Drugs Education in China.

I was in my office in the afternoon when Sherika called me to the window and pointed out a group of maybe one or two hundred children lining up outside the school gates and forming into groups, each of which were behind a Chinese flag.  Their age range was maybe eight years old to twelve years old.  I was curious so I watched.  Sheila had to go off to teach.  I had no idea what they were going to do, but guessed they were going to make use of some facility in the school.  I was right, it was a drugs education visit.  We have one of the Jiangkou Xian Narcotic Commission drug exhibition centres.
As with many things to do with schools, the love of the motherland is first instilled into the children.  The flag is important, and rallying around it is a daily event.  As far as I know there are no other official flags allowed in China.  So there is always someone carrying one, if there is a group, and if things are official.  The children marched into the school and formed outside the drug information center, where they met with the ICT guy from our school whose other job is to assist with drug information and prevention.  They then paraded around the drug information center looking at examples of drugs and drug paraphernalia, which was housed in glass/plastic cabinets.

 I toured around the facility with them as I had never seen inside it before.  The paraphernalia was all there along with a lot of writing.  I am not sure of the educational value of all this, because the children, aged around eight to twelve seemed to move through the facility far quicker than they could have read the notices, and the teachers all stayed at the door end of the facility and did not accompany them.  Also the children seemed more interested in me the foreigner than the drugs!  After the tour they lined up outside for the school 'evidence' photo, complete with flag.

They then re-formed in the yard and were spoken to by one of the teachers and marched off to another area of the school.