a great influence to stay clean.
Some still might become involved but they have an easier time getting out if they have an excuse like their family's disappointment.
I provide subs. abuse education to older kids (one of the many things I do in my job). If you ask me, the education really should start with the parents while the kids are still young When I talk to a 15 yo, for example, it doesn't surprise me that he has already experimented OR he's seriously misinformed about the dangers of what he's about to experiment with. I also agree with what basically everyone has said already- this happens everywhere. I work in the 'burbs at one of our A rated schools so no one's immune to this. There's no need to analyze if the innercity has more drugs or if affluent kids drink more alcohol- the point is, we wouldnt want any of our kids doing it (PERIOD).
One quick thing to remember: don't make it a mystery. Talking about drugs is not the same as accusing them of doing it. Once you get the conversation started, you would be surprised at the questions they will have for you. Of course I don't know your child but that's what I see with my kids (at work). It sounds so cliche but you would rather have your child learn about it from you than from their friends.
So guess what you have to do? Brush up on what's going on TODAY. Educate yourself on what kids are doing (cheese, for example- have you heard of it??).
If a news story comes on, or you see something in the paper, talk to your child about it.
When I was in high school, the worst that ever happened was a 3 day suspension. I hear all the time that kids are getting arrested for joints these days. I can't ease your concerns, it's up to the kids to find a clear path to adulthood.
I had no idea that this thread was so active since I posted it. So glad that I did because the discussions have been terrific and informative and obviously a universal concern. Being ignorant or in denial is a sure way to have your child get in trouble. Thinking that your child is safe from drugs because they attend a prestigious private school or living in a wealthy area is the worst kind of denial. And don't think that because you live away from a city in a more rural area that you are safe. Boredom in rural towns, even in wealthy areas is a big contributer to drugs and drinking, probably more than in the city.
Well parents of course worried a lot when their teen is about to go to high school. But it's not just about drugs, their are other concerning factors also for parents & yet teen have to face during his/her schooling period. While parents periodically look on the activities of their teen, they can't give the whole time to cater all the problems. I wonder how high schools have become a place where you can get all things you want, even of your choices. I know most of you disagree, but high schools are not just a place of education or extra-curricular sports activities, there are more weird things also going in there, don't particularly want to mention, as most of the high schooled knows that. Here is good blog post to read..on . It's really amazing how things have changed so fast in couple of years.
Last edited by toobusytoday; 09-17-2009 at 08:32 AM..
Reason: advertising blog
It's immaterial which school your kid attends when it comes to drugs. That's because drug use is all around. I have known rich kids as well as kids who had gone to religious private schools who ended up with severe drug problems (some of them spurred by issues at home) or where those schools had notorious party cultures (a couple of the more well known Catholic schools in my county in SoCal, for example, were also known for the hard partying antics of their student bodies).
The only thing you can do is give your kid honest information about drugs and their possible consequences. Don't resort to scare tactics because that crap undermines your credibility. When I was in junior high, they showed us a couple of anti-drug scare films and we openly laughed at them because they were just so overwrought. And programs such as DARE have actually piqued student interest in illegal narcotics, so that was totally counterproductive.
I smoked a lot of pot and hash in high school and did my share of drinking. But I also didn't use anything stronger than that because I knew what the possible fallout was. I would also say that more than half of the student body at my high school were frequent pot users and drinking was definitely in the mix, too. But relatively few took anything other than that. I completely quit drinking and smoking pot in my early 20's. When I entered college, I reduced my use of intoxicants to once in a blue moon because it was just time to start growing up and I wanted to get good grades (I graduated with honors).
So the moral of the story is to not flip out over the drug issue and just be straight with your kids. Lay down firm consequences if they are caught using and follow through on them. Also emphasize what a complete waste of money using drugs is (when I used, pot was cheap) and that they can either have something to show for their money or they can just smoke it away like an idiot.
One other thing: maintain control over what is in your medicine cabinet. Prescription drug abuse is now more of a problem than heroin use. Keep your prescription meds locked up in your bedroom if you can.
When I was in high school, the worst that ever happened was a 3 day suspension. I hear all the time that kids are getting arrested for joints these days. I can't ease your concerns, it's up to the kids to find a clear path to adulthood.
When I was in high school, pot possession was still a felony. But that stopped nobody from using it. In the 1980's, pot was decriminalized and I know some high schoolers who were sussed by the cops at that time and just got tickets (which is a sane policy) and that continues today.
What gets me is that drug use is not just something that started in the 1960's. Back in the 1890's, you could order loaded syringes of heroin from the Sears catalogue. Opiates and cocaine were often used by housewives for "hysteria" (which is what we now call depression) or period pains and addiction in female white America was fairly widespread.
America has always liked to get high. Prohibition was enacted and only succeeded in making the Mafia a national organization and supplying it with billions of dollars.
So all you can do is try to rationally manage the proclivity for intoxicants. Legal and religious proscriptions don't work and neither does having school administrators impose drug testing (which only creates a siege mentality among all students, who already are feeling insecure and alienated, even the ones who don't touch drugs). Stop being such a bunch of nervous nellies and turning schools into prisons out of panic.
The article posted read like it was written by a student. It was full of generalizations.
Overall, I think today's students are more in tune with what they need to do to be successful. Ten years ago, living was a lot easier, and a college degree pretty much guaranteed a job. Now, reality hits.
As far as students in the 90's still respecting authority figures, remember Columbine was a product of that era.
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It's Not Just About Drugs
