Drug use is becoming more prominent at Bowie and faculty members and staff are not doing enough to prevent it. Teachers and faculty members should monitor students’ behavior in the classroom and watch for possible drug use. Although teachers, administrators, and staff members already have a lot on their plate, and monitoring students’ behavior issues is hard, it is crucial to help stop drug use.
I think that Bowie does not consider drug use a serious topic and it is often neglected by administrators, negatively impacting students’ health and well-being. High school drug use has been on the rise since 2008 and has continued to grow ever since. Drug use can dramatically decrease on campus if teachers and staff take the time to intervene in student behavior.
According to the National Institute of Health, data on rates of abuse for Vicodin, OxyContin, and Percocet began to be collected in 2002 in the MTF study. Among high school seniors, annual prevalence rates for Vicodin abuse have gone from 4.1% in 2002 to 5.7% in 2008; rates of OxyContin abuse have gone from 1.6% in 2002 to 3.7% in 2008; and rates of Percocet abuse among high school seniors have gone from 1.9% in 2002 to 2.9% in 2008.
Experts say that substance use problems are more likely if you notice several of these signs at the same time if they occur suddenly, or if some of them are extreme. The signs include mood changes (e.g., flare-ups of temper, irritability, defensiveness), poor class attendance, low grades, behavior problems, and disregard for school rules, according to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.
Drug use is very addictive and negatively impacts kids throughout their entire adult lives. When teens use drugs they are more likely to receive bad grades and there is a higher likelihood of them dropping out of high school. According to Get Smart About Drugs, teens who abuse drugs have lower grades, a higher rate of absence from school and other activities, and an increased potential for dropping out of school.
Bowie should implement a mandatory lecture once a month on the effects that drug use has on the body. Many schools, including Bowie, still don’t have any anti-drug use signs, lectures, and informational meetings, and that is a problem. According to NPR, only about 60% of 12-17-year-olds self-reported that they saw or heard drug or alcohol prevention messaging in school.
Teachers, faculty members, and staff need to do a better job of watching out for students’ health at Bowie. Overall, drug use has negatively impacted so many kids’ lives and schools need to be doing a better job of preventing it.
