This paper reviews three school-based crime prevention and control programs: Drug Abuse Resistance Education (DARE), Second Step, and anti-bullying programs. For each program, the paper provides a description, identifies strengths and weaknesses, and assesses overall effectiveness. The analysis finds that while all three programs address behaviors related to violence or crime, none fully targets the root causes—such as poverty, mental illness, or family dynamics—that drive criminal behavior. The paper concludes that these programs serve a valuable purpose but are most effective when embedded within a broader, more comprehensive strategy that addresses both precursors to crime and its aftermath.
This paper details three different programs geared toward crime prevention and control among students. For each program, a description is provided along with a listing of pros and cons. The differences in methods and a general comparison are also addressed, as is the overall level of success for each program. While anti-crime programs have varying levels of success with students across the United States, keeping students out of trouble is widely considered worthwhile and necessary.
One of the most prolific and prominent programs relating to crime prevention is DARE, which stands for Drug Abuse Resistance Education. It educates children about the dangers of drugs and the potential consequences associated with drug use. It also teaches students how to refuse drug use invitations. Some may argue that DARE is a drug program rather than an anti-crime program; however, this characterization is inaccurate on two levels. First, drug use is generally against the law. Second, people who engage in drug use commonly engage in one or more other crimes — for example, stealing to support a habit. Drug dealing and trafficking are additional behaviors that are clearly illegal and directly related to drugs.
As such, educating children to stay away from drug use and other drug-related exposure is clearly beneficial. The strengths of the program include a strong grounding in reality and content that is accessible for students to understand. Downsides include an overly harsh stigma placed on drug users, and the methods used do not fully address some of the primary problems and issues that lead to drug use in the first place. Poverty and difficult living conditions, for instance, can lead students — and adults — to deal drugs as a means of coping or earning money. Even so, the program does partially address gangs, violent behavior, and other related concerns (Ingraham, 2017).
Another program is known as Second Step, which aims to reduce aggressive behavior and impulsivity in children. This program is valuable because such behaviors are strongly correlated with criminal activity and therefore need to be addressed. One significant limitation of the program, however, is that aggressive and impulsive behavior frequently originates from underlying mental illness. A professional approach involving psychologists and mental health practitioners would therefore be more effective in many cases. Even so, teaching children self-control through whatever reasonable means are available remains a worthwhile endeavor (NIJ, 2017).
A third category of program is similar to both Second Step and DARE in that it does not directly address crime but instead targets a strongly related issue: bullying. Anti-bullying programs take on different forms and operate under various names; however, the general objective is to prevent hostile and violent behavior among students. Just as with drug education and impulsivity training, anti-bullying programs teach students not to engage in behavior that is improper or, in more serious cases, illegal (Ferguson, 2007).
"Anti-bullying initiatives address hostile and violent behavior"
Ferguson, C. (2007). The effectiveness of school-based anti-bullying programs. Criminal Justice Review. Journals.sagepub.com. Retrieved 17 December 2017, from
Graham, C. (2017). A brief history of DARE, the anti-drug program Jeff Sessions wants to revive. Washington Post. Retrieved 17 December 2017, from https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2017/07/12/a-brief-history-of-d-a-r-e-the-anti-drug-program-jeff-sessions-wants-to-revive/
NIJ. (2017). Second Step®: A violence prevention curriculum. Crimesolutions.gov. Retrieved 17 December 2017, from https://www.crimesolutions.gov/ProgramDetails.aspx?ID=221
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