A Field Trial of an Educational Program for Malaria Study in Primary Schools of Solomon Islands Using an Innovated LED Light Box and Microscopy
- VernacularTitle:ソロモン諸島国における ＬＥＤライトボックス顕微鏡による小学校マラリア学習プログラムの試み
- Author:
Makoto OWHASHI
;
Setsuo SUGURI
;
Masato KAWABATA
;
Akira ISHII
- Publication Type:Journal Article
- Keywords:
malaria;
LED light box;
Solomon Islands;
health education in school;
integrated study with experience
- From:Journal of International Health
2008;23(4):265-271
- CountryJapan
- Language:Japanese
-
Abstract:
Malaria is a parasitic disease of major health significance that arrests the development of the tropical countries, and the developmental education on malaria for the local residents has crucial effects for the successful control of malaria. In the present study, we tried to innovate an effective education program for a community primary school in a malaria endemic area of Solomon islands. The integrated program was consisted mainly with practical exercises of the surveillance of mosquito larvae that transmit malaria parasites, identification of the species of mosquito larvae and the mapping of the breeding sites and the localization of the residence of village people under the cooperation of the local residents and teachers. We successfully established a risk map showing the approximate localization of Anopheles larvae that transmits malaria. An impressive observation of mosquito larvae was performed with microscope equipped with LED light box in the dark classroom without electric power equipments. Though no students have ever observed the mosquito larvae and few students have some knowledge for malaria, all students replied that they learned about malaria with a deep interest by the educational program. Thus, this educational program is shown to be promising for the health education in the schools of malaria endemic area.
