Providing education to young people and others on HIV in Zambia.

Young people are more likely to be affected by HIV and AIDS than any other age group, but they are also more likely to change their behaviour as a result of education than any other group. At a time when, globally, more children are in school than ever before, it is therefore vitally important that countries invest in schools as a means of informing young people about how they can avoid HIV and AIDS before it is too late. Studies have shown that the HIV prevalence of an area is likely to decrease as education increases, that primary education can half the risk of infection amongst young people and that reduced vulnerability to HIV is observed in people with secondary or higher education. Schooling increases earning power, self-confidence and social status, allowing young people to take greater control over their sexual choices.

Through education, schools can also help to reduce stigma and discrimination, a major problem for people around the world who are living with HIV, which, as well as being distressing for those people themselves, has created a situation where others who may be infected are sometimes reluctant to be tested or access treatment for fear of prejudice. Education in general is likely to encourage a more respectful, open-minded attitude towards other people; in the case of HIV/AIDS education, giving pupils a greater understanding of the epidemic can help them to realise that AIDS can affect anyone, and that no-one has the right to judge an individual on the basis of their HIV status.

It is not just pupils that are educated through schools, though - members of the wider community, including teachers, cleaners, other members of staff and parents, can also increase their knowledge about HIV and AIDS by means of the school environment. Teachers who expand their understanding of the subject while researching for a lesson can pass this information on to adults as well as pupils, and the same can be said for the children themselves; once informed about AIDS, they can go home and tell their parents or their friends what they have learnt. If there are HIV positive children at the school, the adults connected to that school are also likely to learn more about HIV and AIDS through the school’s efforts to support those children.