Twenty two schools from the Shannonside region have taken part in a major longterm programme on alcohol education & behaviours.
The project is being overseen by Drink Aware, a charity working to prevent and reduce alcohol misuse across the country.
10 schools in Roscommon have been offering the course including Roscommon Community College, Scoil Mhuire Strokestown and Castlerea Community School.
St Mel's College, Ballymahon Vocational School and Cnoc Mhuire Secondary School in Grandard are 3 of 7 schools in Longford who've taken part.
While in Leitrim, the programme has been rolled out to 5 schools including Carrick on Shannon Community School and Drumshanbo Vocational School.
A survey commissioned on the programme by Drink Aware has shown that 40 percent of teenagers had tried alcohol between 1st and 2nd year, but that number increased by 17 percent between 2nd and 3rd year.
According to the data, students who've undertaken the classes are more likely to delay having their first drink till later in their teens.
Drinkaware CEO, Sheena Horgan says that the educational programme needs to be scaled up to reach more children.
