How does the use of marijuana affect college students?
Marijuana (also known as pot or weed) is the most common illicit drug used in the U.S. It is considered a gateway drug which leads to higher drugs with more serious consequences. College students usually already stressed with adult responsibilities and classes, often turn to marijuana as a stress release, not fully realizing the effects of marijuana use. Research has shown that marijuana has a negative effect on attention, memory and learning. Therefore, someone who smokes marijuana daily might be functioning at a slower intellectual level than a person who doesn’t smoke at all making it understandable why a smoker would have a poorer educational outcome than a non-smoker. In the play “Intersections” Alex feels pressured by his family to continue college but that’s something he doesn’t want to do. He slightly feels guilty because he knows that his family makes a lot of sacrifices for him but at the same time his mind isn’t on college right now. I think the reason he wants to drop out is because of the effects marijuana is having on him. This is causing him to not really focus on his work so therefore, he doesn’t want to continue.
Substance abuse by students is prevalent at U.S. colleges and universities. “Recent research indicates that both alcohol and marijuana tend to alter brain structure/ function, and are associated with impaired decision making, memory and impulsivity in young adults and adolescents [6–12]”, stated in a research article about the influence of marijuana use on academic performances. Not only does marijuana alter brain function but it also causes poor decision making. This relates to Alex in the play since he smokes marijuana. It caused him to make a poor decision in the first scene because attending college and graduation is something you should want to do. Especially in today’s society, having a college degree is very important if you want to have a good stable job. Therefore, saying he doesn’t want to continue his college career is a poor decision.
Marijuana these days can cause changes in the brain that impair learning, especially in teenagers as their brains have not finished developing. Brains are not fully developed until the age of 25 or 26. Chronic marijuana use can lead to changes in both personality, judgment, and reasoning skills. Pot damages the heart and lungs, increases the incidence of anxiety, depression and schizophrenia, and it can trigger acute psychotic episodes. Many adults appear to be able to use marijuana with relatively little harm, but the same cannot be said of adolescents, who are about twice as likely as adults to become addicted to marijuana.
(I don’t have my conclusion as yet).
Peer Review Questions:
1. Did I attract my readers in my introduction?
2.Is my essay boring, if so..what can I do to change that?
3. Should I state more about the actual play itself?
4. Does my essay connect with the play?
5. Are my sentences and paragraphs structured well?
1- I think it did. It caught my attention especially because it’s a fact, many can relate to this. Many turn to marijuana in order to cope with stress and it’s often seen as a good thing, no one really talks about the negative side effects.
2- It wasn’t boring
3-I think you should open up more about your opinion about the play and bring it up more.
4- Yes, I absolutely see where you are coming from with Alex and the negative effects of marijuana and his studies.
5-Yes, it’s pretty easy to read.