Discuss the impact of drugs abuse on youths
The keyword I have used to do the research were impact of drugs abuse on youth.
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Url: http://ojjdp.ncjrs.org/PUBS/drugid/ration-03.html
This website is a html file that allows readers to retrieve lots of information on the consequences of drug abuse. Through this website, i can learnt about the consequences of drug abuse by youths can lead to problems for academic, physical health, mental, families, etc. It have a proper opening and closing, focusing the consequences of drug abuse among youth in a page. This enable reader to capture the mainpoint easily when the information are displayed in a page.

Url: http://www.randomstudentdrugtesting.org/consequences_use.html
This is a website from ONDCP, as known as the Office of National Drug Control Policy. It main page is a .gov website, so this website used may be a random student drug testing result that they have conducted. This website shows the various consequences that youths may suffers if they abuse substance or drug. Some impact or consequences that it will lead to can be the poor school performances, health risks such as through behavioral and psychological, brain chemistry or body. It is an organized website that interests its readers to read further on. There is even a search facilities that enable readers to search for enquires. Other than that, the website too, provide hyperlink that can link to other pages like risk factors or surveys on Youth Drug Use.


- wan ting
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Url:http://www.streetdirectory.com/travel_guide/4783/kids_and_teens/of_drugs_and_youth.html

This article breaks down the problem of drug abuse and analyzes the root source of it. It first talks about how even though we do not have the exact statistics as to the number of youth affected by drug abuse, however we are aware that the numbers are increasing. It then goes on to talk about the problem that at the age where a ‘child’ becomes a ‘grown up’, there’s “A bundle of exuberant but undirected energy, he derives pleasure in taking risks and experimenting with new things.” This causes the youth to want to experiment at things and sometimes it causes conflict between the child and his or her parents as the society slowly advances out of the traditional family setting where kids obey their parents unconditionally. Also, the world has shrunken due to the media. Youth are more aware of the world therefore it raises their level of aspirations and ambitions. Moreover, due to the increasing economic pressures, both parents are more compelled to take up full time jobs to support the family, hence unknowingly decreasing the quality time spent with their children. Youth then find themselves hanging out more with friends, and without enough activities to keep them busy, they become easy prey to anti-social activities like drug abuse. Youth may take up drugs for a few reasons. It could be just out of curiosity, out of revolt of higher authority, out of want of acceptance in a group, or just simply not being able to refuse the offer. Therefore, awareness of the dangers of drug abuse in education is very important. But what is more crucial is the need for organized and constructive healthy activities to fill up a youth’s time and to allow the youth to direct their exuberant energy to the activities. The article then goes on to give an example of how youth drug abuse was dealt with effectively in Bangladesh. As youth are considered the “most precious assets” in their country, there is a strong emphasis and awareness against drug abuse there. Not only did they create the awareness in the youth there, they even changed the environment by having a concert that eventually convicted some 15000 youths to say 'No to drugs' and vowed to launch a nationwide movement against drugs. Many times it’s due to the environment that the youth is in that is the greatest problem.


Url: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL&_udi=B6VC9-4183HN2-7&_user=2611193&_rdoc=1&_fmt=&_orig=search&_sort=d&view=c&_acct=C000057998&_version=1&_urlVersion=0&_userid=2611193&md5=98cff53317a118064f10d17564df664a

This article tells us that drug abuse is one of the important health problems in the world. There is a large gap from what the researches have proven to be effective and what is actually practiced among schools about preventing drug abuse. The most effective approach is to educate the child from young about ways to refuse drugs when offered, and various social skills. While some studies show that this effectiveness may decrease over time, it is still effective and helps when it is taught by various teachers and with different populations.

Olivia Tan : )
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Title of Internet Resource: Impact Futures
URL: http://www.impactfutures.org/

This website want to provide awareness and leadership toward education of public regarding substance abuse prevention, intervention and treatment in the Texas Panhandle. Another aim is to ensure a healthier community by building assets and protective factors in the community.
There are some good quality of this website as follow:
Firstly is has a clear aim or goal. However it coverage is too brief and information is not current. It is easy to access as there is not restriction like log in or sign up. Finally it is user friendly and information is well present which is easy for user to read and capture information.
If this website want to improve it can provide more detail information and update weekly or even daily. Also to provide a ‘Help’ section to assist user if counter any problem when browsing the website. Also provide evidence to ensure fact stated is reliable.

Title of Internet Resource: Parents. The Anti-Drug.
URL: http://www.theantidrug.com
This website wish to equip parents and other adult caregivers with the tools they need to raise drug-free kids. Working with the nation's leading experts in the fields of parenting and substance abuse prevention, TheAntiDrug.com serves as a drug prevention information center, and a supportive community for parents to interact and learn from each other.
I found this website has a better quality than the first one.
It good point are as follow:
Firstly aim is clear and access to the website is free. There no limitation to the information. Secondly help can be easily found and website is user friendly. Next presentation style is good as it is easy for reader to capture important information in a fast and accurate way. Accurate information is being presented as well as information is being supported by having link the source website. Finally, news is being updated and no worry off getting outdated.

To conculde I think a good quality website should have clear aim, good presenting of information, accurate and find support to the information, and also current. Finally access to the website information should not be limited.
Impact Futures. Retrieved January 30, 2008, Web site: http://www.impactfutures.org/ Parents. The Anti-Drug.. Retrieved January 30, 2008, Web site: http://www.theantidrug.com
-Derick
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http://www.uib.no/isf/people/campaign/drug.htm For this website, I used the keywords “impacts of drugs abuse on youths” to derive the search on Yahoo!. In this site, it touches on the African state of Nigeria, and it goes on to state who’s to be blamed for the current drug pandemic in Nigeria. Furthermore, in the site, it records the general statistics of the situation citing the number of youths that are taking drugs and how bad the drug abuse situation in Nigeria and what are the different kind of drugs the Nigerian youths are using. Also, the articles provide a very real and indepth look on the situation in Nigeria, as it is written by a Nigerian student who has factual recounts and a very real first hand experience on the drug situation. Also, as it progresses, this webpage will tell us about the suggested solutions to tackle the problem, one of which being the Nigerian Ministry of Education should include drug education to the current school curricula so as to stop students from dabbling with drugs. http://www.csdp.org/edcs/page10.htm This website dictates alarming statistics about the drug situation in America. It provides an indepth look at the real situation in America, by showing the statistics of those who tried drugs, and those that are currently using and are on drugs such as cocaine, heroin etc. From the surveys done, the statistics are getting more and more alarming as the numbers of youths that have tried drugs are on the rise since 1991. Furthermore, this site provides recommendation on how to work out on the drug situation in America. They provide very good solutions and recommendation such as refining the drug education in schools, being more responsible with anti-drug messages etc.


- Ahmad
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ WIKI Group Summary: Topic: Discuss the impact of drugs abuse on youths Based on the above findings and research on the topic, it is observed that the number of youths affected by the drug abuse has been increasing these recent years. To add on, surveys and statistics have shown that the figures of the affected youths are getting more and more alarming ever since 1991. Research has also shown that, to a large extent, part of a growing process for teenagers, is for them to derive the pleasure in taking risks and experiment with new things. Nonetheless, while trying and experimenting with new things, it may in the process cause disagreements between a child and his/her parents. This is due to the change from a traditional family setting (i.e. children tend to obey their parents at this stage) to a more liberal family setting (i.e. where youths are more aware of the world, which eventually raises their level of aspirations and ambitions). Having changed from a traditional family setting to a more liberal family setting, it will possibly mean that the learning style and habits of the youths may be different. As such, this may be one of the factors that contribute to the rise in the statistics of the affected youths abusing drugs. Other reasons that teenagers might turn to abuse drugs are as follows:

• The changing from a traditional family setting to a more liberal family setting may also mean that there is an increasing economic pressures. Thus, both parents are forced to take up full-time jobs to support the family. With that, the amount of communication and interaction between a child and his/her parents is been greatly reduced.
• Since parents may have neglected the needs of their children, teenagers might have a high possibility of becoming an easy prey to anti-social activities (i.e. drugs abuse).
• During the adolescence period of a teenager, it is highly possible that a teenager may unknowingly develop a sense of curiosity to their surroundings, regardless whether the environment that they experienced is harmful or safe. Thus, it will prompt them to do the wrong things (i.e. indulge in drugs abuse).
• Teenagers may have used the inappropriate ways (i.e. drugs abuse) to gain the acceptance by others in a group.
• Some of the teenagers may think that abusing drugs may make them feel cool and raise their self-esteem of themselves.
• Other teenagers may be too shy or simply unable to turn away from the offer.

As teenagers indulged themselves in different types of drugs like alcohol, inhalants, heroin and cocaine, they are very likely to develop high risks after consuming and abusing drugs on a long-term basis. The consequences of drugs abuse by youths generally leads to problems in the areas in their academic (i.e. poor school performances), physical health, mental health (i.e. health risks such as through behavioral and psychological) and family-related issues. The following measures can be taken to prevent the risks of exposing teenagers to drugs abuse:

• Organized constructive healthy activities to fill up a youth’s time and to allow the youth to direct their exuberant energy to the activities. For instance, in Bangladesh, they held a concert that convicted approximately 15000 youths to stay away from drugs and vowed to launch a nationwide movement against drugs.
• Parents, teachers and other mentors are advised to educate the child from young about ways to refuse drugs when offered, and various social skills.
• Parents are also encouraged to work with the nation's leading experts in the fields of parenting and substance abuse prevention. For example, the drug prevention information center, TheAntiDrug.com will help to collate a supportive team for parents to interact and learn from each other.
• Other ways of drug prevention is to include drug education to the current school curricula and in the process refine the drug education in schools, so as to stop students from dabbling with drugs. This is currently practiced in Nigeria.

As a group, we also evaluate and give credit on the overall performance of the websites that we have gathered our findings. In establish a quality website, it is important that the site simplifies the essential points, yet provide abundant information for the general public. Thus, it makes it more convenient for readers to capture the information. In addition, search facilities (i.e. site map, index and content list) can enable users to search for their particular resource. At the same time, the website must be capable of handling hyperlinks which eventually provides links to other pages (like surveys, etc). A quality website also means that it has a clear aim or goal, its information is current, provides the ease to access (i.e. no restriction like log in or sign up), user friendly, good presentation and arrangement format to aid in the ease of reading.