Pubdate: Sun, 25 May 2008
Source: Rocky Mountain News (Denver, CO)
Copyright: 2008 Denver Publishing Co.
Contact:  http://www.rockymountainnews.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/371
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/testing.htm (Drug Test)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/youth.htm (Youth)

DRUG TESTS FOR STUDENTS OUT OF LINE

Whether your son plays on his high school's football or  chess teams,
or your daughter is the school's premier  debater or basketball star,
they could be required to  submit to a random drug test if they want
to  participate. The kid who just shows up for class every  day,
though, will never have to worry about being  singled out, maybe even
if there's reason to suspect he  or she is using drugs.

That's the bottom line of a movement that is gaining  acceptance and
being adopted in an increasing number of  school districts in many
states. In Colorado, random  drug testing for students participating
in  extracurricular activities is policy in three districts  and under
serious consideration in at least a dozen  more.

The program is being promoted by President Bush's  Office of National
Drug Control Policy, and the idea  has been received favorably by many
educators. Some  parents, who feel something must be done about drug
use  in schools, support it, too - even though detecting  drug use by
randomly testing students is like firing  into the forest and hoping a
deer walks into the shot.

To us, the flaws in random student drug testing are  obvious, and
outweigh the justifications advanced by  all who advocate it.

President Bush, in his February 2007 National Drug  Control Strategy,
and Dr. Bertha Madras, the White  House's representative at the recent
"Random Student  Drug Testing Summit" held in Pagosa Springs, both
make  the case that random testing is the strongest deterrent  to drug
use in schools. Never mind that no persuasive  research supports their
view.

Focusing on students who participate in extracurricular  activities,
as all of the random testing programs do,  contradicts the widely held
belief that participation  in after-school activities keeps kids busy
and out of  trouble. Whether you're talking about competitive
athletics, band, choir, cheerleading or clubs ranging  from Future
Farmers to speech, aren't these the  endeavors that develop
self-discipline, responsibility,  pride, self-confidence and other
important character  traits?

What evidence is there that these young go-getters  indulge in higher
rates of drug use than their  presumably more idle, less motivated
colleagues? None  that we could locate. But if that's the case, why
single them out? Any suggestion that the entire student  population be
tested would of course provoke far more  resistance, and deservedly
so. Better to dispense  altogether with the dubious idea of testing.
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MAP posted-by: Derek