Pubdate: Wed, 24 Aug 2005
Source: Waikato Times (New Zealand)
Copyright: 2005 Independent Newspapers Limited
Contact:  http://www.waikatotimes.co.nz/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/486
Author: Kimberley Rothwell
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/pot.htm (Cannabis)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/testing.htm (Drug Testing)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/youth.htm (Youth)

COLLEGE URGES PARENTS TO DRUG TEST THEIR KIDS

Morrinsville College is recommending parents drug-test their children
for cannabis after 13 and 14-year-old students were caught with the
drug.

In a school newsletter principal John Inger said there had been two
incidents over the past couple of months where students had been found
to be using drugs, either at school or when they were playing truant.

He said peer pressure could lead to other students trying cannabis and
suggested parents who see changes in their children get $30 urine
tests to check for cannabis use.

"It is money well spent, as you will then know if your child is using
cannabis," Mr Inger said.

Stopping the use of cannabis was important so children did not move on
to harder drugs like methamphetamine, he said. Students caught with
drugs at Morrinsville College are stood down for a maximum of five
days and appear before the school board's disciplinary committee. The
school also consults police youth aid officer, Senior Constable Wayne
Aberhart, about the situation. Mr Aberhart is a member of the
disciplinary committee.

Melville-based Green MP Nandor Tanczos - who supports cannabis law
reform - commended the school's approach of not suspending or
expelling students, but said drug testing was sometimes unreliable.

"The danger is that it can give false negative results so parents
think there is no problem, or a false positive where the child is
accused wrongly."

He said schools needed to take drug use very seriously, and determine
if it was experimentation or abuse.

Deputy principal Marian Sogarty said most students also underwent
random drug testing for a year to 18 months after being caught, and
have to write an essay or do research into drugs.

She said in the past few months a couple of groups of students from
Year 9 and 10 have been caught with "tiny" amounts of the drug.

"It's always difficult to track down where it is coming from, they
could be getting it from anywhere."

Drug use was rife in the community, she said.

Mr Inger said students caught with drugs at school were usually "the
silly ones, the show-offs, who have somehow acquired cannabis and want
to make a statement to others about being cool and
rebellious".

Three years ago, drug dogs were used at the college in an attempt to
track down students with drugs.

No drugs were found in the search.
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MAP posted-by: Larry Seguin