Effect of School-Based Educational Interventions on the Knowledge of Malaria and Dengue Among Higher Secondary School Children in Chennai, India: A Pre and Post-intervention Study

Introduction: School children are a means to reach and sensitize the community on the prevention of seasonal diseases such as malaria and dengue. The current study aims to determine the impact of school-based educational interventions on the knowledge of students toward the prevention and control of malaria and dengue in higher secondary schools.

Methods: This pre- and post-intervention study was conducted in three higher secondary schools in Zone IV, North Chennai, from September to December 2021. A total of 284 students in the age group of 13-17 years participated in the study. School-based educational interventions were delivered through PowerPoint-assisted lectures, participatory group activities, and demonstration of mosquito larvae and their control. The impact of the interventions as the change in knowledge level was analyzed using McNemar’s test, with a p-value of <0.05.

Results: Educational interventions led to the improvement in knowledge about malaria symptoms, such as fever (43.7% to 76.1%; p<0.001), chills (45.1% to 82.4%; p<0.001), and headache (46.1% to 86.6%; p<0.001), and the knowledge of Aedes mosquito bites as the cause of dengue transmission enhanced (41.9% to 92.2%; p<0.001). Similarly, there was an increase in knowledge on the identification of vector mosquito breeding sites inside the house (11.9% to 67.9%; p<0.001) and outside the house (10.9% to 69.7%; p<0.001) and mosquito net usage (21.5% to 76.1%; p<0.001) after the interventions.

Conclusion: School-based educational interventions had a significant impact on enhancing the knowledge on the prevention and control of malaria and dengue among school children. Involving school children can strengthen existing malaria and dengue prevention and control strategies in endemic areas.