I’m teaching my sophomores how to read infographics and
other informational texts and kicked off the unit today with a look at the
following infographic on vaping:

http://www.scholastic.com/youthvapingrisks/pdfs/NYTS_Infographic_111218.pdf

The infographic brought about some important discussions I
overheard and also participated in with smaller groups. We talked about how
Northgate High School has a huge problem with vaping and is trying to crack
down. Students here said they don’t see it as much of a problem.

Some interesting takeaways:

·     
“We have uniforms and so we try to rebel with
those and then we don’t go so far as to rebel with vaping”

·     
“People will probably go over to DLS to vape …
the girls’ restrooms there are not monitored at all”

·     
“Or the Back 40s”

·     
“No one here has ever had a conversation with me
like, ‘Don’t vape.’”

Students asked me what I would do if I caught someone …
would I tell them to put it away or would I confiscate it? I didn’t have an
answer. I would probably run to check with Caitlyn!

As a
parent, I was to assume my kids won’t vape. As a teacher at Carondelet, I want
to assume my students won’t vape. But that’s not realistic. Perhaps we have a policy or a protocol I am unaware of. Do you think we
need to have more schoolwide efforts to address this issue?