A good place to start is to identify the students' attitudes, knowledge, and questions about drugs. Parents are an integral part of the school community. They are partners with schools in the education of their children about drug issues and their support for, and participation in school programs deserves to be encouraged. Parents are partners in educating young people about alcohol and in many ways are the senior partners. They have more influence over their children's recreation time than do teachers.
Parents model powerful attitudes and behaviours toward alcohol for their children.
However parents are often unsure of how to talk to their children about alcohol. Schools can bring students, parents and teachers together to ensure that the relevant issues are canvassed in a useful way. One outcome of Parent Forums is greater communication between parents and children about drinking and related matters. The role of Parent Forums Teachers and parents like to feel that they are giving the same message to students. Schools can use Parent Forums to explain their education program, to invite parents' participation and to extend alcohol education beyond the classroom and into the community.