DRUG FACTS TAUGHT ONLINE

Program Designed For Middle-Schoolers

Glendale - Thirteen-year-old James Fischer thought he knew everything
he needed to know about illicit drugs.

But since his school rolled out BlueKids.org, a Web-based program that
quizzes students on the consequences of drug use, Fischer says he has
learned valuable information.

"To tell you the truth, if I wasn't doing this program, I wouldn't
take the time to look up this stuff," Fischer says in the computer lab
at Glen Hills Middle School, where he and 114 other students were
logged on to BlueKids.org.

The e-learning program, aimed at middle-schoolers, is being
implemented at a growing number of public schools throughout the
region, including Milwaukee Public Schools. The West Allis-West
Milwaukee School District used a $10,000 state grant for the program.
Glendale-River Hills is paying $7 per student for the program,
bringing the total cost to $805, according to seventh-grade science
teacher Mike Birmingham.

"It's a good investment," and the program gets positive reviews from
students, says Birmingham. "We didn't want to invest if they say it's
stupid or dumb."

What seems to work well about the program is that it's computer-based
and interactive, he says.

Recently, Fischer and other students dealt with questions such as
whether a person could die from first-time use of cigarettes,
inhalants or marijuana and whether alcohol is a stimulant, a
depressant or a hallucinogen.

They got tips on how to find credible drug information Web sites, such
as distinguishing between official dot-gov sites and dot-com sites set
up by commercial enterprises.

Links on BlueKids.org provide information about the effects of various
drugs. Students are tested before and after they do the exercises on
the site to see what they've learned. Birmingham says the tests
typically show that students have gained knowledge about the dangers
of drug use.

Fischer says one of the best features about the program is that large
groups of students get the same information the same way. He believes
that will discourage students from pressuring each other or being
pressured to experiment with drugs.

"If you learn with your friends, you can make sure none of you do it,
because you're on the same page," Fischer said.