Efforts in Improving Environmental Sanitation of Elementary School Students through Eco-education

Abstract

In 2017, many schools were not yet equipped with good sanitation facilities. In Indonesia, 1.5 million children under five die of diarrhea every year. This community partnership program aims to increase students’ knowledge about environmental sanitation and improve environmental sanitation behavior. The method used quantitative and qualitative method. Quantitative method is resultant from questionnaires data and qualitative method used to direct observation through Focus Group Discussion (FGD. The data of students’ knowledge and behavior were analyzed using bivariate analysis. The results of this activity showed that at the pretest, the elementary school students’ knowledge was 90.62%, which was in the good category, and the peer educator’s knowledge was 82.14%, which was in the good category. At the posttest, the elementary school students’ knowledge increased to 94.08%, which was in the good category, and the peer educator’s knowledge increased to 90%, which was in the good category. The elementary school students’ sanitation behavior was 67.60%, which can be categorized as good. Correlation test results showed no significant relationship between students’ knowledge and behavior (p > 0.05). It can be concluded that there was an increase in students’ and peer educators’ knowledge about environmental sanitation after the implementation of community partnership program. Unfavorable sanitation behaviors were seen in the behaviors of littering, not washing hands before eating, and consuming unhealthy snack. Meanwhile, good sanitation behavior was seen in the behavior of bathing twice a day and defecating in the toilet/water closet