The role of secondary school teachers in HIV prevention in Nigeria

Abstract The purpose of this study was to investigate knowledge about HIV/AIDS among classroom secondary school teachers and document any efforts at educating their pupils about HIV prevention. A self-administered questionnaire addressed issues on demography, knowledge and awareness on HIV/AIDS and their roles in HIV/AIDS prevention. All consenting school teachers in the Irewole local government area of Osun State, Nigeria, participated in this study. The response rate was 91.7% (n = 180). There were more males (76.4%) than females (23.0%) The mean (± SD) age of the respondents was 41.5 (±15.5) years. More than 90% had adequate knowledge of HIV/AIDS and indicated that it could be prevented. Furthermore, 86.1% wanted HIV/AIDS preventive education to be made compulsory in the secondary school curriculum. There were 131 (n = 165, 79.4%) teachers who did not teach HIV/AIDS prevention, while 32 (19.4%) teachers believed that the pupils were too young and that the non-availability of guidelines and resources are reasons for not teaching it. One hundred and fifty-three (92.7%) of the respondents would like to attend a course/programme/workshop to update their knowledge and 139 (84.2%) of teachers would like to be part of an HIV/AIDS prevention group for their community. There is a need for school teachers to be trained adequately and provided with a structured educational programme to follow in order to enhance effectiveness in HIV/AIDS preventive education to pupils.