E.A.S.Y. Social Advocacy Campaign
Educate now to stop later.
Request for the Implementation of Method in High School Curriculum.
For: School Officials of Involved High Schools
Overview:
This proposal is designed to introduce the newly established social advocacy campaign
called E.A.S.Y. It will first, give a brief description of the campaign’s background, goals, and preliminary information on the issue E.A.S.Y. will focus on. Second, other methods in the field will be discussed and their effectiveness analyzed. Third, E.A.S.Y.’s approach will be outlined before finally discussing intended goals from the curriculum if implemented into high school education.
Background:
E.A.S.Y, which stands for Ending Assault Starts Young, is a newly founded social
advocacy campaign. It’s mission statement is simple: By introducing the discussion of sexual assault in high school settings, E.A.S.Y hopes to analyze the issue ofsexual assault on college campuses where sex and alcohol are more culturally pertinent. We aim to do this by implementing discussions, rigorous ethical activities, and openended moral questions so that students feel morally responsible to uphold their own consciously established ethical standards.
E.A.S.Y. will accomplish its mission statement by implementing discussionbased curriculum in the high school level; the goal being to prevent the increased rate of sexual assault that occurs on college campuses today and address the cultural mindset shift that occurs from high school to college.
(E.A.S.Y. campaign would like to note that it is against sexual assault in every educational level, yet since the organization was established on a college campus, its focus will be on lowering the occurrence of it at the college undergraduate level).
It has been noted that the combination of drugs, alcohol, and new environments result in a cultural and psychological shift that mostly all incoming college freshman tend to experience. An increase of said factors in a predominantly unregulated setting has been seen to have direct consequences on males and females when it comes to the occurrence of sexual assault. A 2004 report found that 7281% of rapes done by men against women occurred when the woman was intoxicated. The report also noted that heavy drinking increases the risks of college women getting raped by “eightfold” (MohlerKuo).
Educate now to stop later.
Request for the Implementation of Method in High School Curriculum.
For: School Officials of Involved High Schools
Overview:
This proposal is designed to introduce the newly established social advocacy campaign
called E.A.S.Y. It will first, give a brief description of the campaign’s background, goals, and preliminary information on the issue E.A.S.Y. will focus on. Second, other methods in the field will be discussed and their effectiveness analyzed. Third, E.A.S.Y.’s approach will be outlined before finally discussing intended goals from the curriculum if implemented into high school education.
Background:
E.A.S.Y, which stands for Ending Assault Starts Young, is a newly founded social
advocacy campaign. It’s mission statement is simple: By introducing the discussion of sexual assault in high school settings, E.A.S.Y hopes to analyze the issue ofsexual assault on college campuses where sex and alcohol are more culturally pertinent. We aim to do this by implementing discussions, rigorous ethical activities, and openended moral questions so that students feel morally responsible to uphold their own consciously established ethical standards.
E.A.S.Y. will accomplish its mission statement by implementing discussionbased curriculum in the high school level; the goal being to prevent the increased rate of sexual assault that occurs on college campuses today and address the cultural mindset shift that occurs from high school to college.
(E.A.S.Y. campaign would like to note that it is against sexual assault in every educational level, yet since the organization was established on a college campus, its focus will be on lowering the occurrence of it at the college undergraduate level).
It has been noted that the combination of drugs, alcohol, and new environments result in a cultural and psychological shift that mostly all incoming college freshman tend to experience. An increase of said factors in a predominantly unregulated setting has been seen to have direct consequences on males and females when it comes to the occurrence of sexual assault. A 2004 report found that 7281% of rapes done by men against women occurred when the woman was intoxicated. The report also noted that heavy drinking increases the risks of college women getting raped by “eightfold” (MohlerKuo).
Another report, this one focused on alcohol’s correlation with the sexual assault of
women, found that “alcohol consumption by the perpetrator and/or the victim increases the
likelihood of acquaintance sexual assault [...] Alcohol’s psychological, cognitive and motor
effects contribute to sexual assault” (Abbey). In addition, the report states that “Alcohol makes it
even easier for men to feel comfortable forcing sex because alcohol myopia helps them focus
solely on their desire to have sex rather than on the woman’s signs of refusal and pain” (Abbey).
As we can see, the combination of aforementioned factors such as drugs, alcohol, and
unregulated settings intersect to cause a rapidly growing and inexcusable issue of sexual assault
on college campuses.
Other Methods:
D.A.R.E., a campaign organized between school officials and the police department, was
originally instituted in 1983 in California and spread over many years to become a nationally recognized company. Its goal was to combat the use of drugs by instituting lecture classes taught by police officers throughout middle and high school classrooms. Although the groups mission statement was ethical in that they wanted to limit the drug use among the younger generation, D.A.R.E.’s methods were proven not only ineffective but counter productive (Figure 1). The figure below illustrates that there was actually an increase in drug use once D.A.R.E. became implemented in school settings.
D.A.R.E.’s campaign was ineffective when combined with two approaches. First, their method of a lecture based class taught by a police officer created a hierarchy that limited discussions or ethical questions with students. Second, when students were exposed to the idea of drugs at a young age, they were actually more interested in it as it was seen as the Forbidden Fruit, and consequently, became more likely to do it (“Why D.A.R.E.”).
Other Methods:
D.A.R.E., a campaign organized between school officials and the police department, was
originally instituted in 1983 in California and spread over many years to become a nationally recognized company. Its goal was to combat the use of drugs by instituting lecture classes taught by police officers throughout middle and high school classrooms. Although the groups mission statement was ethical in that they wanted to limit the drug use among the younger generation, D.A.R.E.’s methods were proven not only ineffective but counter productive (Figure 1). The figure below illustrates that there was actually an increase in drug use once D.A.R.E. became implemented in school settings.
D.A.R.E.’s campaign was ineffective when combined with two approaches. First, their method of a lecture based class taught by a police officer created a hierarchy that limited discussions or ethical questions with students. Second, when students were exposed to the idea of drugs at a young age, they were actually more interested in it as it was seen as the Forbidden Fruit, and consequently, became more likely to do it (“Why D.A.R.E.”).
In observing this unfortunate result, The E.A.S.Y. campaign has sculpted curriculum
based off of what didn’t work from the D.A.R.E. campaign. (Although it is clear both campaigns
have different mission statements, both campaigns are social movements aimed at the betterment
of community areas, and D.A.R.E.’s inefficiencies showcase valuable lessons that other
campaigns can learn from).
Unlike the inefficiencies of D.A.R.E., other organizations have been deemed effective and noteworthy. The organizations: Safe Dates and Shifting Boundaries, focus on educating middle schoolers on the importance of nonviolent relationships through rigorous and lengthy schoolwide activities and discussions over the course of many years (“Sexual Violence: Prevention Strategies”). These campaigns include curriculum that was proven to be productive in regards to addressing their mission statement.
Safe Dates and Shifting Boundaries saw positive results in their students because both organizations start intervention at a young age. These programs chose to implement ethical conversations into curriculum earlier on because even though men and women in college “are at a particularly high risk for sexual violence perpetration and victimization,” it is better to expose students to these issues earlier on since “many college men have already engaged in sexual violence before arriving on campus or will shortly thereafter, prevention initiatives that address this age group may miss the window of opportunity to prevent sexual violence before it starts. Primary prevention efforts may be best targeted at younger populations—before college” (DeGue). These organizations both noticed that if the discussion begins too late, students will be unaware of the impactful decisions they can make when confronted with issues of sexual assault. This report noted that when students are already exposed to a topic, there are previously assumed norms constructed that they personally feel expected to follow. Safe Dates and Shifting Boundaries hopes to begin that conversation before students are even exposed to terrible trends such as relationship violence. As a result, students can construct their own moral norms that they would feel comfortable upholding in possible future experiences.
Unlike the inefficiencies of D.A.R.E., other organizations have been deemed effective and noteworthy. The organizations: Safe Dates and Shifting Boundaries, focus on educating middle schoolers on the importance of nonviolent relationships through rigorous and lengthy schoolwide activities and discussions over the course of many years (“Sexual Violence: Prevention Strategies”). These campaigns include curriculum that was proven to be productive in regards to addressing their mission statement.
Safe Dates and Shifting Boundaries saw positive results in their students because both organizations start intervention at a young age. These programs chose to implement ethical conversations into curriculum earlier on because even though men and women in college “are at a particularly high risk for sexual violence perpetration and victimization,” it is better to expose students to these issues earlier on since “many college men have already engaged in sexual violence before arriving on campus or will shortly thereafter, prevention initiatives that address this age group may miss the window of opportunity to prevent sexual violence before it starts. Primary prevention efforts may be best targeted at younger populations—before college” (DeGue). These organizations both noticed that if the discussion begins too late, students will be unaware of the impactful decisions they can make when confronted with issues of sexual assault. This report noted that when students are already exposed to a topic, there are previously assumed norms constructed that they personally feel expected to follow. Safe Dates and Shifting Boundaries hopes to begin that conversation before students are even exposed to terrible trends such as relationship violence. As a result, students can construct their own moral norms that they would feel comfortable upholding in possible future experiences.
Another successful approach was the implementation of sexual assault intervention over longer periods of time.DeGue found that “interventions with consistently positive effects [...] tended to be 2 to 3 times longer, on average, than interventions with null, negative, or mixed effects” (DeGue). Long term discussion and understanding on this topic, rather one or two hour long information sessions almost always fuels change that is needed to combat this issue.
Our Approach:
In response to the effectiveness of the aforementioned organization’s methods, E.A.S.Y.
has created specific characteristics for its curriculum.
Firstly, an issue with the D.A.R.E. program was the creation of lecturebased,
authoritative lessons between students and police officers that was actually seen to have “lowered [the students’] selfesteem” (Reaves). Instead, by providing discussions rather than lectures, students will have to contemplate moral implications that every citizen should consider, rather being told what to do. It is E.A.S.Y.’s hope not to lecture students but rather have students discover and set their own morals and standards so they will be more likely to uphold them.
Secondly, E.A.S.Y.’s curriculum would be established in high school settings rather than starting off at the college level. This is done before students are placed in an environment surrounded by drugs, alcohol, and sex. As discussed in the Backgroundsection, there is an inevitable, psychological shift that occurs when students enter college from high school. The hope of E.A.S.Y. is that exposure to indepth discussions before this shift will bring about more effective and thoughtful understandings which will in itself instigate change before and while the student enters their new lifestyle.
Thirdly, E.A.S.Y. believes that the most will happen if implementation occurs over a
longer period. Instead of random, one time meetings, E.A.S.Y.’s curriculum stretches over years
of education. The result of this is developed, continuous ethical thoughts that easily flourish to
deeper, meaningful conversations and outcomes.
Goals:
Below is a list of desired results that the E.A.S.Y. campaign hopes to achieve by
implementing its aforementioned curriculum.
The E.A.S.Y. campaign, although new, has extensively learned from previous campaigns
about how to be successful. E.A.S.Y. expects to see a decrease in sexual assault on college campuses after high school students discover their own moral standards and opinions throughout years of maturing, self discovery, and stimulating discussions because of E.A.S.Y.’s curriculum. E.A.S.Y. wants to help the future leaders of the world delve into ethical debates that will impact and better educational systems, future citizens, voters, and generations to come.
Goals:
Below is a list of desired results that the E.A.S.Y. campaign hopes to achieve by
implementing its aforementioned curriculum.
-
Increased moral understanding of right and wrong
-
Understanding why factors in college (independence, drugs and alcohol) produce a
cultural mindset shift, the effects of this shift, and what can be done to avoid it
-
Make this issue accessible to both men and women through thoughtful discussion
-
Avoid passing down of information to understand morals selfdiscovery instead
The E.A.S.Y. campaign, although new, has extensively learned from previous campaigns
about how to be successful. E.A.S.Y. expects to see a decrease in sexual assault on college campuses after high school students discover their own moral standards and opinions throughout years of maturing, self discovery, and stimulating discussions because of E.A.S.Y.’s curriculum. E.A.S.Y. wants to help the future leaders of the world delve into ethical debates that will impact and better educational systems, future citizens, voters, and generations to come.
Works Cited:
Abbey, Antonia. "AlcoholRelated Sexual Assault: A Common Problem among College
Students." Journal of Studies on Alcohol14 (2002): 11828. Department of Community
Medicine, 2002. Web. 14 Apr. 2015.
DeGue, Sarah. "A Systematic Review of Primary Prevention Strategies for Sexual Violence
Perpetration." Aggression and Violent Behavior18.4 (2014): 34662. Print.
Figure, 1. "Why D.A.R.E." DARE Increases Drug Risk.Equal Rights 4 All, n.d. Web. 06 Apr.
2015.
"Why D.A.R.E." DARE Increases Drug Risk.Equal Rights 4 All, n.d. Web. 06 Apr. 2015. MohlerKuo, M. "Correlates of Rape While Intoxicated in a National Sample of College
Women." National Center for Biotechnology Information.U.S. National Library of
Medicine, 2004. Web. 14 Apr. 2015.
Obama, Barack. "Remarks by the President and Vice President at an Event for the Council on
Women and Girls." The White House.The White House, 22 Jan. 2014. Web. 06 Apr.
2015.
Reaves, Jessica. "Just Say No to DARE." Time.Time Inc., 15 Feb. 2001. Web. 06 Apr. 2015. "Sexual Violence: Prevention Strategies." Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention, 19 Feb. 2015. Web. 14 Apr. 2015.
"Study on College HookUps." ABC News.ABC News Network, 26 July 2014. Web. 06 Apr.
2015.
Abbey, Antonia. "AlcoholRelated Sexual Assault: A Common Problem among College
Students." Journal of Studies on Alcohol14 (2002): 11828. Department of Community
Medicine, 2002. Web. 14 Apr. 2015.
DeGue, Sarah. "A Systematic Review of Primary Prevention Strategies for Sexual Violence
Perpetration." Aggression and Violent Behavior18.4 (2014): 34662. Print.
Figure, 1. "Why D.A.R.E." DARE Increases Drug Risk.Equal Rights 4 All, n.d. Web. 06 Apr.
2015.
"Why D.A.R.E." DARE Increases Drug Risk.Equal Rights 4 All, n.d. Web. 06 Apr. 2015. MohlerKuo, M. "Correlates of Rape While Intoxicated in a National Sample of College
Women." National Center for Biotechnology Information.U.S. National Library of
Medicine, 2004. Web. 14 Apr. 2015.
Obama, Barack. "Remarks by the President and Vice President at an Event for the Council on
Women and Girls." The White House.The White House, 22 Jan. 2014. Web. 06 Apr.
2015.
Reaves, Jessica. "Just Say No to DARE." Time.Time Inc., 15 Feb. 2001. Web. 06 Apr. 2015. "Sexual Violence: Prevention Strategies." Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention, 19 Feb. 2015. Web. 14 Apr. 2015.
"Study on College HookUps." ABC News.ABC News Network, 26 July 2014. Web. 06 Apr.
2015.
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