This winter we had picked a book, entitled “Beautiful Boy” by David Sheff, as the winter reading for the entire Elementary and Early Childhood Education. The book is about the father’s perspectives on his son’s journey of drug addiction/abuse and death. It’s a sad story. Before meth, Sheff’s son, Nic, was a varsity athlete, honor student, and award-winning journalist. After meth, he was a trembling wraith who stole money from his eight-year-old brother and lived on the streets.
To explore the topics and implications about education, my students passionately shared their perspectives and organized their thoughts with messages in posters.
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To sum up, they all think the current D.A.R.E. program has not done enough to reach out to the troubled students as well as regular students. They believe that the earlier we start the education, the more positive impact we will impose on students. A good education and support system need to be in place to address this issue. The best way to educate students will be through the collaboration between school and families. However, both parents and teachers should realize it can be very touchy when it comes to the privacy issue. Do parents check children’s diaries, face book account, and other social media channels? Do parents and teachers know how to address issues properly with children? There are so much that we need to explore and learn.
