What is the relationship between student rights and a school's right to drug test students?
1. Schools and employers are allowed to drug test.
1.1. This article says that students need to get drug tested because drugs are bad so schools have to be able to protect vulnerable students ("Random Student Drug").
1.1.1. According to the 2007 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, "students who use drugs are statistically more likely to drop out of school, bring guns to school, steal, and be involved in fighting or other delinquent behavior" ("Random Student Drug").
1.1.1.1. They want the students that are doing drugs to stop because they don't want other students to be in danger with guns and also for student to drop out of school because they see other students are dropping out.
1.1.2. According to one author, "One article argues that "well-crafted drug-testing programs will include qualified health and drug treatment professionals to aid in assessing students who test positive. Some parents may be unable to accept their child's use or not know how to help their child. It is important that schools have resources available to help educate parents on the problem and help them choose how to intervene or how to get their child needed professional treatment" ("Random Student Drug").
1.1.2.1. I think the schools are doing the right thing on helping students and specially the parents, because the students using drugs the parents are the only ones that can help them to stopping drugs and get them to get professional help.
1.2. Two current high-profile legal cases, in which companies want to implement random testing of their employees for alcohol and/or drugs, may determine whether such testing expands in Canadian workplaces. At the centre of both cases is the need for a safe workplace versus privacy and human rights ("Companies push").
1.2.1. Some people claim that "Employers can test for drugs or alcohol when there is reasonable evidence of substance abuse, after an accident or incident where the employee's role may have been a contributing factor, and as follow-up testing after treatment for drug abuse" ("Companies push").
1.2.1.1. This matters because if they have a reasonable reason to drug test you they can because they can use that against you and
1.2.2. One article argues that "He explains that in Canada the testing is mostly limited to "very safety-sensitive oriented workplaces," whereas in the U.S. there is no similar safety limit. Even in retail, financial, manufacturing, education, and health, American workers undergo random drug testing. "The amount of testing Wal-Mart does in the United States greatly exceeds the entire number of tests that are done in the Canadian market," Deines says''("Companies push").
1.2.2.1. This quote shows that they care about their employs and they don't want them to be in danger and risk there life or other things.
1.3. Why did the author say that (what were the main reasons?)
1.4. Because...
2. Students have rights and schools can't randomly drug test.
2.1. There is no reason for schools to mess with kids who are doing drugs. It's not the school's business. It's the same idea as if a school was going to punish a kid for staying out late or breaking some other household rule (Saunders).
2.1.1. Debra J. Saunders, a conservative columnist, argues that "there can be little doubt that students who use drugs say no to extracurricular activities because they don't want to say no to drugs" (Saunders).
2.1.1.1. This makes me think that policies forcing kids to be drug tested actually forces students out of participating in after school activities. This may be the opposite result from what the school was aiming for.
2.1.2. Saunders also quotes reports that random drug testing pushes students away from "positive atmospheres that study after study has shown are successful at keeping students away from drugs" (Saunders).
2.1.2.1. Whether or not kids are being driven away from after-school activities by drug testing, I think that whatever we do after school, the school shouldn't worry about it.
2.2. Random drug tests violate students' privacy and may make them more likely to switch from pot to harder stuff. ("Why Drug Testing").
2.2.1. A Daily Beast article argues that in schools that have zero-tolerance policies, suspension is the most common punishment, and the truth is that "students who are genuinely struggling with drug abuse will not be well served by time away from school, or time in jail" ("Why Drug Testing").
2.2.1.1. This makes me think that if you don't get help if your addicted to drugs you will end up in jail and not getting a good education.
2.2.2. The Daily Beast article also says that in some schools students must all have drug tests and anyone "who fails it will be suspended from sports and clubs, and undergo psychological counseling" ("Why Drug Testing").
2.2.2.1. I think getting suspended from sports and clubs that's not right for them to do that to the students the should help them so they can get them self together and talk to what they should be doing right.