THE ATTITUDES AND PRACTICES OF TEACHERS AND PUPILS TO ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH FACILITIES IN IBADAN SCHOOLS

Abstract

The provision of satisfactory environmental health facilities in schools is very essential for the promotion of health of both teachers and pupils. In this dissertation, teachers’ attitudes and practices to the use and maintenance of environmental health facilities in selected schools in Ibadan have been covered. The study has revealed that environmental health facilities in the Primary Schools are not only inadequate, but they are poorly maintained. It is an important duty for teachers to see to the maintenance of these environmental health facilities. In this study, pupils' practices to the use and maintenance of environmental health facilities was also included. It was not easy to study pupils' attitudes by mere observation because attitudes are the inner forces of man, which pull and push him to respond positively or negatively, and are therefore not observable. Because of this difficulty, pupils' attitudes have not been covered in this dissertation. Pupils' practices were studied by way of participant observation because it was easy to observe what pupils were doing. From such observation, it was easy to deduce from their practices that the existing facilities in schools were grossly inadequate to cope with large enrollments in those school. The research method which the author used in the study included: the observation, interview and discussions and the questionnaire which was administered to all teachers in the schools. The methods were used to collect as such useful information as possible on the attitudes and practices of teachers and pupils to the provision, use and maintenance of four selected environmental health facilities which have been covered in this dissertation includes:- Water Supply, Waste Disposal, Mid-day school meal and school building. The study discovered that although teachers possess knowledge, they do not put what they know about health into practice. Many of them neglect the use and the maintenance of existing environmental health facilities without realizing the health hazards that might arise. In this case, teachers fail to set the desired examples of healthful living to pupils in schools. Water supply in these schools is often interrupted and in some cases water taps are locked and pupils cannot use them. In all schools storage facilities for water and wash-hand basins are lacking, waste disposal methods are either inadequate or absent. The teachers' attitudes and practices to the existing waste disposal method in schools are bad. From the research methods employed it was discovered that teachers are not drilling their pupils to use these facilities well. The mid-day School meal in all schools is not well organized and not much health education is attached to it. Most of the school buildings are quite old and many of them are defective. The health implications of inadequate and unsatisfactory conditions of these environmental health facilities are numerous. In all, teachers did not show keen interest to inspect the existing environmental health facilities and see to it that deviations from standards get corrected. To conclude, the study recommends that both the Government and the communities around the schools should be involved in the improvement of environmental health facilities . There is a need to train teachers in health education and to make them aware of their role as change agents. In addition to this, there is a need to conduct refresher courses for teachers to make them aware of the dangers caused by negative attitude and practices to the proper use,and proper maintenance of environmental health facilities. There is need to make school health programmes relevant to community needs to allow the pupils to benefit both at home and in school. Teacher should be encouraged to carry out their own periodic inspections of environmental health facilities in schools and do all necessary corrections where possible.