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NJPEP Home > Standards > Comprehensive Health and Physical Education (Revised)

STANDARD 2.3 (DRUGS AND MEDICINES) by Grade 12

Strands with Cumulative Progress Indicators

A. Medicines

  1. Investigate the use of new or experimental medicines and discuss the potential risks and benefits.
  2. Evaluate the effectiveness of a medicine, considering the dosage, side effects, route of administration, cost, and benefits vs. risks.
  3. Debate the benefits and dangers of naturally occurring substances such as herbal supplements.

B. Alcohol, Tobacco and Other Drugs

  1. Investigate tobacco use as a contributing or causative factor in the incidence of cancer, heart disease, emphysema and other lung diseases, and stroke.
  2. Assess the impact of passive smoke on the health of children, individuals with allergies and asthma, and nonsmokers and describe initiatives created to lessen the impact.
  3. Summarize the impact of alcohol use and abuse on body systems and organs including the cardiovascular system, the liver, the reproductive system, and the immune system.
  4. Describe the impact of alcohol and other drugs on those areas of the brain that control vision, sleep, coordination, and reaction time and assess how the use and abuse of alcohol and other drugs impairs behavior, judgment, and memory.
  5. Investigate the relationship between alcohol and other drug use and the incidence of motor vehicle crashes.
  6. Predict the physical, behavioral, and legal impacts of commonly abused substances, such as marijuana, inhalants, anabolic steroids, and party drugs.
  7. Investigate the relationship between injected drug use and the incidence of diseases such as HIV and hepatitis.
  8. Investigate the relationship between the use of alcohol, GHB, Ecstasy, and other drugs and the incidence of date rape, sexual assault, STDs, and unintended pregnancy.

C. Dependency/Addiction and Treatment

  1. Compare and contrast the physical, social, and emotional indicators of possible substance abuse.
  2. Compare and contrast the physical and psychological stages of dependency.
  3. Assess and evaluate factors that influence the use of alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs.
  4. Evaluate factors that support an individual to quit using substances.
  5. Predict the short-and long-term impacts of substance abuse on the individual, the family, the community, and society.