Exploring Drug Abuse Through the Science of Epidemiology

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DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): We will develop, evaluate, and disseminate a curriculum that will explore drug abuse issues relevant to high school students through the science of epidemiology. The curriculum, called Exploring Drug Abuse Through the Science of Epidemiology, will prepare students to make personal and collective, evidence-based decisions about drug abuse. This exploration of drug abuse issues will be structured according to a concept map for the discipline of epidemiology and the National Science Education Standards' fundamental abilities in Science as Inquiry. The lessons will be created and refined in partnership with an Advisory Board consisting of high school science teachers, drug educators and counselors, epidemiologists, and college professors. As part of lesson development, the Principal Investigator and high school teachers who are members of the Advisory Board will pilot-test the prototype lessons in their high school classes. The prototypes will be refined based on this experience and the advice of the Advisory Board. The prototype lessons will then be field-tested by a Field Testing Team consisting of science teachers from twenty high school members of the New Jersey Network for Educational Renewal. These twenty schools will be randomly assigned to be either experimental or control schools. Teachers from the Field Testing Team's ten experimental schools will be trained to teach the lessons and will implement them in their classes. The impact of the curriculum will be tested by assessing students' knowledge of drug abuse and epidemiology, as well as, their fundamental abilities in Science as Inquiry and scientific literacy. Several evaluations will use controlled, pre-test/post-test comparisons. The prototype lessons will be refined further based on the Field- Testing Team's experiences and on students' assessments and feedback. With Centers for Disease Control and Prevention approval, the Exploring Drug Abuse Through the science of Epidemiology web site will be linked with the CDC EXCITE web site (Excellence in Curriculum Integration through Teaching Epidemiology).