A Teacher's Story
Drugs in Schools
Anecdotes about observations with drugs in professional settings.
Quite some time ago, when I was teaching fulltime, I recall my memories of a beautiful boy, who entered the school at Year Seven. He was eager to learn and looking forward to his time at school. He had a very sweet smile, almost angelic in many ways.
However, he began to change over time.
At first, the smiles ceased. Then, he began to look almost sullen. Finally, he began to isolate himself from other students. I also observed that he was visibly losing weight.
By the time he was in Year Nine, he was no longer that same, sweet boy who came to the school 2 years previously. With no explanations that I was aware of he left school. I had however noticed he was reed thin and I suspected a use of marijuana on a daily basis.
This is all I know and understand, but it has left a significant imprint on my mind.
Keep an open dialogue with your children, ask them how school is going. Most importantly listen, don't judge. Work together to find strategies to help you child be more confident dealing with peer pressure.
Another Story
In yet another school, in a different suburb, more affluent and displaying a far more confident presence in the local media, I had an entirely different experience involving drugs. I was teaching a class of very tall students in Year Eleven.
A student very stridently entered the classroom, with a large clear plastic bag of tablets. He placed them on his desk, and said nothing. I froze, as I understood that I could do nothing about it. The other students in the class were laughing about it and acted very nonchalantly. I felt powerless, knowing that the staff in higher up administration would do nothing to support me, even if I chose to say something to them. Thus, I said nothing about it.
A short time later to this event, I discovered that this particular student kept a large, clear plastic bag of pills in his locker. Everyone knew about it.
The Deputy Principal searched his locker and located the bag of tablets (and it was large). The student was suspended. What happened next is the most surprising part of this event. The parents engaged the services of a QC to represent the student. As a result of this legal representation, an apology was issued to the student for invading his personal space (his locker) and invading his privacy. He quietly returned to the school and nothing more was either said or done about him.
The fact that he could have been a drug dealer or distributor was not even mentioned.
This also left a strong memory in my mind. What discipline? What consequences?What is the attitude to drugs and drug dealing?
