Publication:

Effects of drug and substance abuse on secondary School students’ education in Gikuri zone, Embu east Sub-county of Embu county

The research topic was on the effects of drug and substance abuse on Secondary school students’ education. The objectives of the research study were to: to examine the relationship between drug and substance abuse on students’ education, to explore the drugs and substances commonly abused by students in secondary schools in Gikuri zone, to examine the extent to which students drop out of schools due to the effects of drug and substance abuse in Gikuri zone of Embu County, to investigate the effects experienced by students who abuses drug and substance in Gikuri zone of Embu county, to find out the intervention measures put in place by education stakeholders to curb drug and substance abuse by students. The research study adopted descriptive survey design. For the purpose of the raw data collection, the researcher used questionnaires for the secondary school teachers and Assistant chiefs and interview guides for the parents and students. The target populations that were covered were 80 secondary school teachers, 64 parents, 6 Assistant chiefs and 1200 students. The research study was conducted in Gikuri zone in Embu County. The researcher used simple random sampling method in the selection of the sample size. The researcher sampled 24 secondary school teachers, 19 parents, 3 assistant chiefs and 360 students. The researcher used both quantitative and qualitative approaches in data analysis. The researcher drawn the following conclusions from the research study conducted:- Most of the respondents sampled were female by gender, the researcher noted that drugs and substance abuse and students’ education were related in that students who abused drugs and substances performed poor academically, bhang, cigarette and Miraa were most commonly abused drug and substances by secondary school students in Gikuri Zone of Embu County, drug and substance abuse had largely led to secondary school students drop out in Gikuri Zone of Embu County, poor academic performance was thenmajor effect experienced by students who abused drugs and substances in Gikuri Zone of Embu County, education on the evil of drug and substance abuse was the main method used by the education stakeholders to curb drug and substance abuse by students in Gikuri Zone, drug and substance abuse had really affected students’ education in Gikuri Zone of Embu County in that the researcher found that some students had been expelled from schools because of abusing drugs. The researcher made the following recommendations from the conclusions drawn:- both female and male genders should participate on equal footing on matter relating to students’ education in Gikuri Zone of Embu County and in the entire Kenyan republic, drugs and substance abuse had taken root in our secondary schools. To curb the vice, the researcher has recommended that, all the education stakeholders should be in the forefront in sensitizing the students on the danger of these drugs, the Kenyan government through the ministry of education (MoE) should organize workshops on the danger of drug and substance abuse in our schools, the ministry of health (MoH) should set up drug and substance rehabilitation centers all over Kenya at least one center per every county for assisting drug and substance addicts, the environmental health officers should shut down all unauthorized bars & pubs near schools and in the entire country so as to check the vice, all secondary schools in the entire Kenya should be declared drug and substance free zones, the members of the provincial administration should hold series of barazas to educate the mass on the ill of illicit drugs and substances, the secondary school principals should organize joint meetings with other education stakeholders to discuss the issue of drugs in the learning institutions, the Government of Kenya (GoK) through the parliament should enact a legistration on drug and substance abuse in the entire country, the secondary school principals should organize for regular drug and substance use inspections within their school.