Community Teaching Work Plan Proposal
Topic: The topic of the teaching work plan proposal hereof is Prevention of Sexually Transmitted Diseases in Miami, Florida.
Table 1. Planning Before Teaching.
Epidemiological Rationale for Topic: 46% of teenagers in the US have their first sexual intercourse in high school, 39% of which do not use condoms. In Miami, Florida, the rates STD rates have doubled since 2007 (Trepka et al. 2017).
Nursing Diagnosis: The risks are aggravated by the lack of awareness of STD prevention methods, which necessitates educational interventions.
Readiness for Learning: Students’ readiness for learning is reflected in their expression of sexually related feelings towards the opposite sex and their interest in the body image.
Learning Theory: The Social Development Theory is to be utilized for the project. It states that consciousness, cognition, and development are preceded by social interaction (Daniels, 2016). Since the target population consists of teenagers, the influence of their peers cannot be neglected.
Goal: One of the key objectives is number HIV-2: Reduce the number of new HIV infections among adolescents and adults (“Healthy people 2020,” 2017). Since the number of the affected is on the rise in Miami, preventive teaching is required.
Relation to Alma Ata’s Health for All: Alma Ata’s Global initiatives address prevention and control of STDs (including HIV/AIDS) as well as the aforementioned objectives.
Table 2. Objectives, Content, Strategies:
Creativity: Visual effects, interactive games, and videos will be used.
Planned Evaluation of Objectives:
- usefulness of transmission simulation (questionnaire);
- students’ background on the topic (pre- and post-tests);
- abstinence lessons learned (discussion);
- contraception awareness (pre- and post-tests).
Planned Evaluation of Goal: STD statistics will be assessed at the end of the school year. The school nurse will be interviewed.
Planned Evaluation of Lesson and Teacher: An anonymous evaluation questionnaire will be used.
Barriers:
- embarrassment (handled by establishing the trust);
- disrupting students (to be removed);
- difficult materials (to be adjusted to become comprehensible).
Communication: To hook students in, I will demonstrate the theory of six handshakes, drawing a parallel with STDs. The presentation will end up with a summary and discussion.
Community Presentation
Teaching Experience
Summary of the Teaching Plan
After conducting a thorough assessment of the community needs of Miami, the topic of prevention of Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs) was selected as one of the most pressing for the local population. It was found out that the community lacks both educational and health promotion measures, especially in schools. The number of STDs in adolescents is rapidly growing, which necessitates changes that would allow increasing their awareness on the topic. That is why Miami Senior High School was chosen as a perfect location for the project since high-school students demonstrate the highest interest in the topic of sexual relationships and the lowest knowledge of possible dangers.
The teaching will require 2 sessions, approximately an hour each (with a break in-between). To attract the attention of the audience, the presenter will start with a demonstrative game, asking each student (since the audience united several classes) to shake hands with those whom they know best. After that, the theory of six handshakes will be presented to the students to show that although they shook hands with only 3-4 people, they actually “touched” everyone in the class. This introductory game is intended to draw a parallel with the mechanism of STD transmission. This demonstration will be supported by a brief fact sheet covering the STD statistics in Miami.
To establish trust, the lecturer will resort to life examples and encourage students to ask questions and take part in the discussion (since they will likely feel embarrassed and ill at ease). To increase their understanding of the material presented, it will be adapted to be comprehensible for their linguistic and scientific levels. Moreover, several tests and questionnaires will be used for the students to check what knowledge they have on the topic. Videos and interactive games will be utilized to evoke interest.
At the end of the lecture, the key points will be summed up with the help of the students. The major goal of the educator will be to estimate whether the lecture managed to increase their awareness of the issue and encouraged them to use means of contraception. The necessity of screenings for STDs will also be discussed.
Epidemiological Rationale for Topic
Teenagers all over the United States tend to engage in risky sexual behaviors much more often during the last decade. 46% have their first sexual intercourse in high school, 39% of which do not use condoms. This problem is particularly acute in Miami, Florida, where rates STD rates have doubled since 2007 (Trepka et al. 2017).
This problem is exacerbated by the fact that the trend goes unnoticed by the authorities. Thus, no prevention programs are launched to increase awareness of STDs, their prevention, diagnosis, and treatment. Moreover, the majority of schools in Miami do not have sex education as a part of the curriculum (although an innovative prevention education program has already been adopted) (Oster et al. 2014). Another risk factor is the teenage culture that encourages a higher frequency of sexual intercourse with different (or even unfamiliar) partners who can easily be found via phone-dating apps.
At the same time, the situation becomes worrying indeed since there are more than 400 cases of Chlamydia and 20 cases of syphilis, and over 40 cases of HIV/AIDS per 100,000 residents. As a result, Miami is considered to be the country’s number tw0 HIV spots (the status that it has earned since 2009, reaching the peak in 2011). The majority of STDs are curable but can cause serious fertility problems if they are not treated in due time. Syphilis may also lead to rashes and paralysis (Workowski & Bolan, 2015).
The necessity to address the problem at the school level is supported by the fact that younger people are more likely to be infected (more than 56% of all cases) and less likely to be timely diagnosed (Liu et al., 2015). This is partially explained by their unwillingness to use condoms and to undergo a medical examination, especially if there are no visible symptoms (as is often the case with “silent diseases”). Besides, the majority of teenagers do not know that they can be tested for STDs without having their parents notified.
Evaluation of Teaching Experience
Even though is it always challenging to communicate with adolescents on such delicate subjects, the experience turned out to be positive and rewarding. The knowledge obtained in the course of the lecture and discussion can be used for future community projects. Communication techniques are also applicable for other population groups.
Although surprising it may seem, all the participants arrived at least 10-15 minutes before the beginning of the lecture and greeted each other in a friendly manner, and showed genuine interest in the topic (although some of them still felt embarrassed). On the whole, it was evident that they were mentally and emotionally prepared for the discussion to come and even demonstrated concentration and diligence when it came to memorizing scientific facts. Many of them asked questions and interacted with one another. Several disruptive students made rude jokes and interrupted the lecture; however, there was no need to remove them since their peers opposed this inadequate behavior.
As expected, the students were more interested in visuals and interactive games rather than in statistics and lengthy explanations. They encouraged each other to take part in role-playing and enjoyed the activity. However, it must be admitted that the prevailing majority of the participants also completed the questionnaires offered to them to check what they have learned. While the students felt at a loss being asked to do the same tests before the lecture and did not show good results, their scores at the end of it were much higher. The lecturer also received positive feedback on the way the whole event was organized and performed.
Some of the participants also asked for handouts to study at home and came up to the lecturer to specify information about medical screenings. Others wanted to share their problems and ask for a piece of advice, which indicated that a due level of trust was established with the audience.
Community Response to Teaching
Although it is early to judge whether the educational intervention described above was successful, it is still evident that the response of the community was positive. As has already been mentioned, many participants demonstrated a genuine interest in the issue and came up to the lecturer for further clarification. Many of them wanted to copy the video to watch it at home. The results of the tests and questionnaires offered to the students revealed that they managed to significantly enhance their knowledge of STDs, their signs, symptoms, and prevention methods. Furthermore, leaving the classroom, many students expressed their willingness to take part in other discussions and lectures if they are to take place.
The school principal remained satisfied with the results of the project and suggested redesigning the lecture so that it could be utilized for the education of younger students. A possibility to elaborate the complete course of sexual education for students was also discussed. Finally, it was decided to organize a support office for teenagers to come for consultations.
The participants’ parents also expressed their gratitude to the author of the project. It was suggested to repeat the experience in other educational institutions including universities. After a profound discussion with social workers and other community members, the decision was made to create a website for adolescents to inform them on the topic and provide anonymous support.
Areas of Strengths and Areas for Improvement
As it is evident from the report above, there were numerous areas of strengths. First and foremost, the communication between the education and the students was based on trust and mutual respect. This type of interaction is difficult to establish with representatives of this age group. Another positive aspect was connected with the effective use of all the provided materials. The video and the lecture were informative while interactive role-playing was entertaining and motivating. The tests developed by the lecturer acted as effective assessment tools of the students’ understanding of the subject.
A few areas of weaknesses can also be identified. For instance, the initial meeting with the school principal should have taken place earlier to avoid problems connected with the preparations. Then, providing an advertisement for the event would have attracted more students.
References
Daniels, H. (2016). Vygotsky and pedagogy. London, UK: Routledge.
Healthy people 2020. (2020). Web.
Liu, G., Hariri, S., Bradley, H., Gottlieb, S. L., Leichliter, J. S., & Markowitz, L. E. (2015). Trends and patterns of sexual behaviors among adolescents and adults aged 14 to 59 years, United States. Sexually transmitted diseases, 42(1), 20-26.
Oster, A. M., Sternberg, M., Nebenzahl, S., Broz, D., Xu, F., Hariri, S.,… Paz-Bailey, G. (2014). Prevalence of HIV, sexually transmitted infections, and viral hepatitis by urbanicity, among men who have sex with men, injection drug users, and heterosexuals in the United States. Sexually Transmitted Diseases, 41(4), 272-279.
Trepka, M. J., Mukherjee, S., Beck-Sague, C., Maddox, L. M., Fennie, K. P., Sheehan, D. M.,… Lieb, S. (2017). Missed opportunities for preventing perinatal transmission of Human Immunodeficiency Virus, Florida, 2007-2014. Southern Medical Journal, 110(2), 116-128.
Workowski, K. A., & Bolan, G. A. (2015). Sexually transmitted diseases treatment guidelines. Reproductive Endocrinology, 2(24), 51-56.