Study For the Test

School systems throughout the country have employed different methods to curb drug use of their students. Things such as security cameras, random searches, drug sniffing dogs, and metal detectors have all been employed in the struggle to end student drug use. However, none of these methods are more controversial and widely used than drug testing. Commonly, students that wish to perform in extracurricular activities such as sports or clubs are tested for the presence of drugs in their systems in order to keep them from doing such things. This act has come under much scrutiny from some, saying that it is too expensive, ineffective, and an invasion of privacy. While some of these claims may hold some merit under certain circumstances, drug testing of students is the best way to combat drug use and should be used on students participating in extracurricular activities.

The act of drug testing a student without a warrant may appear to be a clear violation of the fourth amendment which guards against unreasonable search and seizure, but it is not.

Master Sgt. Urbano Sosa demonstrates the job of an...

Hashish Presumptive Drug Test

Opium Presumptive Drug Test

Over time, an exception to this rule has been unofficially created. This exception includes cases where a "special need" of the government, in this situation being the school, outweighs any "diminished expectation" of privacy that may be invaded by the search. This clause resulted from the Supreme Court Case Vernonia School District v. Acton. In this case a program had been created for the random testing of high school athletes because of the perceived rise in student drug use. Student athletes were required to sign a form submitting to random testing every week. If they refused to sign then they were to be excluded from the activities all together with no other penalty(Greddy). So long as the school is able to prove the "special need"...