Adolescents and Alcohol Initiative

							Adolescents and Alcohol Initiative Progress report March 09
With 27.8% of 12 to 17 year old South Australian schoolchildren consuming alcohol at very harmful levels (more than 5 standard drinks on one occasion in the past two weeks), outcomes of research about the impact of alcohol on adolescent consumers is providing an added impetus to address this issue and its implications for wellbeing and learning. The Adolescence and Alcohol Initiative 2008 will focus on this issue as a component of a whole school approach to wellbeing. The initiative can provide an opportunity to strengthen or extend alcohol education through the broad and inclusive participation of young people, to involve parents and community, and share learning with colleagues. Teachers leading the project in your school will be supported through professional learning and practical project support to promote:    an understanding of issues and dynamics relating to adolescent alcohol use, and the implications for wellbeing and learning good practice in teaching and learning, relevant resources, inquiry processes, student participation and parent involvement evidence-based approaches consistent with the Principles for School Drug Education.

1. Enfield High School: Focus area: Senior school alcohol education: multicultural perspectives and community links. Inquiry question: What are the needs of our diverse group of students at EHS in relation to alcohol education? What kind of school-community program and/or approach will best meet these needs? New counsellor Deborah Barry has taken over initiative from Sally Clarke who has gone to Victor High. Sally had planned to embed a unit of work in Community Studies where students co-research their own and peers’ (and possible parents’) knowledge about alcohol, alcohol laws, impacts and services from a multicultural perspective. Students may present their findings to the community research group addressing youth binge drinking in the local area, and then co-plan an approach to help address issues. EHS has a strong history of partnerships with relevant multicultural and local community organisations and services. Deborah intends to develop a relevant Community Studies unit that can be trialled and reviewed this semester. Website, new resources and facts sheets were promoted to assist Deborah’s planning an evidence-based approach. 2. University Senior College Focus area: Senior school alcohol education: pastoral care and subject specific. Inquiry question: Will an approach to alcohol eduction that is embedded in the senior school curriculum be more effective?

Counsellor Nadia Lovett is an experience drug educator and has conducted school based research in late 2008 to identify the knowledge and attitudes that students have around alcohol. Nadia has lobbied to secure time in the pastoral care program where she presents an excellent interactive, multi –media workshop involving all year 11 students that includes footage of research and filmed interviews with the student cohort, a quiz, and alcohol marketing clips to which students are asked to respond. All teachers attend the presentation as a means of raising awareness about alcohol education and links across curriculum. Nadia ran a competition in 2008 to produce a short film addressing binge drinking but not well responded to. Nadia is therefore looking for ways to embed in a subject area in future as students find work additional to studies difficult. Discussion at the site-visit centred on embedding a unit of work (possibly in Australian Studies) where students co-research the issue at their school using film to document process and to collect data and analyse and present findings as part of the pastoral care presentation. Nadia will mentor a teacher new to the school (and build the capacity of other staff to deliver) and trial the unit in term 2. Students will be asked to review the unit with a view to improving approaches to alcohol education at USC and involvement of more classes/students next semester. Nadia has also linked up with and has supported students studying alcohol issues in other subject areas e.g. SACE Psychology, Politics etc etc. This approach could be further encouraged as another layer in the whole-school model which Nadia is constructing. Some discussion about ways of communicating with parents around teenagers and alcohol, and sustainability issues. Website, new resource and facts sheets promoted. 3. St Martin’s Lutheran College Focus Area: Year 10 alcohol education and parent involvement Inquiry question: Summary to be completed. Evolving focus and inquiry question. Using PLP in Christian Living. Student researchers take learning to parents. 4. Tyndale Christian School Focus area: Alcohol education in the Middle Years: Year 9 Pastoral Care Program/PLP folio and preparation Inquiry question: Will an approach using the multiple intelligences influence the effectiveness of student learning relating to safety messages for self and peers around alcohol? Tammy Garret (Year 9 Coordinator) supported by Jan Lonsdale (HPE Coordinator) will work with Year 9 Pastoral Care teachers and a small group of student leaders to develop an approach consistent with that already taken across curriculum using “multiple intelligences”. Teachers are supported to develop an alcohol education program that builds on students’ learning strengths and interests, and to familiarise with new resources to assist in the delivery of a range of interactive activities. Students will document their involvement as part of trialling PLP in preparation for senior school and SACE transition.

Tammy commented that involving other staff in professional learning workshops and in developing and trialling activities has shown that alcohol education is “not that hard” and has built confidence in using more interactive approach generally in the classroom. Teachers have reported enjoying the lessons! Beyond the focus of this initiative, Tyndale’s approach will be mapped in the interests of developing a coordinated and developmentally appropriate program R-12. Tammy also intends to review the year 9 Health program re scope and sequence. Progress and outcomes will be shared with the school’s leadership team and Board of Governors, and through newsletters, and an Expo where students will share learning with staff, parents and year 10 students. An evaluation involving data collected from pre and post student surveys, parent surveys, and student feedback re approach will inform response to inquiry question and program for 2010. 5. Bowden Brompton Community School Focus area: Transition to work: embedded in Year 10-12 integrated Health/Work Education/Gateway Program. Inquiry question: Will involving students in co-researching and co-planning the alcohol eduction program facilitate a more effective approach addressing relevant health and workplace safety issues? Project leader Aida Manno teaches senior school health and work education including the Gateway Program – a targeted school to work transition program. Aida is supported in this initiative by her principal and through liaison with her students’ case manager. Aida is developing a plan to trial a unit of work in term 2 involving all students 10-12, including students involved in the Gateway Program across the three BBCS campuses. Aida aims to tap into students’ learning strengths and interests; actively encourage and support all students’ participation in decision making; and meet diverse student learning needs in liaison with their case manager. Relevant community agencies are likely to be involved in program implementation. BBCS has developed a school engagement rubric which Aida will use to track student engagement in the program. Students will be pre and post tested re essential knowledge, and student feedback sought re the process of developing and implementing program/approach to inform response to inquiry question. BBCS finds it very difficult to involve parents as a group: discussion on a one-to one basis and providing information about harms and issues may be more effective. Aida feels that this initiative is providing an opportunity to think more deeply about issues for Bowden Brompton’s “at risk” students and an approach to program development and delivery that authentically includes their perspectives. This may have impact on other staff if opportunities to share arise. Discussion acknowledged the need to raise issues prior to year 10; drug education needs to be mapped for BBCS middle school so that a coordinated and sequential program can be developed. Site visits and one-to one-one discussion have been very helpful, as has networking with other project schools and partnerships with agencies.

6. Victor Harbor High School Focus area: Student Action Committee and Year 9 Mentor Groups (pastoral care) Inquiry Question: Will an approach that that involves our Student Action Committee as co-researchers and co-facilitators enhance student learning around alcohol? Student Counsellor and project leader Colin Sibly has worked with the Student Action Committee (SAC) since project commencement in 2008 to research and identify relevant perspectives, review resources, identify strategies and plan activities addressing alcohol related issues relevant to Victor Harbour High School students. This has involved a workshop and regular meetings. Supported by new counsellor Sally Clarke (who comes directly from the Adolescents and Alcohol Initiative at Enfield High School), Colin is involving the SAC and Year 9 Mentor Group Leaders (teachers) in co-designing and co-facilitating a series of interactive alcohol education lessons to be trialled in Term 2. This will include a focus on deconstructing a typical drinking party; a session on alcohol and brain development, exploring social and cultural influences and building knowledge and skills using selected activities from the new Adolescents and Alcohol DVD resource, Drug Education Teacher Support Package for Middle Years, Rethinking Drinking and LEAD. Opportunities will be provided for students to identify and promote relevant prevention and harm reduction messages. Opportunities to involve parents will be explored through the SAC. Colin and Sally believe that the interactive nature of the lessons will be consistent with approaches already adopted by their experienced middle-school teachers but that the initiative will provide opportunities to model and promote authentic student participatory approaches among the year 9 team and more widely among staff. A response to VHHS’ inquiry question will be informed by pre and post student surveys, feedback from SAC and year 9 students, teacher observation and feedback. 7. Concordia College Focus: Year 9 Pastoral care Inquiry question: Will an integrated thematic approach to year 9 health and alcohol education enhance student learning to prevent and reduce alcohol related harm? Vanessa Jansen and her team at Concordia have developed an integrated thematic approach called Body, Mind and Soul that aims to achieve outcomes relating to pastoral care, Christian Studies and health education. Within a whole school approach that has a focus on developing resilience R-12, the year 9 focussed initiative will provide an opportunity to promote an explicit, classroom-based drug education program across the school. Planning for the trial of the approach will involve year 9 students as researchers in data gathering re issues (staff, student and parent perspectives) and the project team in constructing a model that maps current approaches R-12 and a planned review to ensure a sequenced and coordinated approach. 8. Adelaide Hills Vocational College Focus area: Year 11 Community Studies: Health and the Community Inquiry question: Will an approach to alcohol education involving students as co-researchers and filmmakers more effectively engage them in learning that will promote health and reduce harm?

Project leader Karen Horvath is determined to build on current approaches to drug education to one that is even more relevant and engaging for her students who have complex needs. She recognises and grapples with a range of factors that impact on their physical, mental and sexual health, and their behaviour and attitudes around alcohol and other drugs that affects their attendance, school achievement and retention as well as contributing to some students’ involvement in the juvenile justice system. Karen has experienced their interest in film–making in previous projects, and hopes to harness this to involve them in co-researching issues and identifying and promoting key prevention and harm reduction messages with a focus on health, school success and occupational health and safety issues. Adelaide Hills Vocational College values a strong partnership approach involving community health and other relevant agencies and Karen will also aim to utilise these services in a way that more effectively complements the school’s integrated and flexible classroom-based program. 9. Islamic College Site meeting to be held 10/3/09. 10. Tatachilla Lutheran College. Focus area: Year 9 Health and Christian Studies. Inquiry question: Will an approach to alcohol education that has more emphasis on involvement of parents be more effective in relation to student learning? Year 8 coordinator and middle-school health teacher Penny McKenzie has embedded drug education within Health and Christian Studies, and developed a unit of work that has a focus on prevention and harm reduction. Students have a range of opportunities to develop skills around decision making; to explore the influences that shape behaviour and attitudes; and the health implications of alcohol use. To inform program improvement in 2009, Penny will involve students in a survey to ascertain their existing knowledge about and attitudes towards alcohol. This year she is also planning to include a number of activities that will involve parents. This will involve distributing copies of the new Teenagers and Alcohol Fact Sheets to all year 9 parents; students in interviewing their parents about their alcohol related concerns and issues; and inviting parents to attend a workshop being conducted by Paul Dillon for all Tatachilla Lutheran College parents. Penny hopes that these activities will help to open up conversations between parents and their children around alcohol, and complement the classroom-based learning activities. Information from parent interviews will be used to help identify other activities and approaches that may be required to address the concerns and issues of this parent group. Penny will use data from pre and post program student surveys; teacher observation of student engagement; parent interviews; and student and parent feedback relating to the effectiveness of program and process to help inform her response to her inquiry question. 11. Kings Baptist Grammar School Site visit to be scheduled.