[Student Reports] Alcohol Education

Diane Kim / 9th. Cypress HS

Shortly after the students of Cypress High's health classes settled down into their seats Mr. Gompert the head counselor of the counseling department began his presentation by assuring the students "I am not going to tell you not to drink alcohol. I am not going to tell you what to do. I am just going to present to you information about alcohol on a logical level."

After the blunt introduction even the tired sluggish students suddenly began to look at the counselor with more attentive interest. Throughout our time at school we have been accustomed to school officials drilling us to say no to alcohol drugs etc. and persuading us that giving into peer pressure could only lead to a horrible outcome. Any other type of lecture was unthinkable so having a teacher stand on a neutral disposition was a different experience.

First the students took a survey to test how accurate their current beliefs about alcohol were. Some of the questions asked whether they thought a majority of the adult population drank alcohol consistently a unanimous yes from the show of hands and whether they thought alcohol was a drug conversely a majority no. As he gave the correct answers to each of the questions students realized how little understanding they had of alcohol itself and how the media has distorted their views. They learned different facts and statistics such as how much alcohol needed to be consumed before one's body would stop feeling "spiked" and how much money advertisers paid for commercials.

He also introduced a concept that our behavior is largely influenced by our mentality. He explained that someone could get drunk simply because they thought they were drinking alcohol even though they weren't. In fact a study has shown that someone who mentally believed they were drinking when they weren't acted more wild than someone who actually had alcohol! Our mental influence is extremely powerful and if we are able to change our perception of alcohol there is a good chance it will help make us better choices as well.

At the end the lecture received a positive response because the material actually let students come to their own conclusions after having the right facts instead of just repeating that drinking was a bad thing. Just as Mr. Gompert had promised he delivered a lecture based purely on logic and many students left the class with better information than what they had to begin with.

As summer quickly approaches high school students will definitely be inclined to attend many end-of-the-year or summer parties that may provide and pressure one to drink alcoholic drinks. Perhaps the facts learned in these educational classes will stick with each student as they make critical decisions in their life.