Do you think drugs, alcohol and tobacco are a problem for America’s high school students? Believe it or not there are many adults who do not think the current level of drugs, alcohol and tobacco use in our high schools is a problem. I encourage you to ask yourself this question as we probe into what I consider a very real and dangerous problem.
The Scary Stats As reported in www.csmonitor.com.
In a recent study, 86% of American high school students report that some of their classmates use alcohol, tobacco, or other drugs during the school day. While we may have to temper that statistic given that involves them and their perceptions of their classmates, it still is a shocking number.
This is an especially graphic portrait of what is going on in high schools and among high school students – the fact that we have 9 out of 10 students saying that classmates are using drugs, drinking, and smoking during school the day on or near school grounds is mind-boggling.
Equally shocking is that almost 1 in 5 use drugs or alcohol during school hours! According to their peers, 17 percent of high school students use alcohol, tobacco, or drugs while at school, the survey found by asking students to estimate the percentage of their classmates engage in this behavior while at school.
Do you think mandatory drug education classes would help? Do you think they would hurt? I think all public high schools should implement alcohol classes, drug classes, tobacco classes and stop theft classes.