Scots kids are turning up to class high on cocaine, cannabis and amphetamines – creating a “growing problem” for worried teachers.
The Scottish Government has been urged to act amid claims that pupils take drugs in school on a daily basis.
Some staff say they deal with drug -related issues every day while others claim they encounter problems at least once a week.
Teachers and classroom assistants have told their representatives they struggle to do their jobs properly as so many children go to lessons under the influence of drugs.
Scottish Government stats show that more than a fifth of 15-year-olds have used drugs.
And now a union and former senior police officer have called on the government to do more to address the issue.
A Glasgow-based P.E teacher told the Daily Record that he feared for the safety of his students when doing lessons on a daily basis.
He said: “There are kids who come in clearly under the influence of drugs. I honestly see at least one every day.
“Due to the nature of PE it gets me quite worried that they may lose their balance more easily and may react badly while in the middle of whatever we are doing.
“We’re not trained on how to deal with children under the influence of drugs. It just seems to be getting worse. There’s certainly a rise in the number of instances I see of it from when I started to now.
“We don’t know what these kids are on or what to do with them, God forbid should something go wrong.”
An Ayrshire teacher added: "My school is in quite a poor area. A number of kids use drugs before or at school.
"That makes it even more difficult. They have to learn what you're teaching but how they act affects others and the lesson.
"Being unable to learn properly is one thing, being disruptive and potentially hurting other pupils is another issue."
Unison is one of the biggest unions in the UK, representing a number of Scottish classroom assistants.
Lorraine Thomson, from Unison’s Educational Issues Group, said: “This is a growing problem, a part of which is the difficulty school staff have in telling whether challenging behaviours are being caused by drug use.
“We need robust zero-
tolerance policies in schools but also proper training for staff, both in spotting the behaviours associated with drug taking and dealing with them.”
Staff say the drugs pupils are taking included cannabis, amphetamine, MDMA, cocaine and new psychoactive substances.
Former Labour MSP Graeme Pearson was director-general of the Scottish Crime and Drug Enforcement Agency, which was responsible for Serious Organised Crime, Intelligence and Drugs.
He said he was aware of an upturn in the number of school staff encountering drug problems with pupils.
Pearson said: “There won’t be a secondary school, certainly in Greater Glasgow, that isn’t aware of drug use in schools.
“There’ll be schools across the region where kids are out at lunchtime, engaged in drug use, and teachers will see that in their teaching environment.
“I know from speaking to teachers that they have more and more experience and knowledge of that kind of drug use among pupils in secondary schools, even in the lower years.
"That’s where the government needs to do more.
“There are thousands of experts and thousands of practitioners but nothing that they are doing shows they are successful.
“We need to spend money on those things that are successful.”
The 2018 Scottish Schools Adolescent Lifestyle and Substance Use Survey showed that six per cent of 13-year-olds and 21 per cent of 15-year-olds had used drugs.
The 2018 Scottish Schools Adolescent Lifestyle and Substance Use Survey (SALSUS) report showed that 6% of 13-year-olds and 21% of 15-year-olds had used drugs.
A Scottish Government spokesman said: “The Scottish Government takes the issue of substance use in schools very seriously.
“While the vast majority of children and young people in Scotland have not used drugs, with numbers generally decreasing since 2002, we work closely with local authorities, police and others to help keep such incidences to a minimum.
“Substance use education is delivered in schools through Curriculum for Excellence, including working with local police, where pupils explore the impact risk‑taking behaviour has.”
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