AIDS Peer Education

            In an effort to continue the process of learning that is initiated at HIV/AIDS presentations, HMO volunteers work intensively with small groups of students to pursue the topic of HIV/AIDS in greater depth. Twenty students are selected by secondary school administrators to participate in the peer education program, generally with five of them coming from each grade level. These twenty students meet with volunteers for six two-hour sessions. Sessions cover the fundamentals of HIV/AIDS, prevention skills, social effects of HIV/AIDS, and counseling skills.

            Information is presented to students with only limited use of lectures. The size and duration of the AIDS peer education program allows for a much more interactive method of teaching. Educational exercises and group discussions are used to explore the information presented during each session in greater depth. When covering topics like prevention and counseling skills, role-playing in pairs and small groups is an important activity.

Fun “ice breaker” and “get to know you” activities are planned for the beginning of each session in order to establish a comfortable atmosphere for all participants in the program. These activities, combined with the extended duration and small size of this program in relation to the larger AIDS presentations, allow students and volunteers to form trustful relationships. These relationships facilitate discussion about difficult topics surrounding HIV/AIDS. Through these discussions, volunteers are able to learn about very specific issues that individuals in the program are dealing with and, as a group, students and volunteers are able to develop solutions to complex problems. This is a critical step in translating knowledge about disease into lifestyle changes that reduce risk of infection.

It is the goal of these sessions to equip participants with knowledge about HIV and AIDS that will make them a resource to the other members of their community. By the end of the program, students are more educated about HIV and AIDS than many of their peers, and they have confronted problems and concerns about the disease that are specific to themselves and their communities. In dealing with these issues, they have developed creative thinking and problem-solving skills that will help them in counseling their peers. Students who have completed the program are encouraged to spread their knowledge to others through presentations similar to those given by HMO volunteers.