University Programs Encourage Kids to "Keep a Clear Mind"

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Sex and drugs are quickly becoming two of the most controversial issues in elementary education.

As children face these threats at earlier and earlier ages, parents are left with some difficult questions. How do we teach our children about the dangers of risky behavior, and how do we help them to make healthy decisions in the face of peer pressure and curiosity?

The University of Arkansas Health Education Projects Office may have some answers. Since 1981, director Michael Young and a team of research associates have been developing educational programs to inform young students about the dangers and decisions they may someday face.

The programs are designed for students of all ages - beginning with upper elementary grades and extending all the way to the high school level. Reaching students at such a young age is essential for preparing them to make healthy, future decisions, Young said.

"A lot of parents are concerned about their children learning about drugs and sex so young, but that’s the time to give them the tools, to prepare them for issues they’re going to face as they make the transition into middle schools or high schools," he said. "If you wait too long, kids will already be immersed in the situation, and then it’s much more difficult to reach them."

In addition to educating students, each program emphasizes parental involvement. As children and parents complete assignments together, they have the opportunity to discuss the issues in a meaningful way. Research has long shown that parent-child communication is a critical element in teaching kids to make healthy decisions, said Young.

While developing these curricula, the UA researchers field-tested each program in schools across the state and region. Furthermore, programs were rigorously evaluated for their impact on student knowledge and behavior.

The results were so impressive that one program, "Keep a Clear Mind," was recently selected by the Department of Health and Human Services’ Center for Substance Abuse Prevention as a model program for the nation.

Be a Winner

This drug education program targets fifth and sixth grade students and is administered by trained, uniformed law enforcement officials in partnership with school counselors and/or classroom teachers. In some communities where officers are not available, the program is successfully conducted by educators and/or high school students serving as peer educators. (In fact, several research studies have found peer educators to be highly effective).

The program concentrates on life skills, decision-making, communication, self-esteem, peer pressure resistance and alternatives to alcohol, tobacco and other drugs. It has been provided to over 200 schools in Arkansas as well as to thousands of students in Mississippi, Oklahoma, Missouri and Kansas.

Keep a Clear Mind

This parent-child drug education program focuses on 4-6^th graders and is facilitated by the school counselor or classroom teacher. The program consists of four lessons (alcohol, tobacco, marijuana, and tools to resist drugs). It also includes incentives for completing the lessons and parent newsletters.

At the beginning of each week, the teacher sends home a lesson with each child. The child completes the lesson with a parent or guardian. Each lesson contains information, simple questions, identifying ways to say "no" to pressure and practicing ways to say "no."

Students earn points by correctly answering the lesson questions. Parents sign a tear sheet, which indicates that the child has completed the lesson and calculates the number of points the child earned. Students who return the tear sheet to the teacher by the end of the week receive a small participation incentive (pencil, bookmark, sticker, etc.).

Following the four weeks of lessons, five newsletters are sent home to parents, one every two weeks. The newsletters provide parents with valuable information about drugs, tips for communicating with their children about drugs, and strategies they can use for helping their children avoid the use of drugs.

Implemented in this manner, the program provides contact over a full semester while requiring a minimal investment of classroom time.

Sex can Wait

This sex education curriculum consists of upper elementary, middle school and high school components. At each grade level, the program contains three elements, which work to build the motivation and skills needed for embracing an abstinence lifestyle.

The first element "Knowing Myself" addresses self-esteem and personal self-efficacy, reproductive anatomy and physiology, puberty and values.

The second component "Relating to Others" addresses the development and enhancement of communication skills, provides practice using refusal skills and rejecting social pressures and helps students brainstorm and implement non-sexual alternatives for meeting basic psychosocial needs. This section also builds factual knowledge concerning risks of early sexual involvement, knowledge concerning sexually transmitted diseases and works on decision-making skills.

The final portion "Planning my Future" further empowers students with the motivation to postpone early sexual involvement by encouraging goal setting and life planning.

Each lesson includes a lesson overview, behavioral objectives, a time estimate, and teacher friendly direction as to preparation and materials needed. Activities incorporate games, cooperative learning groups, role-plays, parent-child activities, brainstorming and other active learning methods of instruction.

The curriculum includes parent-child homework activities, and it reinforces parents as the primary abstinence educators.

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For more information on any of these programs, or if you want information about implementing these curricula in your local schools, contact Michael Young at the UA Health Education Projects Office, (479) 575-5639.