Looking at the Growing Relationship between the Opioid Crisis and Education
The Opioid Crisis continues to worsen educational inequality across the United States. But schools can better combat the effects of this epidemic.
ANUJ DASGUPTA
Opiates, Unsplash 2024
107,941. This is the number of reported drug overdose deaths in the United States in 2022 [1]. In 2020, Purdue Pharma pleaded guilty in federal court in New Jersey for promoting their drugs through pharmacies and healthcare providers; the penalties totaled $5.544 billion [15] . It’s impossible to consider this topic without considering the Opioid Crisis as well. As the numbers keep increasing, however, it is important to not just look at the number of deaths or the amount corporations are paying in lawsuits for damages but also its impact on education. Although not always apparent at the surface, schools across the country are suffering from this issue but, at the same time, play a key role in preventing and managing substance abuse in the community [11].
The Opioid Crisis has had a negative impact on education for years. A fact sheet from the Center of Disease Control (CDC) [14] shows that for both prescription drugs and marijuana, the percentage of high school students across the country abusing the substance increased with lower overall grades. This is due to reduced attendance, concentration, interest in learning and self-control, all of which are side effects of opioid abuse [3].
The worst impacts are in impoverished areas. For the counties that experienced the sharpest increase in overdose deaths between 2000 and 2015, only 15% had at least one non-profit working towards addressing substance abuse in the area. In the United States, the most affected regions are the Appalachian area, industrial Midwest, Florida, Oklahoma, the Southwest, and much of the West Coast. Drug use is often fueled by violence in communities. A study conducted by researchers from the University of Kentucky and Brown University [2] found that students who were exposed to violence right before a standardized test scored much lower than the other students who did not. Prolonged stress due to exposure to violence can alter the size and neuronal architecture in childrens’ brains. This makes it more difficult for them to learn and focus. Furthermore, studies have linked unhealthy family relationships with less effective judgment within children, through a lack of the connection essential for cognitive development. As a result, adolescent substance abuse and suicide has been linked with parental opioid abuse, due to the poor judgment that is made more likely from unhealthy family relationships. Given that opioid abuse reduces academic performance, the opioid crisis feeds educational inequality further [2], as the underprivileged communities, already suffering from educational inequality the most, are also areas with the most drug abuse.
However, there are community-based approaches to solving this problem. In the US Department of Education’s open letter on student substance abuse [4], the ways through which a school can combat the issue is by: (1) fostering an environment where drug abuse is discouraged, (2) training employees to look for signs of drug abuse, (3) educating students about the dangers of drug abuse, and (4) stocking schools with naloxone to allow for overdose recoveries. Although this is the baseline of most approaches and programs, there is more that needs to be done to allow for programs to be more effective.
Researchers in China [5] found that normal instruction regarding the dangers of drug abuse is ineffective for middle and high school students. This is likely due to the underdeveloped adolescent mindset that is prone to engaging in risky behaviors. Bringing awareness around drugs beginning as early as elementary school is associated with less substance abuse later in a student’s life [10]. According to an analysis of National Institute of Drug Abuse (NIDA) principles for substance abuse prevention [6], interactive programs are necessary for improvement. For example, in a TEDx Winnipeg event [7], Aleethia Mackay, a high school drug and alcohol counselor in Winnipeg, a city in Canada, talks about how she shifted her drug education methods to make more interactive bulletin boards showing the effects of drugs. These included the implementation of themes relating to popular franchises among students such as Mario, GhostBusters, etc. As a result, she elicited more student response regarding drug issues, allowing for better resolution. Although Mackay may be in Canada, given that Canada is currently facing an opioid crisis quite comparable to that of the United States [13], her approaches serve as an example of interactive drug education and awareness being more effective.
The concept of using more interactive education policies involves promoting a healthy environment for all students both inside and outside of school. This starts with using less punitive punishment which involve consequences like suspension and expulsion. According to a commentary in the Journal of School Health [16], punitive punishments worsen a student’s engagement and attendance in school, often leading to an increase in the abuse of certain substances. Instead it is essential to support students in various aspects. According to a policy brief on education policies relating to the opioid crisis [17], the Laconia School district in New Hampshire has implemented a Multi-Tiered System of Supports for Behavioral Health and Wellness (MTSS-B) program; a Multi-Tiered System works to address issues such as student behavior, trauma, and mental health through positive interactions involving social, behavioral, and emotional instruction and development within an individual and small group level in addition to the classroom. Currently, many schools across the nation utilize some form of Multi-Tiered System program to better manage issues such as substance abuse. However, the implementation of these policies often are not well detailed [18] which means that more can be done to improve the system.
In addition to supporting at a more personal level, it is just as important to advocate and raise awareness of this issue in schools in new ways. This can be through the promotion of peer support groups and take back programs [16]. For instance, in Ohio, there is a 5 Minutes for Life program where professionals such as park rangers and law enforcement officers discuss the dangers of opioids to students who are then encouraged to speak about the benefits of a drug-free lifestyle to their peers [17]. Peer support and advocacy such as these has been promising [16].
Artificial Intelligence (AI) and technology improves the scope when it comes to solving issues with substance abuse. In a research paper proposing a non-invasive method to detect overdoses [12], an integrated system takes in factors such as sweat from fingertips, heart rate, social media posts, blood pressure, and respiration rate to determine an overdose using a computer model trained with previous data. Such research shows that technology can be used to measure a student’s well-being, looking for signs of drug abuse and addiction within students based on their physical and mental health [5, 8, 9, 12]. In addition to that, the technology can be used to better assess the effectiveness of prevention and treatment programs along with optimizing the distribution of resources such as naloxone [8].
Substance abuse and specifically, the opioid crisis, is compromising youth education and well-being across the world, and especially in the United States. However, education can be used to solve this threat by making programs more proactive, interactive, and integrated, which can further be levied through emerging technologies like Artificial Intelligence. As stated by Mackay [7], “The opposite of addiction is not sobriety. The opposite of addiction is connection.” In order to create efficient methods of substance abuse recovery support, research feedback and current intervention approaches must be analyzed.
Saphron Initiative staff and guest contributors often express their views in pieces on Edisco. These pieces do not constitute an organizational endorsement of the viewpoints within. Our goal is to encourage and uplift student voices while respecting diverse opinions. We encourage all readers to conduct further research and develop informed opinions on the issues discussed.
