There are no "drug" prevention classes in schools. Comprehensive safety education on smoking, drinking, and drug abuse is provided for 10 hours every year, but prevention of drugs was not a major concern here either. Students know that drugs are bad, addictive, and dangerous at the level of common sense, but maybe they learned more from the media than from school.
No wonder the education authorities have been indifferent to drug prevention education so far. Smoking and alcohol prevention are the most important things for education authorities in the past and now.
In the past, there have been cases of bond inhalation, but real drugs were inaccessible to teenagers. Drug addicts were mainly men in their 40s and 50s. There was no room for "ordinary" adolescents to intervene in secret face-to-face transactions among "drugs." From the perspective of the education authorities, it was right to focus on cigarettes and alcohol, which teenagers often encounter but are easily available.
But times have changed. Recently, young people in their teens to 30s have been exposed to drugs.
According to prosecution statistics, the number of teenage drug offenders was 450 last year, nearly quadrupling from 119 in 2017. This year, 396 people came out by September. The proportion of teenagers among all drug offenders also increased from 0.8% in 2017 to 2.9% this year. The increase in the number of teenage drug offenders can never be taken lightly, as it is impossible to escape for a very long time once you are addicted to drugs.
The number and proportion of drug offenders in teenagers and young people in their 20s are increasing significantly.
The number and proportion of drug offenders in teenagers and young people in their 20s are increasing significantly.
The fact that drug transactions are carried out in a way familiar to the younger generation, such as SNS and the "Dark Web," is cited as the reason for the increase in teenage drug offenders. Teenagers who are more familiar with IT than adults can now access drugs more easily than in the past. On top of that, education authorities understand that there are cases where it is spread by disguising it as a medicine that loses weight and a medicine that improves the brain.
As the situation became like this, the education authorities also started to come up with alternatives.
In the case of the Daegu Metropolitan Office of Education, they started education on preventing harmful drugs such as drugs with the Korea Anti-Drug Movement Headquarters. The Daegu Metropolitan Office of Education said it signed a business agreement with the Anti-Drug Movement Headquarters for proper drug prevention lectures and received instructor support.
The first lecture started last month. "Can I go on a trip to a country where cannabis is legal?" A case-oriented class was conducted, such as "Can I take care of the luggage of a stranger at the airport?" Even though it was a class for high school seniors who finished the CSAT, many students participated with interest. After class, he said, "I knew very little about drugs. "I think students need this kind of class."
Narcotics Prevention Class. An instructor at the Anti-drug Movement Headquarters is conducting a drug prevention class for high school students.
Narcotics Prevention Class. An instructor at the Anti-drug Movement Headquarters is conducting a drug prevention class for high school students.
The Daegu Metropolitan Office of Education has planned to operate at 140 middle and high schools by June next year. In addition, as we have taken the first step, we plan to prepare an improvement plan by analyzing the contents of the program, student responses, and effects.
A legislative amendment has also been proposed. Lee Tae-kyu, a member of the National Assembly's Education Committee, proposed a revision to the School Health Act, which calls for the Minister of Education to prepare a preventive education program on drug risks with judicial authorities and the Ministry of Health and Welfare, and the head of school to provide preventive education on drug risks to students and faculty every year.
The current law stipulates that "prevention education for drug misuse and abuse, including drinking, smoking, and drugs," but the lawmaker's office explains that the need for drug prevention education is separately included because the field focuses on drug abuse rather than drugs. It also predicted that the bill could be passed by the first half of next year after consultation with the Ministry of Education.
In an era where various drug news is no longer unfamiliar, it is difficult to proudly say that it is a "drug-free country." Drug prevention education for future generations is becoming more important.
Writer: Amy Jeong
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