Public school students debate drug testing

The students of George Frissell’s Classical Ideas and World Religions class entered Room 230 to the strains of Neil Young’s “Rockin’ in the Free World.” It was fitting music for a class that encourages students to think for themselves and wrestle with complex issues.

On Friday, these Hickman High School students debated the merits of drug testing in public schools, a topic that appeared in headlines recently. The Francis Howell School District in suburban St. Louis began testing students involved in extracurricular activities last week. Also last week, the Columbia School Board announced the formation of a task force to address drug abuse in public schools.

Frissell, organizer of the popular Speak Your Mind forums at Hickman, agreed to lead a discussion about drugs and drug testing with the people most affected: high school students. He handed out a 2002 Columbia Daily Tribune article that detailed the drug-test debate when it was before the Supreme Court and an article about the Francis Howell testing. The students — all juniors and seniors, generally 17 or 18 years old — took over from there.

Debate quickly focused on the targeting of students involved in extracurricular activities. “Testing for student-athletes is understandable, but 4-H and the band is ridiculous,” said Katie McBride.

Whitney Adams agreed. “You’re not really going to get the people with problems,” she said.

Students also debated about the role schools should play when it comes to drug abuse.

“It’s not really the school’s place,” Rokaya Helfer said. “In general, school is here to educate, not incriminate.”

Many thought the responsibility to monitor drug use is found not in school but at home.

“If a teacher sees a student acting differently, the teacher should tell their parents,” Adams said. “It’s up to parents, not up to the school board.”

Questions were raised about the expense of drug testing, which will cost Francis Howell about $94,000. Some thought the money would be better spent educating parents about drug-testing at home.

A few students thought the focus on drugs overlooked other problems in schools.

“I think people use the term ‘drug problem’ too liberally,” said David Nagel. “They’re testing for the wrong stuff. Alcohol is a much bigger problem.”

By the end of class, it was clear that the majority of students were opposed to drug testing in school. As Danny Giles said, “Schools are trying to do too much. When do you say it goes too far?”