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The Drug Education in Victorian Schools program provided integrated education about licit and illicit drugs, employed a harm minimization approach that incorporated participatory, critical thinking and skill-based teaching methods, and engaged parental influence through home activities. A cluster-randomized, controlled trial of the program was conducted with a student cohort during Year 8 (13 years) and Year 9 (14 years). Twenty-one secondary schools in Victoria, Australia, were randomly allocated to the Drug Education in Victorian Schools program (14 schools, n = 1,163) or their usual drug education program (7 schools, n = 589). This study reports program effects for alcohol. There was a greater increase in the intervention students’ knowledge about drugs, including alcohol; there was a greater increase in communication with parents about alcohol; they recalled receiving more alcohol education; their alcohol consumption increased less; and they experienced a lesser increase in alcohol-related harms. Among intervention group risky drinkers, consumption and harm increased less. There were no differences between study groups in attitudes toward alcohol or in the proportion of drinkers or risky drinkers. While the program did not stop students taking up drinking, it did reduce their consumption and harm.

As researchers seeking to contribute to better alcohol and other drug prevention we appreciate the need for critical reviews of intervention programs. Gorman's critique of our recent paper is therefore welcome. It does identify some weaknesses in specificity, which in hindsight could have been better addressed. It also provides an opportunity to explain why certain choices were made in terms of reporting findings (Gorman, 2015; Midford et al., 2014).

The objective of this study was to investigate stakeholders’ views on the feasibility and acceptability of a pilot speech pathology teletherapy program for children attending schools in rural New South Wales, Australia. Nine children received speech pathology sessions delivered via Adobe Connect® web-conferencing software. During semi-structured interviews, school principals (n = 3), therapy facilitators (n = 7), and parents (n = 6) described factors that promoted or threatened the program’s feasibility and acceptability. Themes were categorised according to whether they related to (a) the use of technology; (b) the school-based nature of the program; or (c) the combination of using technology with a school-based program. Despite frequent reports of difficulties with technology, teletherapy delivery of speech pathology services in schools was highly acceptable to stakeholders. However, the use of technology within a school environment increased the complexities of service delivery. Service providers should pay careful attention to planning processes and lines of communication in order to promote efficiency and acceptability of teletherapy programs.

Aims: To evaluate the effectiveness of an integrated harm minimisation focused school drug education programme in terms of reducing cannabis use and harm.Design and Methods: A cluster randomised controlled trial of the 18 lesson Drug Education in Victorian Schools (DEVS) drug education programme was undertaken with students during years eight and nine (13 and 14 years of age respectively), with follow up in year ten (15 years of age). The programme covered all drugs, employed a harm minimisation approach that used participatory, critical thinking and skills based teaching methods, and engaged parental influence through home activities. Twenty-one secondary schools in Victoria, Australia, were randomly allocated to receive the DEVS programme (14 schools) or the drug education usually provided by their schools (7 schools). In relation to cannabis, communication with parents, lessons remembered, responsible attitudes, whether used, frequency of use and associated harms were measured.Results: In comparison to controls, there was a significantly greater increase in the intervention students’ communication with parents about cannabis recall of cannabis lessons received, and responsible attitudes towards cannabis. While there were no significant differences between the two study groups in relation to the proportion of cannabis users, the increase in level of use by intervention students was significantly less and they experienced a lesser increase in associated harms.Conclusion: A harm minimisation focused school drug education programme reduced the level of cannabis use and associated harm. This supports harm minimisation education as an effective prevention strategy for school students.

This thesis is entitled: Exploring children’s work involvement and school attendance in rural Cambodia. The author identified that children’s participation in education is heavily influenced by family financial strain, limited school and community engagement, risks of school dropout for unskilled work opportunities and the failure of education leading to employment.

BackgroundIn Australia, the burden of alcohol-attributable harm falls most heavily on young people. Prevention is important, and schools have long been seen as appropriate settings for pre-emptive interventions with this high risk group. This paper evaluates the effectiveness, in relation to alcohol harm prevention, of the Drug Education in Victorian Schools (DEVS) programme, nine months after implementation. This intervention dealt with both licit and illicit drugs, employed a harm minimisation approach that incorporated interactive, skill based, teaching methods and capitalised on parental influence through home activities.MethodsA cluster randomised, controlled trial of the first ten lessons of the DEVS drug education programme was conducted with year eight students, aged 13–14 years. Twenty-one secondary schools in Victoria, Australia were randomly allocated to receive the DEVS programme (14 schools, n = 1163) or the drug education usually provided by their schools (7 schools, n = 589). Self-reported changes were measured in relation to: knowledge and attitudes, communication with parents, drug education lessons remembered, proportion of drinkers, alcohol consumption (quantity multiplied by frequency), proportion of student drinkers engaging in risky consumption, and the number of harms experienced as a result of alcohol consumption.ResultsIn comparison to the controls, there was a significantly greater increase in the intervention students’ knowledge about drugs, including alcohol (p ≤ 0.001); there was a significant change in their level of communication with parents about alcohol (p = 0.037); they recalled receiving significantly more alcohol education (p < 0.001); their alcohol consumption increased significantly less (p = 0.011); and they experienced a lesser increase in harms associated with their drinking (p ≤ 0.001). There were no significant differences between the two study groups in relation to changes in attitudes towards alcohol

Background: This pilot study investigated the smoking prevention benefits of a secondary school drug education programme for all-licit and illicit drugs. The programme took a harm minimisation approach and incorporated abstinence as one of a range of prevention strategies. Method: The study population comprised a cohort of 318 Victorian junior secondary school students (intervention N = 225 in three schools, control N = 93 in one school). During Years 8 (13–14-year-olds) and 9 (14–15-year-olds), the intervention students received a 22-lesson programme derived from evidence of effective practice and aimed at minimising the harm associated with drug use. Control students received the drug education programme normally provided by their school. Results: Students who received the intervention remembered receiving more lessons about smoking and were more knowledgeable about drug use issues overall. They were no less likely to take up smoking, but those who did smoke, reported smoking fewer cigarettes and experiencing fewer harms associated with their smoking. Conclusions: This pilot study suggests that a harm minimisation approach to smoking can complement, rather than threaten, the abstinence message for adolescents. A school drug education programme with a harm reduction focus does not increase initiation into smoking and can equip smokers with the understanding and skills to make better decisions regarding use.

Objective: Participatory learning strategies are integral to the effectiveness of school-based health education programmes; however, use of such methods is not the norm in teaching. The omission of participatory learning strategies is a common form of programme breakdown leading to erosion of positive learning and behavioural outcomes. Based on a survey of 75 Australian high school health education teachers, the study’s objective is to examine teachers’ perspectives on the factors that influence their use of participatory learning strategies. Results: Whilst it is often presumed that training is the most significant factor, this study found that teachers identify understanding the educational rationale for the approach, student engagement, confidence in class control, and having positive relationships with the students, along with practicalities such as having time to adequately prepare a class as the most significant influences on their pedagogical choices. Conclusion: The study concludes that a better understanding of the reasons why teachers make particular choices in their delivery of programmes gives valuable insight into what teachers need in order to support uptake or maintenance of such approaches. This understanding may in turn contribute to health education programmes being delivered with a higher fidelity and better outcomes for students.

Background: This pilot study investigated the smoking prevention benefits of a secondary school drug education programme for all-licit and illicit drugs. The programme took a harm minimisation approach and incorporated abstinence as one of a range of prevention strategies. Method: The study population comprised a cohort of 318 Victorian junior secondary school students (intervention N = 225 in three schools, control N = 93 in one school). During Years 8 (13-14-year-olds) and 9 (14-15-yearolds), the intervention students received a 22-lesson programme derived from evidence of effective practice and aimed at minimising the harm associated with drug use. Control students received the drug education programme normally provided by their school. Results: Students who received the intervention remembered receiving more lessons about smoking and were more knowledgeable about drug use issues overall. They were no less likely to take up smoking, but those who did smoke, reported smoking fewer cigarettes and experiencing fewer harms associated with their smoking. Conclusions: This pilot study suggests that a harm minimisation approach to smoking can complement, rather than threaten, the abstinence message for adolescents. A school drug education programme with a harm reduction focus does not increase initiation into smoking and can equip smokers with the understanding and skills to make better decisions regarding use.

Background Excessive alcohol consumption is responsible for considerable harm from chronic disease and injury. Within most developed countries, members of sporting clubs participate in at-risk alcohol consumption at levels above that of communities generally. There has been limited research investigating the predictors of at-risk alcohol consumption in sporting settings, particularly at the non-elite level. The purpose of this study was to examine the association between the alcohol management practices and characteristics of community football clubs and at-risk alcohol consumption by club members. Methods A cross sectional survey of community football club management representatives and members was conducted. Logistic regression analysis (adjusting for clustering by club) was used to determine the association between the alcohol management practices (including alcohol management policy, alcohol-related sponsorship, availability of low- and non-alcoholic drinks, and alcohol-related promotions, awards and prizes) and characteristics (football code, size and location) of sporting clubs and at-risk alcohol consumption by club members. Results Members of clubs that served alcohol to intoxicated people [OR: 2.23 (95% CI: 1.26-3.93)], conducted ‘happy hour’ promotions [OR: 2.84 (95% CI: 1.84-4.38)] or provided alcohol-only awards and prizes [OR: 1.80 (95% CI: 1.16-2.80)] were at significantly greater odds of consuming alcohol at risky levels than members of clubs that did not have such alcohol management practices. At-risk alcohol consumption was also more likely among members of clubs with less than 150 players compared with larger clubs [OR:1.45 (95% CI: 1.02-2.05)] and amongst members of particular football codes. Conclusions The findings of this study suggest a need and opportunity for the implementation of alcohol harm reduction strategies targeting specific alcohol managemen

This study describes Australian year eight students' (13–14 years old) experiences with alcohol in terms of communication with parents, initiation into drinking, patterns of consumption, context of use, and harms experienced. The sample comprised 521 year eight students from four state government secondary schools in the state of Victoria. Three of the schools are in Melbourne, the capital of Victoria; the fourth is in a rural center. Female and rural students were more likely to talk to parents about alcohol, but this was not associated with safer drinking. Initiation into drinking was higher among rural students. Rural students also drank more, were more likely to drink without adult supervision, to drink to get drunk, and drink more than planned. Student drinkers experienced just over four alcohol-related harms on average in 12 months, with some indication of greater harm among rural students. Higher levels of drinking by rural students, accompanied by more risky patterns of consumption and the possibility of greater harm, supports prioritizing interventions in rural schools.

Background:This study seeks to extend earlier Australian school drug education research by developing andmeasuring the effectiveness of a comprehensive, evidence-based, harm reduction focused school drug educationprogram for junior secondary students aged 13 to 15 years. The intervention draws on the recent literature as tothe common elements in effective school curriculum. It seeks to incorporate the social influence of parentsthrough home activities. It also emphasises the use of appropriate pedagogy in the delivery of classroom lessons.Methods/Design:A cluster randomised school drug education trial will be conducted with 1746 junior highschool students in 21 Victorian secondary schools over a period of three years. Both the schools and students haveactively consented to participate in the study. The education program comprises ten lessons in year eight (13-14year olds) and eight in year nine (14-15 year olds) that address issues around the use of alcohol, tobacco, cannabisand other illicit drugs. Control students will receive the drug education normally provided in their schools.Students will be tested at baseline, at the end of each intervention year and also at the end of year ten. A selfcompletion questionnaire will be used to collect information on knowledge, patterns and context of use, attitudesand harms experienced in relation to alcohol, tobacco, cannabis and other illicit drug use. Multi-level modelling willbe the method of analysis because it can best accommodate hierarchically structured data. All analyses will beconducted on an Intent-to-Treat basis. In addition, focus groups will be conducted with teachers and students infive of the 14 intervention schools, subsequent to delivery of the year eight and nine programs. This will providequalitative data about the effectiveness of the lessons and the relevance of the materials.Discussion:The benefits of this drug education study derive both from the knowledge gained by trialling anoptimum combination of i

Midford R., Mitchell J., Lester L., Cahill H., Foxcroft D., Ramsden R., Venning L., Pose M. (2014). Preventing alcohol harm: Early results from a cluster randomised, controlled trial in Victoria, Australia of comprehensive harm minimisation school drug education. International Journal of Drug Policy, 25(1), 142-150. Available here