Lately I have been thinking a lot about our students. Our students who are diverse and able to do amazing things with tools we never had as students. But these students also face more issues and struggles than ever before. It is amazing to think about and even after we come to grips with it. Sometimes reading an article can still take us by surprise. Recently I was reading an article titled "Recovery high school a 'soft landing' for post-rehab teens" about Recovery High School which details a high school aiding students with substance abuse histories graduate from high school.
While it is clear that technological advances have made more opportunities available to student than ever before, we also have to acknowledge this struggle with substance abuse and other issues which has only increased. Drugs and alcohol are not a new problem for students to be facing but that does not make it any less daunting. Reading this article reminded me that this struggle is alive and well. This quote is poignant and says it all, “Adolescent drug abuse cuts across all demographics -- race, class and geography.”
Cuts across all demographics? Really? It is easy to believe that some students are more likely to become drug addicts or maybe it is that whole “it couldn’t happen here” mind frame. But even after coming to grips with the students being addicts, I hadn’t thought about students needing to return to school. School which is supposed to be safe and welcoming can suddenly stay sober in the same old environment. This same school could not be part of the solution for these students but rather be part of the problem.
This article tells the story of Northshore Recovery High school whose curriculum is standard but who support is directed towards keeping students clean and sober. This school is new but not the first school of this type. The first actually was Sobriety High in Edina, MN which was opened in 1987. This high school and the several other ones have started to create the place for post rehab high school students.
The graduation rate of Northshore Recovery High School is high - 90% high which is boasted to be higher than most public schools. With graduation rates and support this high, there is no doubt that Northshore Recovery High School as well as other post rehab high schools serve these students. With education, our students as well as our materials and methods have changed. Needing to figure out how to deal with these changes and educate our youth is exactly what the founders of these alternative schools did.
Let’s follow their lead and figure out how to meet our student’s needs.
Why do HS students drop out?
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The Baltimore Sun reported that hundreds of educators in Maryland met in
late June to focus on three questions - what drives students out of school
- what ...
14 years ago
This article was personally interesting to me as I have a son, now in placement, that was supposed to graduate this spring but dropped out instead. He was basically kicked out of school because of his substance abuse and behavior issues that resulted from the usage. As we have worked through counseling and other programs through the placement agency, his Dad and I have come to learn exactly how easy it was to obtain drugs at his high school and the spots where students were not able to be detected using those drugs. We are a few months away from him being released from placement and he is talking about possibly going back to his old high school to finish his senior year and graduate. This worries me greatly because his old "using" friends are still around Bismarck. His comment to me today (he is here on a home visit) was you are only sober if you want to be sober. Where you are doesn't necessarily matter. Even though his Dad or I are required to be with him 24/7 during a home visit, he has pointed out the opportunities that he has had to obtain drugs while home this weekend if he had wanted to. He reiterated that the choice is his now that he wants to stay sober. While I applaud this type of high school, eventually adolescents will have to make a choice to stay sober like my son has. There is no forever protective environment like that school. I pray that my son will not relapse when he returns to school.
ReplyDeleteThis post is an excellent example of giving/teaching kids exactly what they need to be successful after school. Not all students are the same, obviously, some need more help in math, some in english, and some have drug and alcohol issues. Just because these topics are not your typical school curriculum does not mean some kids don't need it.
ReplyDeleteIn every school mission statement I have ever read it states that the school is trying to get the students ready to become productive citizens (or something along those lines). We need to make sure that we are doing just that and if it means sending kids to an alternative school so they can get help, that is just what we need to do.
I think these schools are a blessing for young kids that are struggling with addiction and will continue to struggle as it never ends. I posted in Greta's blog this week about addicts often times trading one addiction for another. Maybe being around other students that are facing the same struggle as them can be beneficial in their recovery. Beth's post brings a good point. You only stay sober if you want to. Each of these kids made a conscious choice to start using and became addicted. I think we as teachers need to be better trained in identifying students that are struggling in life or home situations that we can reach out to before they start self medicating. We are lucky enough to have an addiction specialist on staff at our school that students have to meet with for a certain amount of hours the first time they receive an alcohol or drug suspension. We also send names of students to our school psychiatrist that we worry about and have a silent mentor program in which teachers are paired with these students to just say "hi" or as how things are going, keep an eye on them in school, etc.
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