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Drug Education

Drug abuse is an ever increasing risk for our society, especially for the youth, who are surrounded by various influences that seems to encourage them to pick up such habits. Movies, Video games, Television, actions of celebrities seems to portray a picture to young minds that using drugs is a cool thing and you can still be successful if you do so. Such influences are at large and it is vital to protect youngsters from falling in to drug abuse and addiction. Educating young minds becomes a necessary step to prevent or stop children from falling in the trap of substance abuse.

Drug awareness programs for youth can help in preventing youth from taking up drugs. However, some programs tend to be more effective than others and one need to focus on the methodology that gives best results. There can be several benefits of drug education in children. Drug education programs for youth not just help in preventing a large percentage of youth from getting in to drug usage, but it also prevents them in their adulthood from taking up drugs. The education about drug abuse and their ill-effects at early age tend to have its impact even when children grown up and they are less likely to take up drugs during adulthood too. In other benefits, studies show that young adults, who participated in substance abuse programs in childhood, are less likely to be involved in to risky sexual behavior down the line as they grow up.

Ways to implement drug education-

Education about drugs is concerned about providing information, exploring issues and helping people to develop their confidences and make healthier choices. Drug education needs to be age and developmentally appropriate, to focus on risk and protective factors. Different approaches are taken for people of different ages, cultural backgrounds and levels of drug sophistication.

There are different ways or resources to implement drug education at various levels. A whole range of resources, besides money, educational material etc are needed to meet the goals of these educational programs.

Schools and colleges-

Schools, teachers and the whole school community have a role in providing a safe and supportive environment for young people so that they can develop appropriate knowledge and attitude to make positive healthy choices about the use of drugs. The focus of these programs should be on behavioral, rather than knowledge or attitudinal outcomes. Sessions should emphasize "student-to-student"rather than "student-to-teacher" interactivity, employing role plays,brainstorming and peer-to-peer discussion. Schools or colleges should organize various policies on health and well-being (including drug education), and drug education programs within the context of national curriculum.

Mass media-

Education using mass media signifies several types of mass communication methods and approaches to create awareness about drugs and their harmful effects. These include mass media campaigns at national, regional or local levels, television and radio programmes (drug information series or documentaries), audio visual services,and educational materials containing drug information distributed house to house. Television, radio and magazines play an important role in forming the perceptions, opinions and attitude of people. They offer a great way to pass on educational messages to large media. The printed media and radio have also become a high-key medium to create awareness about drugs and their adverse effects.

Group sessions-

There are many different kinds and types of group methods that focus on transfer of knowledge (through lectures and classroom teaching), attitude change (through discussions and role playing)and exchange of opinion.

Panel or forum discussions-

For people who do not like to attend seminars, classrooms or meetings in person, online forums and panels offer a great option for drug education. There are several online panels and forums where one can learn about various queries related to drug and their use.These forums are moderated by expert moderators who have correct, factual information about various types of drugs and their abuse. Forums are an excellent medium to gain knowledge from other people.

Online drug education classes-

With the improvement and accessibility to modern technology, online drug awareness classes are becoming quite popular. Unlike ordinary classes, these classes provide people with an opportunity of learning how to overcome their addictions in the safe environment of their home. These programs can also fulfill your work conditions. They are not just affordable and convenient, but the content used here is constantly updated with the most cutting edge based research tools and skills.