Schools strengthen awareness on vaping risks through lessons: 'Empowering students with strategies'

For Muhammad Harith Firas, 15, seeing a close friend struggle with Kpod addiction was both frightening and eye-opening.

The Secondary 3 student at Presbyterian High School told AsiaOne on Wednesday (Oct 22): "I know someone who actually vapes, and I've caught him on multiple occasions. Whenever he vapes, he doesn’t behave the same — he becomes very lethargic and gets angry easily."

Added Firas: "His grades were slipping and I get scared that he might actually hurt me whenever I try to stop him from vaping."

On Oct 22, the media were invited to Presbyterian High School to observe how anti-vaping lessons are conducted in schools across Singapore as part of ongoing efforts to educate students about the risks of vaping.

Firas is among the secondary school students currently attending such lessons.

He noted that the lessons conducted during Science and Character and Citizenship Education (CCE) classes also helped debunk common myths about vaping and smoking.

"I used to think that vaping was just as bad as cigarettes, but it’s even more dangerous (because it) contains harmful chemicals," he said.

Peer support system

Hshieh Szu An, Subject Head for CCE at Presbyterian High School, also shared insights on the effectiveness of such classes and the importance of peer support.

"Through our lesson today, we wanted to guide our students to reflect on how they can make more value based decisions and also empowering them (students) with strategies of how to manage themselves and how to reach out for help if needed," said Hshieh. 

She also pointed out that  acronyms on the prevention of vaping were incorporated during such classes to help students easily remember the steps to take when facing challenging situations, such as peer pressure to vape or encountering a friend struggling with the addiction. 

"We wanted to equip them with decision-making skills even when faced with a dilemma and have to make a choice."

Through CCE, Hshieh noted, students are encouraged to be role models, promote well-being, and offer emotional support, with guidance available from teachers when needed.

Based on the classes conducted, the acronym PEER also stands for providing non-judgmental listening and understanding, encouraging open conversations about vaping concerns, empowering others with healthy alternatives, and referring them to a trusted adult or professional for help. 

In 2024, the Health Promotion Board launched a pilot programme to train student leaders from three uniformed groups — St John Brigade, The Girls' Brigade, and National Cadet Corps — as vape-free ambassadors in their schools. 

As at October, over 250 students across 35 schools have been equipped with the knowledge and skills to promote a vape-free lifestyle among their peers. 

Regular review of curriculum content

In a statement released on Oct 22, a Ministry of Education (MOE) spokesperson said that the ministry regularly reviews its curriculum content related to vaping to ensure it remains relevant.

"Since 2014, strategies for developing social-emotional skills such as self-control and problem-solving have been incorporated into CCE lessons," said the spokesperson.

These lessons include scenarios involving risky behaviour, where students learn about resilience and how to choose healthy activities, habits, or coping strategies over harmful ones — including, but not limited to, vaping, said MOE. 

In September 2025, a just-in-time package containing anti-vaping content for Science lessons was also shared with all schools with updated information about etomidate and its harmful effects. 

It also featured new content on the science behind addiction, helping students understand how vaping can lead to dependency, and offering practical guidance on how to say no to vaping.

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xingying.koh@asiaone.com