COMMUNITY VIEW: DARE DESERVES A CHANCE

I was deeply saddened to read about the Salem-Keizer School District's
decision to cut the DARE program from half ot its schools. As an elementary
education major at Western Oregon University, I've had the opportunity to
observe the DARE program in action. Not only does DARE educate students
about drugs, but more .important. it teaches them how and why to say no to
drug abuse.
Drug abuse is on the rise among youth. Since the effectiveness of DARE is
difficult to measure, the rising numbers of youth abusing drugs is utilized
in forming the conclusion that DARE does no work But I wonder what the
statistics would be if there were no DARE program.
Such studies are inconclusive because they only look at one area of the
issue without incorporating other possibilities. Is this to say that when
students' reading and mathematics scores drop, we should cut these areas
from education as well? I wonder what message we are sending to children,
when we give up on a program that can do so much good, simply because some
people question its effectiveness
Too much emphasis is put on the students' test scores. They are published in
the newspapers periodically to show us how students are stacking up to
national averages. But what are these tests actually telling us? They simply
show society how capable children are of memorizing facts and regurgitating
data.
Such tests tell us nothing about an individual's ability to think for
himself or herself, or to do work collaboratively at solving a challengmg
problem. This is not to say that I don't think the basic subjects in school
aren't important, because they are. But I urge you to go to any college or
university education program and find out what.is being taught.
Educators are learning to teach all subjects in a more holistic manner,
meaning that the basics are emphasized, as well as life skills that students
must know to survive, DARE teaches many of these life skills to students. A
regular classroom teacher can help students learn these. But there's
something special about a police officer coming into a classroom, with
first-hand knowledge and experiences to teach the kids.
Students develop a rapport with the officer and grow to respect him/her
and what he/she has to offer. As a 21-yesrold observing a fttth-grade
classroom during weekly DARE, I learned things about drugs that I never even
knew before. But DARE is not just about drugs; it's about building childrens
self-esteem and giving them confidence in how to handle difficult situations.
There always will be kids who make wrong decisions when it comes to drug
abuse. But the DARE program is a wonderful way to empower children and help
them feel good about themselves.
We have to at least give students the opportunity to learn valuable
information that can be so useful in life. Combined with a good base of
education and fundamentals, DARE can go so far. Please give it a chance

Checked-by: Patrick Henry