The cannabis conundrum — what students think

What’s green, controversial and has been tried by more than 42 percent of Americans? If you guessed cannabis, you are right.

Cannabis, also commonly referred to as marijuana or pot, is a hotly debated substance that some people swear by as the ultimate medicine. Others call it just another illicit drug. Many governing bodies say marijuana is the most commonly used illicit substance in the world.

But while the medical marijuana legalization debate continues to be a subject that creeps into late night news and talk shows, its recreational use by teen remains prominent.

According to the Mat-Su Substance Abuse Prevention Coalition, marijuana is known to cause problems with intellectual function and long-term, heavy users face an increased risk of lung infection or cancer. The greatest risk to youth associated with marijuana is the impaired judgment experienced while under the substance’s influence, according to the prevention coalition.

Marijuana use is a complex issue in the eyes of the CTHS student body. Many students say the drug should be legalized, while others disagree.

“It has been my experience in the class setting as we discuss legalization, that the overwhelming opinion is (that) it has no ill effects and is far less damaging than alcohol or tobacco,” said Cassandra Lowell, a CTHS history instructor.

One thing nearly everyone agrees on is that at least some students use marijuana. To examine the CTHS student body’s perception on marijuana use, we surveyed more than 300 students. The survey shows that 56 percent of students strongly disagreed that marijuana use is acceptable.

“That gives me hope,” said CTHS freshman Ariel Hasse. “It shows that not all kids are concerned about just getting high.”

Additionally, 49 percent of students strongly agreed that marijuana is dangerous to their health.

“It surprised me that over half the students felt marijuana was harmful to them,” Lowell said.

Despite the trend against marijuana, teens say the drug is still abundantly used.

“I think there’s a good percentage who do use it,” says Jessee Saiki, a sophomore at Wasilla High School.

How many teens have tried marijuana? CTHS students said they think 45 percent of their peers have engaged in marijuana use at least once and 24 percent of their peers were regular users of the drug.

Less than half — 40 percent — of students who took the survey said they had directly observed marijuana use, the most common places of sighting being a friend’s house or a recreational park.

One in five CTHS students surveyed said they had used marijuana themselves. Slightly more students had used other substances such as alcohol, cocaine or misused prescription drugs.

The survey found that students who had used marijuana also were more than eight times more likely to use other drugs, like alcohol.

So where are students using this drug? The majority said they where introduced to marijuana by a friend or relative, normally at the friend’s house or a party. Many kids wrote they had only tried the drug once or twice.

While one in five CTHS attendees having used marijuana can be concerning, a 2008 study conducted by the Mat-Su Substance Abuse Prevention Coalition shows that more than 46 percent of youth in the Mat-Su district had engaged in marijuana use by their junior year.

A survey of CTHS students shows that around 27 percent of juniors reported using marijuana at least once. This suggests that rates of marijuana use at CTHS are significantly lower than the school district’s average.

While students can underplay or exaggerate marijuana’s impact on society, the fact remains that this drug has a significant impact on the youth in our community.

Zachary J.K. Neubauer is a sophomore and Sophie Harris is a senior at Mat-Su Career and Technical High School.