The Heartland Task Force C2000 Substance Abuse Prevention Coalition in rural Northeast Missouri purchased laptops for a local afterschool program and enthusiastically conducted a novel intervention for substance abuse prevention education. A digital educational game focused on science and drug prevention knowledge and attitudes was delivered on the laptop computers to at-risk elementary students in the school district’s afterschool program. After hour-long sessions for one day every week for six weeks, results of pre-post knowledge and attitude surveys noted the game neither significantly changed participants’ knowledge of science and drug prevention nor attitudes toward science and drug prevention. Results of the present evaluation study were inconsistent with other studies using technology in the classroom, possibly due to program delivery in the less formal afterschool setting. Because elementary students’ attitudes toward drug use become more pro-use as they get older, consistent teaching about science and anti-drug education both during and after school is needed.
Social influences and ‘new media’ may contribute to students participating in risky health be-haviors. An evidence-based, digital media literacy curriculum was delivered by members of a communitysubstance abuse prevention coalition to upper elementary-aged students in a local afterschool program.Written pre-post assessments of perceived media influence on their health risk behaviors were completedby participants. Mean pre-test scores for ‘Influence of the Internet’ were significantly (p<.01) higher thanpost-test scores. Results reflect participants reporting the internet had less influence on their health choicespost-program than pre-program. Media literacy interventions can be effective when used in the afterschoolsetting.
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