Secondary School Teachers, Their Views and Roles in Grassroots Soccer as an Intervention Anti-HIV/AIDS Propagation Tool
Authors: Alfred Mavondo, Greanious , Louise Mzingwnane, Mayibongwe , Nompumelelo Chaibva, Cynthia , Coletta Gwatiringa, , Cladinos Mapfumo, , Fennie Mantula, 
Published: April 2020

Introduction: The GRSZ projects were aimed at bridging the gap between adolescents’ unwanted social behaviours and societal norms and values fashioned by the breakdown of family and society cultural practices, as a measure to militate against the spread of HIV/AIDS amongst adolescents, adolescent unwanted pregnancy and gender-based violence using soccer as a medium of learning. The program deliberately circumvented involvement of Secondary School Teacher during planning and implementation hoping to have a clean intervention strategy without the encumbrances and confounders possibly introduced by the societal authority figure. However, a for continuity and adaptation of the program into the school curriculum as a behaviour change catalyst, the Secondary School Teacher is pivotal. The evaluation sought to delineate the views and roles of this cadre as determinants and guidelines towards the successful translating of GRSZ experimental work into the real-life school environment.

Methods: In-depth interviews were conducted by trained and qualified interviewers who formed the team of evaluators at various selected school during the teacher’s working hours. A pre-prepared interview guide constructed and reviewed by the panel of evaluators as well as the Medical Research Council of Zimbabwe was used to conduct the guided interview. The researchers brought the interview guides to selected schools where appointments had been made prior by the Key Researcher. The interviews were held on the same day other surveys at the school. A total of 11 (five females and six males) Secondary Schools Teachers with more had in-depth interviews carried out after which saturation was reached.

Results: The majority of adolescents (62.2%) reported the teacher as their source of information on HIV and reproductive health and the mother followed a close second at 57.7% reflecting possibly contact hours as the factor. Teachers corroborated this information showing high eagerness to be involved in the GRSZ at the earliest given opportunity. Both males and females did agree that they were the closest role models and gave varied reasons as to why their influences were not adequate in shaping the life skills of adolescents under their watch. It was clear that teacher embraced and endorsed the GRSZ program expansion and their involvement in future cohorts.

Conclusion and Recommendations: Teachers had high anticipation of involvement and showed dismay at not having been involved in the initial phases of the program where their contributions were most likely to have had a high impact through their possible engagement with the community to cement the gains of the program. They recommended that lifelong learning on HIV/AIDS prevention, unwanted pregnancies and gender-based violence need to be incorporated into all areas of learning at school and beyond. Expanding the program to other schools in Zimbabwe beyond Bulawayo was seen as an overdue process.