Whether or not education on drugs can deter later use and consequent addiction has been a topic of contention for quite a long time today. Before arriving at the conclusion on the topic it is imperative to comprehend what is meant by the term drugs education. Drugs education refers to the collective deliberate efforts to impart important knowledge concerning the consumption of illegal drugs among the youth and more especially the school age children (Rowan, 1996). Drugs education has been part and parcel of the social enterprise that is focused on the war against drugs. The education is offered in many styles. One of the most efficient methods through which the information is conveyed to the target groups which are mainly the youth and the children is through campaigns. The anti-drug campaigns are among the most common forms of social responsibilities carried out by various companies in the industry of consumables. This paper seeks to explain how the drugs education can deter use of drugs later in life.
Apart from the campaigns that are carried out by humanitarian groups, the government and the key players in the industry, the second most common form of drugs education is the school based education. This form of education, which is offered in the conventional classroom setting, can help deter the students from engaging in the abuse of drugs later in life (Miller, 2004). According to psychologists, child will always tend to trust their teacher more than anyone else. It is shocking that in some cases, the child can trust the teacher more than the parent even. Why? The major reason why a child is more likely to trust a teacher more than a parent is that a teacher is the first person to impart formal knowledge into the child. The child will therefore develop an attitude towards such a teacher that will tend to imply that the teacher knows everything. According to Conrad (1997), a young child will always ask himself why the father or the mother could not teach them, but opted to take them to the school where the teacher is the one in control. As such, the child will always grow knowing that the consumption of drugs is bad for their health. They will not easily unlearn this teaching since it is incorporated in their general attitude.
The second reason as to why it is valid to argue that drug education can deter later consumption of drugs is the fact that such education imparts knowledge on the dangers of consuming drugs. Most of the people that consume drugs, especially in the downtown area of the cities are ignorant. They possess little education and cannot tell the exact dangers of consuming alcohol and other hard drugs (June & Gary, 2011). The education usually focuses on the dangers that are likely to affect the individual in terms of health and physical well being. The education, be it campaigns or school based, emphasizes on the health dangers of drugs. For instance, the campaigns and awareness that is created through the advertisements of cigarette companies warn that excessive consumption of the tobacco, which is used in the manufacture of the cigarettes, can be a causative agent of cancer. Similarly, the alcohol dealers and manufacturers warn that excessive consumption of beer and other alcoholic drinks can easily cause a dangerous disease known as liver cirrhosis. The campaigns as well warn against the use of hard drugs such as heroin and marijuana. Such dangers exposed by the drug educators can compel an individual t keep off the consumption of drugs.
In addition to being efficient in the reduction of the chances of consuming drugs, the education on drugs is an appropriate complementary measure to effective parenting. A reasonable parent cannot advocate for the consumption of drugs by their children. As such, they will always warn their children against such drugs. The education offered in schools and through campaigns enhances the efforts of the parents. The combined efforts cannot possibly fail, considering that the teacher and the parent are the most trusted parties in the life of a child (Caulkins et al, 2012). The education offered on the issue of drugs can make the target groups develop a negative attitude towards the consumption of drugs. Once the attitude is developed, one can ably overcome peer pressure. Peer pressure has been identified as the major reason why the youth are indulging in drugs at high school age. Once exposed to education on drugs, an individual will always be reluctant to engage in bad company. The education can as well form the foundation and basis for strong personal principles and codes of conduct. A principled individual is less likely to engage in illicit consumption.
Drug education is one form of childhood intervention. Childhood intervention is, arguably, the most potent weapon against the consumption of drugs. Early intervention are the efforts by the concerned groups, especially the parents, through the multidisciplinary custodians, to have a person abandon the consumption of illicit drugs early in life or at early stages of the drug consumption behavior (Connolly, 2007). Such efforts are the most effective ways of permanently deterring an individual from taking drugs or indulging in some undesirable behavior. Critics have argued that the education on the consumption of drugs cannot deter the children and the youth from later consumption of drugs. They argue that some traits that drive one into the consumption of drugs are innate and are a matter of the genetic makeup of the individual. They therefore argue that the education cannot by any means alter the genetic makeup of an individual. Additionally, they argue that, as is the nature of children, they will always take the words of the teacher as a formality towards the completion of education. On the contrary, the claims of such critics are unfounded since drug consumption tendencies cannot be innate (Freidman, 1999). They are environment-generated and can only be controlled by addressing environmental factors.
In conclusion, it is worth noting that drug consumption is a matter of nurture rather than nature. For this reason, education, which is an element of nurture, is one of the most effective ways of dealing with the drugs menace. Education is as well said to be effective since it is likely to impact on the behavior and attitudes of an individual. The attitude o an individual towards something is not easily alterable (Conrad, 1997). As such, the individual will not easily opt to indulge in the consumption of drugs after the education system has equipped them with the necessary information, skills and outlook regarding to the dealing in and consumption of illicit drugs. It is a potent argument, therefore, that education on drugs can possibly deter the chances of an individual becoming a future consumer and a potential addict. It is for this reason that the experts in the war on drugs recommend education on drugs in all levels of schooling.
References
Caulkins, J., Hawken, A., Kilmer. B & Kleiman, M. (2012). Marijuana Legalization: What Everyone Needs To Know. Oxford: Oxford University Press
Connolly, S. (2007). Drug education: Straight Talking. Howard Drive West: Smart Apple Media
Conrad, C. (1997). Hemp for Health: Medicinal and Nutritional Uses of Cannabis Sativa. Vermont: Healing Arts Press
Freidman, R. (1999). Narcodiplomacy: education on drugs. New York. Cornell University Press
June, F & Gary, M. (2011). Collateral Damage: The War on Drugs and the Latin America and Caribbean Region: Policy Recommendations for The Obama Administration. Policy Studies 32(2), p.234-246
Miller, J. (2004). Bad Trip: How The War Against Drugs Is Destroying America. Nashville. WND Books
Rowan, R. (1996). The Great Book of drug education. Vermont: Park Street Press
