Legalization Affect on Productivity

On October 17th Cannabis was legalized throughout Canada.

In accordance with New Brunswick law, St. Thomas University prohibits smoking Cannabis anywhere on Campus in order to prevent students from going to class under the influence, which is also prohibited.

Students appear to be unaffected by cannabis consumption. Psychology major Rachel DeMolitor says she notices no difference in consumption, explaining she noticed people smoking cannabis before it was legalized and that she believes the newsletter and flyers help in regulating its use on campus.

Attendance remains the same as Journalism Professor Jan Wong says the quality and quantity of assignments have not changed. Wong sees no difference in her students’ academic success or performance.

“I have the usual few kids missing classes but I don’t think it’s related,” Wong explains.

On the other hand, Wong also remembers a group of friends in one of her classes that went to class completely drunk, stumbling over their words and unable to write neatly on the board. Wong did not notice until after the fact when other students let her in on the secret.

Therefore, though there may be no outward appearance of change among students since legalization, we cannot assume it is because students are not smoking. Students are perhaps better equipped at handling consumption than most assume, using it as a resource rather than a distraction.