Professional: SPHE for Teachers

SPHE is Social, Personal and Health Education. "Substance Use" is one of ten modules within the SPHE programme. It is being introduced on a phased basis in all post-primary schools at Junior Cycle level.

By September 2003, all first year students should have one SPHE period per week. In Primary schools, it should also be part of the weekly programme.

Modules

SPHE has ten modules. Some of these were already being taught before being gathered together under the heading of SPHE:

1. Belonging and integrating

2. Self management: a sense of purpose

3. Communication skills

4. Physical health

5. Friendships

6. Relationships and sexuality

7. Emotional health

8. Influences and decisions

9. Substance use

10. Personal safety.

These ten modules complement each other. For example, prevention of drug problems will be helped by several modules.

Schools are encouraged to adopt a flexible approach to SPHE, basing their teaching on the needs of the whole school community. For this purpose, an SPHE co-ordinator is appointed from among the teachers. [Top]

Resources:
Recommended resources for teachers are "On My Own Two Feet" for post-primary and "Walk Tall" for primary. The "Healthy Living" series written by Brian McAuley for the North Western Health Board (NWHB) is also recommended, but teachers are welcome to draw on other resources. A national support service is provided by the Department of Education and Science at Marino Institute Dublin (Tel. 805 7718)..

Preventing Drug Problems in School:

For the school to be a healthy environment, SPHE in the classroom is NOT enough.
Also important are:

1. Substance Use Policy

2. Whole School Approach

3. Supervision of the Students

Substance Use Policy:

Every School is required to draw up a policy on Substance Use; this is Action 43 of the National Drug Strategy. The process of drawing up the policy is important. It should be done by a committee composed of teachers, parents, students and management, so that the whole school is represented and "ownership" of the policy is shared by all.

Guidelines for this process are available from www.education.ie

Content of the Policy:

A school policy should address four issues:

1. The handling of incidents of substance use or misuse in the school or at school events

2. The SPHE programme.

3. Training for the implementation of the policy

4. Monitoring and reviewing the policy.

Whole School Approach:

For the school to be a healthy environment, a whole-school approach is needed. All teachers and other staff must be willing to contribute to the preservation of the drug-free school. Good relationships between adults and young people are the foundation-stone of good prevention (of drug misuse). The ethos and atmosphere of the school are a vital component of prevention.

Supervision:

Information on its own does not stop people from misusing drugs. Smoking is the "drug" on the front line of prevention in schools. Good supervision of the students, and of course good example by teachers, visitors and other adults, are MORE important than lectures. [Top]