Objectives of DARE to make a Choice
As a result of working through the activities, students will:
- Feel good about themselves and be confident that they can handle and deal with peer pressure situations.
- Use drug free alternatives to cope in a range of situations, such as handling stress.
- Make responsible decisions about the appropriate use of legal drugs.
- Develop positive relationships with many different people to build a support netowrk that can help with drug related problems.
- Set and work towards goals that will help them to lead healthy lives without resorting to drug misuse.
- Participate in a range of interesting, rewarding and drug free physical and cultural activities.
- Resist pressures to misuse drugs.
An emphasis is placed on building students' self esteem, assertiveness and decision making skills. The programme acknowledges that drug-use issues exist, and deals with them head-on.
DARE to Make a Choice is leading the field in making drug education available for young people in New Zealand. Every year, tens of thousands of young New Zealanders complete the Choice programme. A suvey of primary and Intermediate school parents/caregivers shows that 98% felt strongly that drug education should be available in schools. Asked whether drug use by young people was a problem in their school or neighbourhood, over two thirds of parents/caregivers replied that they believed that it was.