Project Details: Substance Abuse

Project Idea:
Students would gather information on substances commonly abused in their communities and also identify the recovery programs available to victims of substance abuse in their countries. The information will be exchanged among participating schools.

Proposed stages:

Stage 1: Information gathering(September, 1999).

Students will gather information on the substances abused in their communities as well as the harmful effect of these substances. The information would be obtained through
(i) interviews, including responses to a questionnaire designed by the students with the assistance of the person coordinating the project in their community.
(ii) visits to rehabilitation centers,
(iii) talks given by competent persons.
(iv) Additional information may be obtained from the web.

The information is exchanged between participating schools. The information sought includes the following

(a) the substances commonly abused
(b) the age group of people abusing substance
(c) the reason why people take a particular substance
(d) what has been the effect of the substance on the individual
(e) what recovery programs are available to the victims of substance abuse
(f) are people aware of the availability of these programs.
(g) Ways in which people can get out of substance abuse.

Stage 2: Information exchange( October-November)

The students exchange the information they have gathered via e-mail with their partners in other schools or organizations. Comparisons are made and questions asked. The students interact with each other to enrich their knowledge.

Stage 3: A summary report of the project (December)
This will be presented to the local media in various communities to highlight the effect of substance abuse. At the school level posters would be put up highlighting the findings of the project. An exhibition would be mounted by participating schools on substance abuse. This could be timed to coincide with a talk on the subject. A web site will be created for the project and hosted by one of the participants.

Educational goals of the project:
1. To train students to be well-informed about substance abuse so that they can serve as community leaders to educate their peers.
2. To educate the general public about the harmful effects of substance abuse and to publicize the recovery programs available
3. To help students acquire the habit of working as a team among themselves and among their colleagues who fall victim to substance abuse. They will thus serve as support persons for victims of substance abuse.

4. To let students link the theory and practical aspect of the topic,"substance abuse". An annual substance abuse day could be observed by the participants to make the project an on-going one.

Age group:14-19

Registration to participate: 1st November 2000-1st March 2001

Language: English

Project starts: 30th March, 2001.

Project ends: 30th December, 2001.

Contact person: Samuel B. Atindana e-mail: atind@achimota.edu.gh

NB: The project is open to participation from any group of people interested in stamping out the menace of substance abuse from our communities. It is not restricted to only those in schools.

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