INFLUENCE OF HEALTH EDUCATION ON KNOWLEDGE AND ATTITUDE OF SECONDARY SCHOOL TEACHERS TOWARDS CERVICAL CANCER SCREENING IN AWKA EDUCATION ZONE

The study aimed to investigate the influence of health education on secondary school teachers' knowledge and attitudes toward cervical cancer screening in the Awka Education Zone of Anambra State. The study was guided by four research questions and four hypotheses were tested at the 0.05 level of significance. The study used a quasi-experimental design. The study population comprised 432 female teachers from public secondary schools in Awka Education Zone of Anambra State, Nigeria. The sample size for this study was 80 female teachers from public secondary schools in the Awka Education Zone. The data collection instruments were two: the Cervical Cancer Screening Knowledge Test (CCSKT) and the Attitude of Secondary School Teachers towards Cervical Cancer Screening (ASSTCCS). The instruments were subjected to face and construct validation using three experts. The instruments were pilot-tested with 20 teachers at Community Secondary School, Ugwuoba, Enugu State, who were not part of the main study. The reliability coefficient was 0.76 for the Cervical Cancer Screening Knowledge Test (CCSKT) and 0.83 for the Attitude of Secondary School Teachers towards Cervical Cancer Screening (ASSTCCS), using Cronbach’s Alpha. To analyse the research questions, the Mean, Standard Deviation (SD), and Standard Error (SE) were utilised. The independent t-test was applied to test the null hypotheses. The findings showed that health education significantly improved secondary school teachers' knowledge of cervical cancer screening. Health education also positively influenced teachers’ attitudes toward cervical cancer screening, making them more receptive to regular screening and early detection practices. The study concludes that health education significantly improves female secondary school teachers' knowledge and attitudes toward cervical cancer screening in Awka Education Zone. Based on the findings, the researcher recommended that the Ministry of Education, in collaboration with the Ministry of Health, incorporate cervical cancer education into teacher training and professional development programmes.