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Guidelines for selecting resources

Student needs, interactive strategies and the role of the teacher are critical factors to consider when designing drug education programs. Resources can contribute to learning experiences by stimulating interest and enjoyment, but it is more significant to consider how a resource is used not whether a resource is used.

A resource will be useful if it will:

contribute to the achievement of drug related learning outcomes,
enable the students to be engaged in the interactive processes,
complement the central role of the classroom teacher in the delivery of the drug education program.

Using a resource is unlikely to be productive if:

the resource focuses on drugs and /or drug use that students are unlikely to encounter,
the resource is to be used as a 'one-off' or 'stand alone' activity rather than contributing to an ongoing, comprehensive, developmentally appropriate program.

Resources should be also considered in terms of their ability to address the needs of students:

who choose to abstain from drugs,
who postpone or delay their drug use,
who already use drugs,
who are experiencing difficulties with their own use or that of relatives or friends.

Guidelines

1. Resources should be selected and evaluated on their capacity to achieve drug related learning outcomes that contribute to the broad health outcome of reducing drug related harm.
2. Selected resources should provide information about drugs and drug use that students are likely to encounter, and which cause the most harm to individuals and/or society.
3. Information about drugs should be presented only after consideration of the learning context (the way it is presented) and the social context (the way the drug is used) of the student.

Checklist for selecting teaching resources

Resources should:

present a balance of drug use information based on possible effects, risks and consequences of drug use,
differentiate between problematic and experimental use,
acknowledge that effects of drug use are the result of interaction between the characteristics of the drug, the person involved, and the environment in which it is consumed,
include normative education, which teaches adolescents that most people do not use drugs,
portray realistic representations of physical, emotional, social and financial harm relevant to young people,
refrain from presenting information about drugs and drug use in a way that would support, encourage or normalise drug use/experimentation with dangerous substances and procedures.

Avoid using resources that:

exaggerate and misrepresent the dangers of drug use,
glamorise - presenting drug use/users as sophisticated,
present frightening case studies that are too far removed from the reality of young people,
contain emotionally loaded videos and personal anecdotes,
romanticise - using slang or 'street' names without using the pharmacological name which highlight a drug's supposed positive effects, while concealing the potential harms associated with its use,
give information on how to obtain, make or use potentially harmful substances, including detailing the chemical composition of substances,
use pictures and images of drug use or the drug user that are appealing and attractive.

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