Effects Of Drug And Substance Abuse Among Secondary School Students In Narok South District- Narok County

Abstract

Drug abuse among students results into general indiscipline in institutions of learning. The Causes and Remedies of Indiscipline in Secondary Schools has attributed to unrest in schools in Kenya. The use of drugs continually may lead to addiction, a condition in which the abusers must take drugs in order to feel normal whether they like it or not. The purpose of this study was to find out effects of drug and substance abuse among secondary school students in Narok south district, in Narok County. The study was guided by the following objectives; to determine the drugs that are commonly abused by students in public secondary schools in Narok South District, establish the causes of drug abuse among students in public secondary schools in Narok South District, determine the extent in which students are affected by drug abuse in public secondary schools in Narok South District and to establish the prevention measures of drug abuse among students in public secondary schools in Narok South District . The study utilized descriptive survey design, where the sample of 10% of the total population was selected and a sample size of respondents was obtained for the study. Quantitative research approaches were used to collect information. Stratified random sampling was used to select the sample that represented the whole population. Questionnaires and observation check list were used since they make easier to collect data from the respondents. Data was collected and arranged by coding and editing into manageable proportions and entered into the computer by use of Microsoft Excel spread sheet computer programs. The presentation of the study findings was in form of tables, bar graphs and figures where necessary. In summary of the findings, it was found that majority of respondents indicated as the majority that many youths in Secondary Schools in Narok South District take drugs. The majority showed that alcohol was the main type of drug abused. The study concluded that there are many causes of drug abuse among the students in secondary schools in Narok South District which include; family influence, peer, media and low self-esteem. It was clear, that majority of the respondents were aware about the effects of drug and substance abuse among secondary school students in Narok South District where majority agreed that these effects range from poor memory and reduced reasoning capacity, health-related problems including mental health poor performance in school, sports and other activities. The study recommended that School administrators can incorporate in their strategies to curb Drug and Substance Abuse among the students. They should also enforce disciplinary action on students abusing drugs.