DRUG ALARM FOR TAFE STUDENTS

Many TAFE students are turning up for lessons after taking drugs and
alcohol, with a new survey showing a significant increase in the use
of alcohol, cannabis and illicit drugs.

A survey of more than 5,000 NSW TAFE students found about 10 per cent
of all employed students reported they had been to work after having
used cannabis and about 20 per cent had driven a car after using it.

It found smoking among students had risen from 37 per cent in 1992 to
about 43 per cent last year. While just over half the respondents in
1992 had tried cannabis at least once, two-thirds of students had done
so in 1996, with about a quarter of all students using cannabis weekly.

The survey of students aged 16 to 25, carried out by the NSW
Department of Education and Training, was released following a Freedom
of Information request after the department earlier refused to make
the findings public.

The department's deputy director-general of development and support,
Ms Jozefa Sobski, said she was not surprised by the results, which
reflected what was happening in the community.

While she was concerned about drug use generally and was "absolutely
appalled that we can't get on top of the problem", it was not just a
problem for the department. "I am not surprised that the figures say
there is drug use among our students because our students don't come
from another planet" she said. "They are drawn from the community."

The results of the current survey were compared to a similar survey
conducted by the department in 1992. The latest survey showed more
students were turning up for classes after drinking - 7.4 per cent
last year compared with 1.5 per cent in 1992.

Weekly alcohol consumption was at 64 per cent compared with 53 per
cent in 1992.

Up to 64 per cent of students were drinking unsafe levels of alcohol
and 6 per cent reported drinking before attending college.

More than 23 per cent of students had tried amphetamines or cocaine,
with 20 per cent of 16-to 17-year-olds reporting they had tried these
stimulants.

Five per cent of students had tried heroin last year and 13 per cent
had tried ecstasy.

About one in 10 students who had ever tried cannabis believed they had
a problem with the drug, with nearly one in five who had ever used it
reporting they had tried at least once to stop, cut down or control
its use but failed.

Half of all students reported using cannabis and alcohol on the same
occasion. One in 10 thought cannabis was never addictive and about a
quarter believed it was always addictive.

The director of research for Life Education Australia, Dr Terry
Metherell, said the Federal and State governments were spending a
"pitiful" amount of money to combat adolescent drug misuse and there
was an increasing culture that was permissive of drug use among young
people.

Checked-by: Patrick Henry