DRUG AND BOOZE PROGRAM TO BE PART OF GRADE 10

Students in Grade 10 will have a lot more than the "three Rs" to consider
when attending high school. Drug and alcohol abuse education will soon be
part of required learning as the B.C. government unveils more of its plans
for changes to the Grade 10 education system.

"We are going to make alcohol and drug education a mandatory part of the
curriculum in Grade 10 for every child and if they don't pass that course,
which will be Planning 10, they won't graduate," education minister Christy
Clark told The TIMES. "So every child everywhere in B.C. who graduates from
our high schools will have to have a core understanding of the impact of
substance abuse. And I think that's really timely at this part of the year,
especially given that we've seen some tragic accidents and kids are out at
grad parties and probably some of them experimenting with substance abuse."

In an exclusive interview with reporters from the TIMES and its sister
newspapers, Clark unveiled the strategy that the changes will be a key
component of the new Planning 10 program. She said a consistent,
evidence-based program to address the risks of drug and alcohol abuse
"packs the biggest punch" to change kids' behaviour before tragedy strikes
more B.C. families.

"This is going to be a key feature (of Planning 10) because we've seen
these tragedies - kids getting into cars and killing themselves and killing
other kids. And I think we can do more as a society to make sure that kids
have the information that they need to perhaps make better decisions."

She said the ministry is currently hard at work on the new curriculum, and
said their goal is September - but the changes may not be in place until
2004 due to the complex nature of the changes.

Along with the latest announcement, the government plans for the course
include encouraging students to explore a range of career options, plan
their future and develop skills in areas such as employability, healthy
decision-making, and financial management. Grade 10 courses will also count
for graduation credit.

While she said the addition of drug and alcohol education "won't be the
cure-all," she thinks it is "part of the puzzle." Clark also said that some
districts are missing pieces of that puzzle - she said coverage in some
districts has been "spotty."

"I think in some districts they do a lot of it. In some districts they
don't do very much of it_there's so many different things happening out
there that there isn't really a guarantee about what's effective and what's
not," she said, adding they aren't trying to discourage districts from
supplementary programs of their own. "But we want to make sure that it is
embedded in the curriculum and that every child learns about it - before
they get into a car and go to a grad party. And I think the time to do that
is in Grade 10 when kids are starting to...become acquainted with some of
these behaviours."