Below is the PowerPoint I used to aid my discussion of the survey with the sophomore class.
Slide One:
This first slide jumped right into one of the questions on the survey. As this slide was shown, I discussed that although many bad things may be happening in an alcoholic's life due their drinking habits, an alcoholic in the earlier stages of his or her disease often does not attribute his or her problems to the alcohol. Instead, she or he may believe that a different way of drinking alcohol will produce different results. The alcoholic may then try drinking only beer in place of hard liquor or only drink during a certain time period in the day.
Slide Two:
The second slide addresses perhaps the biggest stereotype around alcoholism: that alcoholism is a choice. On this slide, I mentioned that sixty percent of the sophomore health class surveyed agreed with this statement. I also noted some of the devastating effects of mid-to-late-stage alcoholism including deterioration of the liver, slowing of the respiratory system, impaired neurological function, sexual dysfunctions, and sadly, even death. I left this slide with a question: "Who would choose this as their life?" Nobody sets out to become an alcoholic.
Slide Three:
Forty-five percent of the sophomore health class disagreed with the statement presented on the third slide: "Most alcoholics have good morals." I used this slide as a transition into the next slide.
Slide Four:
Slide four is two images of what stereotypical alcoholics may look like. The image on the left is a man looking very angry, aggressive, and even abusive to his wife and child, all while holding an alcohol bottle in his hand. The image on the right projects the stereotypical view of alcoholics as low-lives looking for their next drink.
Slide Five:
This slide shows a few famous alcoholics. On the left is Daniel Radcliffe, known for his brilliant work in the Harry Potter series. Radcliffe at age twenty-five, has been sober since 2010. In the middle is Alec Baldwin, a middle-aged American actor, producer and comedian. He joined Alcoholics Anonymous right before his twenty-seventh birthday. Finally, on the right is Eminem, a famous rapper who claims to be a "rap god." Eminem has also struggled with alcohol addiction in the past. I used this slide to discuss the fact that alcoholism can affect people from all walks of life: rich and poor, black and white, even young and old.
Slide Six:
I ended my presentation by revealing that I had a recovering alcoholic in my immediate family. I stressed that throughout the course of own her recovery, she has worked alongside many other recovering alcoholics who had indeed come from many walks of life. I myself was surprised to find out that among her acquaintances was a heart surgeon, a cook, a nurse, two teachers, many mothers and grandmothers, just to name a few. I asked the class if they had any questions about my presentation or the topic. I then thanked them for their time, and concluded my presentation.
This first slide jumped right into one of the questions on the survey. As this slide was shown, I discussed that although many bad things may be happening in an alcoholic's life due their drinking habits, an alcoholic in the earlier stages of his or her disease often does not attribute his or her problems to the alcohol. Instead, she or he may believe that a different way of drinking alcohol will produce different results. The alcoholic may then try drinking only beer in place of hard liquor or only drink during a certain time period in the day.
Slide Two:
The second slide addresses perhaps the biggest stereotype around alcoholism: that alcoholism is a choice. On this slide, I mentioned that sixty percent of the sophomore health class surveyed agreed with this statement. I also noted some of the devastating effects of mid-to-late-stage alcoholism including deterioration of the liver, slowing of the respiratory system, impaired neurological function, sexual dysfunctions, and sadly, even death. I left this slide with a question: "Who would choose this as their life?" Nobody sets out to become an alcoholic.
Slide Three:
Forty-five percent of the sophomore health class disagreed with the statement presented on the third slide: "Most alcoholics have good morals." I used this slide as a transition into the next slide.
Slide Four:
Slide four is two images of what stereotypical alcoholics may look like. The image on the left is a man looking very angry, aggressive, and even abusive to his wife and child, all while holding an alcohol bottle in his hand. The image on the right projects the stereotypical view of alcoholics as low-lives looking for their next drink.
Slide Five:
This slide shows a few famous alcoholics. On the left is Daniel Radcliffe, known for his brilliant work in the Harry Potter series. Radcliffe at age twenty-five, has been sober since 2010. In the middle is Alec Baldwin, a middle-aged American actor, producer and comedian. He joined Alcoholics Anonymous right before his twenty-seventh birthday. Finally, on the right is Eminem, a famous rapper who claims to be a "rap god." Eminem has also struggled with alcohol addiction in the past. I used this slide to discuss the fact that alcoholism can affect people from all walks of life: rich and poor, black and white, even young and old.
Slide Six:
I ended my presentation by revealing that I had a recovering alcoholic in my immediate family. I stressed that throughout the course of own her recovery, she has worked alongside many other recovering alcoholics who had indeed come from many walks of life. I myself was surprised to find out that among her acquaintances was a heart surgeon, a cook, a nurse, two teachers, many mothers and grandmothers, just to name a few. I asked the class if they had any questions about my presentation or the topic. I then thanked them for their time, and concluded my presentation.
Below are Ms. Lubbe's responses to the evaluation of my lesson.
Ms. Lubbe's shining reviews of my lesson meant a lot to me. Though at the beginning of my project, it was a bit intimidating to reach out and ask her the big favor of allowing me to both conduct the survey, and teach a lesson to her classes, it proved to be a very rewarding experience for me. I believe her enthusiasm toward the topic of my presentation and toward my project as a whole influenced her students to become interested as well. Ultimately, this allowed me to become less nervous about presenting to her classes, and more excited to pass on the valuable information contained in my PowerPoint. This whole experience showed me that even though I am only one person, I can play a part in combating the stereotypes surrounding alcoholism.