Cigarette smoking is a major public health problem. The Centers for Disease Control reports that more than 80% of current adult tobacco users started smoking before the age of 18. The National Youth Tobacco Survey indicated that 12.8% of middle school students and 34.8 of high school students in their study used some form of tobacco product.
In ENVS 407, Penn undergraduates learn about the short and long term physiological consequences of smoking, social influences, and peer norms regarding tobacco use, as well as the effectiveness of cessation programs, tobacco advocacy, and the impact of the the tobacco settlement.
Penn students will collaborate with middle school teachers in West Philadelphia to prepare and deliver lesson plans to 6th through 8th graders. The undergraduates will survey and evaluate middle school and Penn student body tobacco usage. One of the goals of the course is to raise awareness of the middle school children to prevent addiction to tobacco smoke during adolescence. The collaboration with the middle schools gives the Penn students the opportunity to apply their study of the prevention of tobacco smoking to real world situations.