Drug education is the planned provision of information, guidelines, resources, and skills relevant to living in a world where psychoactive substances are widely available and commonly used for a variety of both medical and non-medical purposes, some of which may lead to harms such as

overdose A drug overdose (overdose or OD) is the ingestion or application of a drug or other substance in quantities much greater than are recommended. Retrieved on September 20, 2014.

injury Injury is physiological damage to the living tissue of any organism, whether in humans, in other animals, or in plants. Injuries can be caused in many ways, including mechanically with penetration by sharp objects such as teeth or with ...

, infectious

disease A disease is a particular abnormal condition that adversely affects the structure or function (biology), function of all or part of an organism and is not immediately due to any external injury. Diseases are often known to be medical condi ...

(such as

HIV The human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV) are two species of '' Lentivirus'' (a subgroup of retrovirus) that infect humans. Over time, they cause acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a condition in which progressive failure of the im ...

hepatitis C Hepatitis C is an infectious disease caused by the hepatitis C virus (HCV) that primarily affects the liver; it is a type of viral hepatitis. During the initial infection period, people often have mild or no symptoms. Early symptoms can include ...

), or

addiction Addiction is a neuropsychological disorder characterized by a persistent and intense urge to use a drug or engage in a behavior that produces natural reward, despite substantial harm and other negative consequences. Repetitive drug use can ...

. The two primary approaches to drug education are harm-reduction education and abstinence-based education.

Abstinence-based drug education

Abstinence-based drug education began with the anti-alcohol " temperance education" programmes of the

Woman's Christian Temperance Union The Woman's Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) is an international temperance organization. It was among the first organizations of women devoted to social reform with a program that "linked the religious and the secular through concerted and far ...

in the United States and Canada in the late 19th century. In many respects, the WCTU's

progressive education Progressive education, or educational progressivism, is a pedagogical movement that began in the late 19th century and has persisted in various forms to the present. In Europe, progressive education took the form of the New Education Movement. T ...

agenda set the template for much of what has been done since in the name of drug education. Abstinence-based education programs aim to inform adolescents of illicit drug use in an effort to prevent illegal drug use while highlighting the dangers of problematic substance use and strongly emphasizing

abstinence Abstinence is the practice of self-enforced restraint from indulging in bodily activities that are widely experienced as giving pleasure. Most frequently, the term refers to sexual abstinence, but it can also mean abstinence from alcohol (drug), ...

. Many studies have found that school-based abstinence education programs such as D.A.R.E. did not lead to a reduction in substance use, and one study discovered that suburban students who went through the D.A.R.E. program were actually significantly more likely to engage in drug use. The

Australian Government The Australian Government, also known as the Commonwealth Government or simply as the federal government, is the national executive government of Australia, a federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy. The executive consists of the pr ...

has implemented a range of drug education programs through the National Drug Education Strategy (NDES) by providing schools with effective drug education programs. The program aims to manage drug related issues and incidents within schools. The Australian Government Department of Health's Positive Choices portal, released in response to a National Ice Taskforce report, facilitates access to interactive evidence-based drug education resources and prevention programs for school communities. It builds on existing drug education resources developed by researchers at the

National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre The National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre (NDARC) is an Australian research institution focusing on treatment and intervention in drug abuse, drug and alcohol abuse. Located at the University of New South Wales Randwick campus, in the suburb ...

such as th
Climate Schools
(now calle
OurFutures
) programs that have been proven to reduce alcohol and drug related harms and increase student well-being. In addition to government-funded programs, a number of not-for-profit organisations such as Life Education Australia provide drug education programs to adolescents. These preventative programs aim to deliver a progressive approach that will motivate and encourage young people to make positive decisions in life. Emphasis within these programs is also placed in focusing on deterring

peer pressure Peer pressure is a direct or indirect influence on peers, i.e., members of social groups with similar interests and experiences, or social statuses. Members of a peer group are more likely to influence a person's beliefs, values, religion and beh ...

as a means of empowering adolescents and promoting autonomy. This approach reaches 750,000 primary and secondary students in Australia each year. The prevalence of abstinence-based programs declined throughout the early 21st-century following an uptick in substance use and the rise of the

opioid epidemic The opioid epidemic, also referred to as the opioid crisis, is the rapid increase in the overuse, misuse or abuse, and overdose deaths attributed either in part or in whole to the class of drugs called opiates or opioids since the 1990s. It inc ...

. School-based drug education programs have declined alongside it. In a 2021 survey, only 60% of American 12-17 year-olds reported seeing drug and alcohol preventing messaging in school.

D.A.R.E.

D.A.R.E. (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) is a program in the United States implemented in 5th grade school classrooms to educate students on the effects of drugs and temptations they may encounter, particularly in later education. The police officers who administer the program can also serve as community models for students. There is no scientific evidence that preventive drug education such as D.A.R.E. is effective, and some evidence that it may actually increase substance use rates in suburban teenagers.Benze, James G. (2005), p. 63

Harm reduction-based education

Harm reduction education emerged as an alternative to abstinence-based education in the late 20th-century and early 21st-century. Rather than encouraging complete abstinence and aiming to completely eradicate drug use in society, harm reduction education accepts that drug use is inevitable in modern society. It aims to reduce the harms associated with drug use by providing individuals with comprehensive information about the nature of substance use. Harm reduction education aims to improve health, social, and economic measurements rather than aiming primarily to reduce the rate of drug consumption. In the late 1990s and early 2000s, websites dedicated to harm reduction education such as the educational database

Erowid Erowid, also called Erowid Center, is a non-profit educational organization that provides information about psychoactive plants and chemicals. Erowid documents legal and illegal substances, including their intended and adverse effects. Inform ...

and the harm reduction forum

Bluelight Bluelight may refer to: * Billy Bluelight (1859–1949), English boat racer * '' Bluelight!'', a novel series * Bluelight (web forum) Bluelight is a Internet forum, web-forum, research portal, online community, and Nonprofit organization, non-pr ...

emerged. Erowid hosts information about hundreds of psychoactive plants and substances, while Bluelight is an online forum on which users discuss harm reduction and drug use. Both sites collectively host about 100,000 experience reports. By the early 2020s, many organizations such as the US government's

SAMHSA The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA; pronounced ) is a branch of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). SAMHSA is charged with improving the quality and availability of treatment and rehabilitat ...

had shifted from abstinence-based education to harm reduction-based education.

Effectiveness

A systematic review of abstinence-based school drug education published in 2003 found mixed results on its effectiveness. Many studies conducted in the early 2000s found that school-based abstinence education programs such as D.A.R.E. did not lead to a reduction in substance use, and one study concluded that suburban students who went through the D.A.R.E. program were actually significantly more likely to engage in drug use. A 2012 study published in the ''journal of Drugs: Education, Prevention & Policy came'' to the conclusion that students aged 13 to 15 who completed a drug and alcohol prevention program were less likely to develop a drug or alcohol problem.

Drug education campaigns and programs

Drug education can also occur through public campaigns rather than education programs. Examples include

advertising Advertising is the practice and techniques employed to bring attention to a Product (business), product or Service (economics), service. Advertising aims to present a product or service in terms of utility, advantages, and qualities of int ...

campaigns focused on raising awareness such as the UK Government's FRANK campaign or the US "media campaign". In efforts to prevent

substance abuse Substance misuse, also known as drug misuse or, in older vernacular, substance abuse, is the use of a drug in amounts or by methods that are harmful to the individual or others. It is a form of substance-related disorder, differing definition ...

, drug education may counter-productively perpetuate myths and stereotypes about psychoactive substances and people who use them. Indirect drug education programs such as the UK government's Positive Futures Program may utilize activities such as

sport Sport is a physical activity or game, often Competition, competitive and organization, organized, that maintains or improves physical ability and skills. Sport may provide enjoyment to participants and entertainment to spectators. The numbe ...

s and the

arts The arts or creative arts are a vast range of human practices involving creativity, creative expression, storytelling, and cultural participation. The arts encompass diverse and plural modes of thought, deeds, and existence in an extensive ...

to indirectly steer young people away from drug use. These programs aim to engage young people by relating to them and putting them in contact with positive role models (coaches/trained youth workers). After building a trusting relationship with a young person, these role models can gradually change attitudes towards drug use and steer the young person back into education,

training Training is teaching, or developing in oneself or others, any skills and knowledge or fitness that relate to specific useful competencies. Training has specific goals of improving one's capability, capacity, productivity and performance. I ...

and

employment Employment is a relationship between two party (law), parties Regulation, regulating the provision of paid Labour (human activity), labour services. Usually based on a employment contract, contract, one party, the employer, which might be a cor ...

. This approach reaches young people who have dropped out of mainstream education. It also benefits local communities by reducing

crime In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a State (polity), state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definiti ...

and

anti-social behaviour Anti-social behaviours, sometimes called dissocial behaviours, are actions which are considered to violate the rights of or otherwise harm others by committing crime or nuisance, such as stealing and physical attack or noncriminal behaviours s ...

Future improvements

Past research into drug education has indicated that effective drug education must involve engaging, interactive learning strategies that stimulate higher-order thinking, promote learning and be transferable to real life circumstances. Studies on school-based programs indicated that professional training and support may be required to increase the effectiveness of teaching staff and the uniform implementation of drug curriculum. A study in 2017 on youth-targeted harm reduction education found that effective harm reduction programming must utilize relatable and meaningful approaches and be connected to youth's lived experience.

References

External links

{{wikibooks, Teaching Elementary School Health Education/Alcohol, Tobacco, and Other Drugs
BlueprintDrug Education ForumPositive Futures ProgrammeTalk to FrankPositive Choices Drug Education portalClimate Schools Australia - is now OurFutures InstituteOurFutures Institutute
Education by subject Psychoactive drugs