Index for the D.A.R.E. FAILING OUR KIDS series:

Sun, 27 Feb 2000:

D.A.R.E. Doesn't Work
http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n281/a04.html

DARE Wary Of Outside Reviews
http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n281/a02.html

Some Schools Opt Out Of Program
http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n282/a04.html

Officers Become School Favorites
http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n281/a06.html

Officers Hope To Make A Difference
http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n292/a02.html

Analysis Tracks Students' Drug Use
http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n292/a03.html

Mon, 28 Feb 2000:

DARE's Clout Smothers Other Drug Programs
http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n292/a04.html

Raves Thrive As Teen Drug Havens
http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n293/a04.html

Parents Struggle When Discussing Drugs With Teens
http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n292/a05.html

Tips For Parents
http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n293/a03.html

Parents' Anti-Drug Resource Guide [many website links]
http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n293/a02.html

Tue, 29 Feb 2000:

Editorial: Drugs: Dare to be Honest
http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n293/a05.html

Readers: Cops Key to DARE Success, Failure
http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n293/a06.html

DRUGS: DARE TO BE HONEST

A two-part series by The Detroit News reported that DARE, the
multibillion-dollar, nationwide drug prevention program, is making no
difference in lowering teenage drug or alcohol use in Metro Detroit .
It may even be making matters worse. These findings confirm at least a
dozen previous national studies.

It may be time for schools to return responsibility for the matter to
families -- where it properly belongs.

The News' investigation, based on surveys by Western Michigan
University of eighth, 10th and 12th graders in Metro Detroit every two
years, found that kids who have undergone the program are just as
likely to use drugs as those who have not. Although some schools in
recent years have dropped DARE, which stands for Drug Abuse Resistance
Education, the program is still offered in 70 of the 88 area
districts. Yet, according to The News, 60 percent of Detroit area
seniors admit to trying drugs, compared with 55 percent nationally.

Despite mounting evidence about DARE's ineffectiveness, the program,
in which uniformed police officers teach fifth and sixth graders how
to resist peer pressure, remains hugely popular. Indeed, the federal
government alone spends $2 billion annually on the program — with
local grants, local fund raisers and donations pouring in millions
more. More than $2 million is spent on the program in Metro Detroit.

Although DARE has used this money to preach drug abstinence for a
quarter of a century, drug use in America has gone up in recent years:
A University of Michigan study two years ago found that marijuana use
among eighth graders tripled between 1991 to 1996. Similarly, other
studies have found a slight increase in drug use among suburban kids
who have taken DARE.

It is difficult to definitively link this increase with DARE. But the
program relies on scare scenarios and blanket proscription to drive
home the danger of drug use. Yet, researchers speculate, when children
discover these exaggerations, they abandon all caution, creating a
"boomerang" effect.

Whatever the cause of the observed increase, it is clear that the
program does not provide a life-time inoculation against drug abuse.
Some of DARE's critics suggest replacing the program with its message
of zero tolerance with others that emphasize how to deal with the
consequences of drug use, such as an overdose. This sounds realistic,
but may have the perverse effect of encouraging drug use by discussing
ways to make it safe.

Drug and alcohol use is a complicated matter that simply is not
amenable to a full and nuanced exploration in the classroom. It may be
time to bring parents and families back into the equation and
encourage them to design their own specific message for their own
kids: Lulling them into a false sense of security with feel-good
programs is a disservice to all.

Our View

Mounting evidence that DARE, the drug-abuse prevention program, is
ineffective ought to cause area schools to rethink their commitment to
it.

Opposing View

DARE is widely popular anti-drug school program that ought to be
continued.