Heyne, T: Schülerzentrierte drogenspezifische Primärprävention an bayerischen Hauptschulen: Wirkungen auf Wissenserwerb, Selbstwertgefühl und Selbstwirksamkeit, (2008) | |
Abstract: Drug abuse prevention programmes are a particular challenge for teachers to implement at Bavarian secondary schools (Hauptschulen). In addition to the common uncertainty in determining what content to teach and choosing suitable teaching methods, the classroom teacher must take into account the comparably low cognitive performance by these students. Additionally, there are two different performance levels: On the one hand, there are the regular classes, and on the other hand there are the advanced classes, the so-called intermediate certificate courses that enable students to achieve an intermediate certificate beyond the Qualifying Hauptschule Certificate. This study focused on the conception, implementation and evaluation of a life skills training drug prevention programme for eight-grade students as adapted to the narrow time-limit prescribed in the syllabus for secondary schools. Pedagogical efficiency was evaluated on the basis of four consumption groups that had been extracted using a cluster analysis. Psychological constructs like self-esteem and self-efficacy in dealing with substance-specific group pressure situations served as indicators. The empirical examination first dealt with the development of an open, constructivist teaching approach that was particularly suited for the needs of low-achieving secondary students (Hauptschüler) and was supposed to ensure high-quality knowledge gain of the currently common gateway drug Cannabis. This should strengthen existing contra-drug mindsets and lower existing interests in consumption and would thus positively address the teenagers’ self-esteem and self-efficacy. The result was a ´guided learning at workstations` which was compared to ´conventional learning at workstations` and a ´teacher centred approach` to evaluate the students’cognitive learning achievement. Secondary students (Hauptschüler) gained significantly more cognitive knowledge in the short and medium run when this newly developed teaching method was used; even low-achieving regular students achieved the levels of performance of students who pursued an intermediate certificate. The subsequent self-esteem and self-efficacy training demonstrated that mainly the group that did not show any interest in drug use responded to the initiated measures. In the long run, positive changes could be achieved among this group, irrespective of the three preceding teaching methods. Well-chosen teaching content was decisive. An analysis of the test date changes demonstrates the advantages of such a new teaching approach. This was the only method that ensured that the perceived self-efficacy of both genders could be influenced directly after the intervention. As regards self-esteem, progress was already achieved in the medium term. The self-efficacy of teenagers that showed great interest in first-time drug use was also influenced in the short run. ´Experimenters` and regular consumers did not respond to the primary preventive intervention. |