Two years later: preservice teachers' experiences of learning to use participatory visual methods to address the South African AIDS epidemic

Abstract

IntroductionSouth Africa continues to struggle with high rates of HIV and AIDS. The general population has an HIV prevalence rate of 19% and the annual death rate due to AIDS-related causes is 200,000 (UNAIDS, 2013). Amongst the highest rates globally, 7% of South African youth between the ages of 15 and 24 years are HIV positive. They also have the lowest rates (14.3%) of national ARV treatment exposure (Human Sciences Research Council [HSRC], 2014). In the integrated national and provincial strategies laid out by the Department of Basic Education (DBE), the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET), and the South African National AIDS Council (SANAC), teachers are thought to be well positioned to respond to the physical, emotional, and pedagogical impact of HIV and AIDS on learners' lives (DBE, 2012; DBE & DHET, 2011; SANAC, 2011). Specific curricular and professional requirements further outline teachers' responsibilities to address the intersecting influences of gender inequity, HIV stigma, and health behaviour (e.g., condom use, alcohol and drug use) on HIV transmission and prevention (DBE, 2000; 2011a; 2011b). While there are many possible approaches to addressing these issues, this article reports on the findings of a follow-up study with South African preservice teachers who were introduced to participatory visual approaches to HIV and AIDS education. Framing the study theoretically in Mitchell's (2014) concept of the afterlife of research interventions, this study asks: What can we learn about HIV and AIDS education through a follow-up study with individuals previously trained in participatory visual methods? Taking up the question, this article begins by describing Youth as Knowledge Producers (YAKP) as the research context and my connection to the project. This is followed by an outline of my data collection methods. The findings report on preservice teachers' reflections on learning participatory visual methods for HIV and AIDS education, how they have or plan to integrate these methods into their teaching, as well as on challenges they have experienced in applying a participatory visual approach. The findings are discussed in relation to what they might contribute to the development of HIV and AIDS teacher education.Teacher Education and HIV and AIDSThe DBE response to the epidemic is reliant on teachers. This is, however, far from straightforward for teachers themselves. Teaching about sex and the body in its sexualised form can pose fundamental challenges to teachers' identities, and threaten their authority in their classrooms (Baxen, 2010; Baxen & Breidlid, 2004). In the process of life orientation (LO) teaching, teachers may come into conflict with the nationally prescribed curriculum-which is rights-based and comprehensive-and their personal values about sexuality and gender (Ahmed, Flisher, Mathews, Mukoma, & Jansen, 2009; Helleve, Flisher, Onya, Mukoma, & Klepp, 2009). They may also have difficulties responding to the specific needs of learners who, for example, are not able-bodied or heterosexual (Chirawu, Hanass-Hancock, Aderemi, de Reus, & Henken, 2014; Francis, 2012). The emotional component of talking about relationships, love, illness, and death is often avoided by teachers (Naidoo, 2014). The use of didactic, teacher-centred methods can undermine the learner-centred approach advocated in the LO curriculum (Gibbs, Willan, Jama-Shai, Washington, & Jewkes, 2015). The dearth of in-service teacher education itself remains an issue. Francis and DePalma (2015), for example, found that many teachers responsible for sexual health education indicated that they have had no training or very minimal training in HIV and AIDS education content and pedagogy.Preservice teachers should be acquiring teaching knowledge and skills during a 4-year undergraduate, or 1-year postgraduate, programme at a higher education institution (HEI). However, numerous studies on teacher education conclude that HEIs are failing to prepare preservice teachers for the evolving South African school system impacted by HIV and AIDS (Clark, 2008; James-Traore, Finger, Daileader Ruland & Stephanie, 2004; Wilmot & Wood, 2012). …