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Virology research J 2017 Vol 1 Issue 2
Notes:
July 26-27, 2017 | Vancouver, Canada
WORLD CONFERENCE ON STDs, STIs & HIV/AIDS
allied
academies
T
he HIV/AIDS epidemic and the complex socio-cultural
factors that fuel HIV transmission among many societies
in the world have led to governments adopting the multi-
pronged and multi-sectorial approaches to deal with the
phenomenon (Buthelezi, 2013). In education, the curriculum
is identified as an area where HIV/AIDS and sexuality
knowledge that is integrated within life skills education
is incorporated (World Bank, 2002; Kelly, 2000). In South
Africa, the life skills and HIV/AIDS education is included
in the National Curriculum policy for schools. The paper
foregrounds the primary and secondary school learners’
voices, which articulate their experiences of the rural
context.
Methods:
The project,
Ixopo duty-bearers’ Project Number
One
1
, was done in the Ixopo rural area of KwaZulu-Natal
in South Africa. The qualitative framework was used,
and 84 learners (54 primary and 30 high school learners)
participated. Having cleared all ethical procedures that
helped consolidate trust between the two schools involved
in the project and the NGO working in the area, I embarked
on the data production process. The qualitative approach;
specifically, the arts-based and participatory methodologies
were used. The learner participants, aged between 8-19
years wrote stories of their lives through drawings, and
textual narratives in dialogue journals. Data from the
dialogue journals were analysed qualitatively through open
and axial coding, patterning, re-coding, and categorisation
until the themes emerged.
Results And Discussion:
Together the learners expressed
narratives of worry, mainly about AIDS related deaths, TB,
poverty, sex, and teenage pregnancy that are common in
their context. After completing her life story, one learner
wrote in big letters, “
The earth is death
” (FP11-13years).
This four-word metaphor accurately captures the contents
of almost all dialogue journals, which described in detail the
learners’ experiences, where the death of family members
due to AIDS related conditions is common. When parents
die, children experience poverty and abuses including sexual
abuses by the remaining relatives. Adult-adult and adult-
child sex is prevalent in the community. Learners themselves
engage in transactional sex to survive. Then, learners live to
worry about getting pregnant.
The absence of relevant support for learners affected and
infected by HIV/AIDS leads to depression among learners
who, as a result, see death as an option. In the learners’
voices, this is reflected as “I
just think of taking the rope and
kill myself to have peace.” or “I wish I should drink poisoned
water” or “I wish my dead mother comes and fetches me.”
Poverty and the ineffective delivery of life skills education
exacerbate depression and hopelessness.
Conclusion:
Problems and challenges facing children in the
area are complex; however, theoretically a person is not a
subject of his/her environment. In an environment of anti-
child culture (van Greunen, 1993), education, particularly
life skills education becomes a mediating factor between
the child and his/her environment (Buthelezi, 2007).
Consequently, the child develops his/her full potential
and engages with the environment on personal, cognitive,
psychological, socio-economic and constitutional levels,
assumes responsibilities for their lives and make the most of
life’s opportunities.
Speaker Biography
Thabisile Buthelezi is a qualified nurse, midwife, teacher, and Adult Basic Education
Practitioner. She works as an Associate Professor in the School of Education, at the
University of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa. Her teaching and research interests are on
Life skills-based and sexuality education, HIV/AIDS in curricula, Education and Society,
Language Education, Gender and culture, African languages and social aspects.
e:
Buthelezit10@ukzn.ac.zaChildren and Youth Voices about Sex and AIDS and implications for life skills education: Experiences
in KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa
Thabisile Buthelezi
University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa