Model Programs for Schools and Families
Among the many types of programs that have been developed to combat the drug problem are those directed at schools and families. These constitute two distinct types of intervention programs identifiable not only by setting, but by the way the group setting is used in each case. The family is seen as a vital unit in providing a supportive environment for every member of that family. Education within the family group is also intended to bring the members of the family unit closer together so that they solve their problems as a unit for the benefit of individual members. School-based programs are geared toward drug education in a way that complements family and community programs, offering information which will serve the individual in each setting.
The school-based programs can be identified by the different emphases they place on how to influence behavior. Such programs are based on the belief that the key to controlling drug trafficking and drug abuse is to reduce the demand for drugs, and thus prevention and education are the main focal points. Such approaches are also thought to be more cost-effective when they work, since law enforcement is costly and has been unable to stem the tide of illicit drugs entering this country in any case. The best way to accomplish the goal is to see that programs for students and families fill the "voids" that drugs are asked to fill by drug takers. There are a series of points in the development of drug addiction, and intervention at each of these points can be directed at stopping the behavior. These points are contact with the drug, experimentation, integrated use, excessive use, and addiction. The ideal educational program offered by parents and schools should be presented at each of these intervention points. Such a program should be multidimensional, graded for age and ability, and evaluated by empirical means so that success or failure c...