The Committee for Awareness, Resilience and Education (Care) has launched its school-based substance abuse prevention campaign for this year.
This was done in awareness and resilience sessions under the theme ‘Staying Resilient, Making Positive Choices’ during a ceremony held on February 11, 2022 at the Anse Boileau secondary school.
The sessions formed part of the Anse Boileau secondary school’s induction programme for its S1 students that covered all S1 classes. Moving from primary to secondary school normally requires significant adaptation for the students to help them settle in their new school environment as well as getting used to new teachers, peers and so much more. The transition can be quite challenging for many students, hence the importance of them staying resilient to difficulties, including peer pressure that may come their way. Peer pressure, may often entail getting lured into negative influences leading to negative choices, like substance use.
The sessions, which were interactive and engaging, ran through essential facts of drugs and alcohol as reminders for the students. Very importantly, they also looked at preventive and self-protective behaviour that are crucial as part of the positive choices process. The main aim of the sessions were to remind the students of staying aware of the facts and risks involved in substance use and to promote and practice resilience to stay above pressure to use dangerous substances. The sessions also looked at the importance of visioning, goal setting and staying on track in personal goals and targets.
The last topic on the programme was guiding the students to take a positive stance for themselves by making a pledge to self, school and community and to keeping them committed to work towards their goal.
At the end of the sessions, the secondary school head teacher, Jina Labiche, thanked Care for the interactive and participatory sessions with the S1 students. She also urged the students to put into practice the theme of staying resilient and making positive choices.
On behalf of Care, director Noella Gontier also thanked the head teacher and her school team for having made it possible for the awareness and resilience sessions to take place at the very outset of the students’ new chapter in their school life. Care has confirmed with the school that the follow-up activity will be a parents’ outreach, comprising both group and one-on-one sessions at the school.
The accompanying photos show some highlights of the event.
Source: Seychelles Nation
