Educating youth about AIDS: a model program - AIDS Awareness Workshops, New York

Children Today, Sept-Oct, 1989 by Wendy Amer-Hirsch

Educating Youth About AIDS: A Model Program

The hundreds of participants in the Girls Club of New York's AIDS education program are not only learning valuable information about a serious subject. They are also having fun while they're learning.

The AIDS Awareness Workshops, now in the third year, were developed in response to the alarming AIDS epidemic in New York City, the high number of youths at risk, and the high percentage of minority women and children being infected. Using entertaining and innovative materials, the Girls Club has provided more than 1,500 youngsters and young adults with the information and skills they need to take steps to protect themselves from exposure to the AIDS virus. These creative approaches to AIDS education can readily be adapted for use in Girls Clubs and other youth agencies across the country. Over the three years the project has been funded by the New York City Department of Health, the New York City Youth Bureau and foundations.

Because there is no cure for AIDS, education is critical in preventing the continued spread of this devastating epidemic. The U.S. Surgeon General, the American Academy of Pediatrics and the U.S. Department of Education are among those who have endorsed AIDS education for children and teenagers.[1] Because the virus is not yet widespread among young people-372 of all reported AIDS cases (a total of 94,280) - are among youths aged 13 to 19[2], we still have a chance to control the AIDS epidemic among this population.

Many young people in America are at risk for AIDS because they experiment with sex and drugs, the two behaviors that put them at greater risk for exposure to the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). More than half of all teenagers report they have had sexual intercourse by their 17th year, and many have multiple partners.[3] Nearly half of all cases of sexually transmitted diseases reported are among people under 25 years old. Teens fail to use birth control consistently or reliably[4], and most do not use methods that are effective in preventing the spread of HIV infection.[5]

In addition to these behaviors, teenagers feel a sense of immortality and believe that they are immune from any harm, including the threat of AIDS. Teens are also generally misinformed about AIDS.[6] For all these reasons, it is essential that all youthserving agencies talk to youngsters about AIDS and provide them with information that can save their lives.

The Girls Club of New York is located in the South Bronx, a predominently black and Hispanic community facing a multitude of problems, including high rates of poverty, unemployment, teen pregnancy, drug abuse and AIDS. In 1986, the AIDS education/prevention workshops were incorporated into an existing prevention program at the Girls Club called the Growth Information and Family Training Program, which addresses such areas as low self-esteem, child abuse, drug abuse, teen pregnancy, and other health issues. Since children and youth participating in the program receive the information, support and skills they need to live healthier lives, it made sense to include AIDS education within this comprehensive program. Because we used existing Girls Club staff members who were qualified to teach the workshops, they were inexpensive and easy to implement. Other methods that minimized costs involved using free educational materials provided by government agencies, including health departments, and developing inexpensive activities to use with the children.

The goals of the AIDS Awareness Workshops are to provide accurate information about AIDS that will enable young people to protect themselves against the disease; to reduce panic by exploring myths and attitudes about AIDS; and to encourage participants to adopt safer behaviors, thus reducing their risk of exposure to HIV.

The AIDS education program is designed to be presented in one-hour workshops scheduled once a week for three or four weeks. This scheduling promotes continuous reinforcement of the information and permits adequate time to review the materials and answer all questions. The workshops include general information about AIDS, methods of transmission-including high-risk behaviors-and methods of prevention, including abstinence and safer sex practices. The material is presented at an appropriate level consistent with the values, age and cognitive level of the group, and in a sensitive manner using simple language the teens and pre-teens can understand.

Many excellent materials about AIDS are available to use with young people.[7] We supplement the basic AIDS lecture with innovative approaches and activities to make the learning more enjoyable and to make our teaching about AIDS transmission and prevention more effective.

In the workshops, pre-teen boys and girls design posters demonstrating how people can protect themselves from AIDS. Using construction paper, crayons and magic markers, the youngsters draw pictures and devise slogans about AIDS. One poster, for example, shows a hypodermic needle with a big slash through it and the statement, "AIDS is Death." Each student explains his or her poster to the group, and the posters are then displayed throughout the building for others to see and learn from.