PRIMARY SCHOOL PUPILS FACE DRUG TESTS

Growing drug use among primary school pupils is prompting boards of
trustees to call for more drug tests across all ages.

Thirty-three children were stood down or suspended from Canterbury
primary schools last year for drug-related reasons - more than three
times as many as in 2004, when 10 pupils were suspended.

While the drug problem is far more serious in secondary schools, where
214 Canterbury students were stood down last year, school authorities
say increased drug use among primary-aged children is disturbing.

At the New Zealand School Trustees' Association annual conference in
Christchurch yesterday, trustees called for more testing as it was the
most effective way to deal with children caught using, selling or
possessing drugs.

Trustee adviser Ron Mulligan said suspension of a student for drug use
was the only area where boards had the power to act in a quasi-legal
manner.

"If a student has been suspended for drug use, then boards can require
a clear drug test as part of their return to school," he said.

"Imposing this condition is about ensuring students have a healthy
mind."

Drug tests had become increasingly widespread in schools over the past
18 months as boards became more aware of how to use the tests, he said.

Cannabis was the most prevalent drug found in schools.

There was a marked rise in drug offences at schools in April and May,
when cannabis crops were harvested, Mulligan said.

Parental permission for testing was not required as the student was
involved in a disciplinary matter and the board had the right to
impose reasonable conditions for a return to school.

But Canterbury Council for Civil Liberties spokesman Graeme Dunstall
said drug tests were intrusive and parental consent should be
mandatory. "It is not enough to say the board is acting on behalf of
the parents," he said.

"If the child is under the age of consent, it becomes a health issue
and the parents need to become involved.

"I am surprised schools are considering such draconian
measures."

New Zealand Principals' Federation president Pat Newman said no-one
should be surprised at the increase of drugs in primary schools when
society's use of cannabis was so high.

While some pupils would take drugs to school to show off, everyone
accepted drug use at such a young age was growing, he said.

"Twenty years ago, we would never have seen drugs in primary schools -
10 years ago, maybe once a year - but now we are seeing it as often as
once a month," he said.

Primary schools were luckier than secondary schools as it was still
easier to intervene and the problem was still manageable, especially
with drug tests, Newman said.

"Drug tests are there to help kids, not to nail them," he
said.

"We use them to identify a problem so students can get some help.
However, we do have to stand them down to keep other children safe."

Trevor McIntyre, the principal of Christchurch Boys' High School,
which had 10 students caught smoking marijuana on a school trip to
South Africa last year, said he supported extra drug tests in schools.

"We test for learning disabilities and, in the same way, if we believe
a student's learning is being disadvantaged by drug-taking, we have a
duty to test for this," he said.