SANTA ANA DARES

The Santa Ana Unified School District's desire to relegate the Drug
Abuse Resistance Education program to after-school hours is as gutsy
as it is prudent.Despite widespread evidence that DARE dose not
prevent kids from using drugs or joining gangs,the program remains
politically popular because of its well intentioned goals.

Santa Ana school officials aren't mulling the change based on evidence
about DARE's lack of effectiveness. The school system is "not
criticizing the program," deputy superintendent John Bennett told us.
But school officials are making the sound educational argument that
the program takes time away from fundamentals in a school system where
the test scores are far below the national average.

Santa Ana has asked the police to move DARE classes to mornings,
evenings or weekends, turning it into a voluntary program rather than
part of the school day. DARE would blend in with the district's "very
active after-school tutorial program" and would therefore still
generate much student interest, said Mr. Bennett.

The police department, which sends officers each week to teach the
courses, complains that it's too expensive to run the program after
hours, and that too few students are likely to attend. They warn that
the scheduling change would doom the program.

Would that be so bad?

A study released this month by the University of Kentucky, an official
study by the state earlier this year, and a study in May by the Santa
Monica-based Rand Corporation all come to similar conclusions: DARE
has no measurable effect on the propensity of students to use illegal
drugs.

DARE supporters argue that the program's benefits are immeasurable.
But even the best-intentioned efforts need to be scrutinized to assure
that scarce resources are being used effectively. If DARE doesn't get
the job done, then it's better to ask why rather than to say that its
value defies measurement.

The second rebuttal - that DARE provides other benefits, such as
teaching kids to like and respect the police - is weak. Teaching kids
respect for officers has its merit, but it's not sufficient
justification for a time-consuming school curriculum. Under that
rationale, wouldn't other professions deserve equal treatment?

In recent years, schools have become inundated with programs that
promote certain values (tolerance, multiculturalism, environmentalism)
and dissuade kids from harmful behaviors (smoking, drinking, drugs,
gangs). Yet the school day is finite, and social issues and mores are
most appropriately handled by individual families.

With its stance on the DARE program, Santa Ana Unified is saying that
it's time for schools to reassert their priorities, and put reading,
writing and arithmetic above a class designed to change behavior. The
district deserves support for its wisdom and courage.