STUDENTS’ KNOWLEDGE AND INFORMATION SOURCE ON SEXUAL TRANSMITTED INFECTION (STIS ) IN JUNIOR SECONDARY SCHOOL: A CRITICAL REVIEW

STUDENTS’ KNOWLEDGE AND INFORMATION SOURCE ON SEXUAL TRANSMITTED INFECTION (STIS ) IN JUNIOR SECONDARY SCHOOL: A CRITICAL REVIEW

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

Young people (youth) aged 10 to 24 years are the largest and fastest growing demographic group in Sub-Saharan Africa. This age group’s population increased by 56% between 1980 and 1995. Unprotected sexual practices put children at risk of contracting sexually transmitted illnesses (STIs), including HIV infection. STIs are a major public health concern, especially because they can cause serious complications if left untreated, as well as their link to HIV transmission. They result in significant morbidity and premature death. Every year, over 100 million new cases of STI are diagnosed among young people under the age of 25, who account for roughly half of the world’s population. Various surveys, according to Amu and Adegun (2015), show that, as in many other developing countries, a

By the age of 16 years (3-5), a high proportion of young people in Nigeria have unprotected penetrative sex, while 23 percent and 25 percent of primary school boys (12-20) years and girls (12-19) years, respectively, reported past experience with sexually transmitted disease (STDs) in Lagos.

Surprisingly, despite the fact that the use of condoms as a STI preventative measure was not investigated in his study, various factors have been documented to discourage the use of STI preventive measures among the young demographic sub-group. Condoms, which reduce sexual pleasure, financial constraints, poverty, and societal norms that keep women submissive, as well as conventional views of technique, according to Alubo, Oyediran, and Odiachi (2019), have all been implicated.

While young people report basic sexual health information,

People are primarily acquired from peers, but information on STDs such as HIV/AIDS and pregnancy prevention is typically acquired from the media among Nigerian youth. Only a small percentage of students said their parents were their main source of sexual health information. In a related study on our culture in Nigeria, it was discovered that a relatively low proportion of parents were willing to discuss sex issues with their children. The study also discovered that parents thought such issues should be taught in schools, indicating that sex-related issues are sensitive and that parents avoid discussing them with their children.

Adegun, Solomon, and Adegoke (2018), on the other hand, stated that the quality of knowledge that parents pass on to their children is questionable.

Parents are concerned that they are not providing their children with enough information. However, there is evidence that teenagers prefer to get sexual health information from their parents and teachers, whom they regard as credible sources of such information. In order to provide evidence-based information to relevant organizations and institutions when tackling STDs among youth in schools, this study investigated the sources of information and levels of awareness about STDs among secondary school children in an urban context.

1.2THE PROBLEM’S STATEMENT

Secondary school students are more vulnerable to STIs than older people. Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) are illnesses spread primarily through sexual contact. They include curable diseases such as gonorrhea, syphilis, and chlamydia, as well as incurable but HIV, herpes simplex, human papillomavirus (HPV), and hepatitis B are all treatable diseases. According to the WHO, 20% of HIV/AIDS patients are in their twenties, and one out of every twenty teenagers contracts a STI each year (WHO 2018). Youths are more likely to engage in unprotected sex, have multiple sexual partners, and engage in transgenerational and transactional sex than adults. Female adolescents and young women are predisposed to STIs due to the lining of their cervical cavity. Furthermore, as Olasode (2017) observed, individuals may struggle to obtain the necessary knowledge, services, and supplies to avoid STIs. They may also struggle to access STI prevention programs because they are unsure where to look, lack transportation, or cannot afford the services. Regardless of whether they

They may not feel safe in areas that are not welcoming to young people if they can get STI prevention programs.

Surprisingly, untreated or inadequately treated STIs are associated with a slew of negative outcomes. In men, gonorrhea and Chlamydia trachomatis infection causes epididymitis, which may lead to infertility in the future. Furthermore, untreated gonococcal urethritis may lead to inflammatory urethral stricture in the future. If not treated properly, this can result in urine retention and possibly chronic renal failure. Females can suffer from pelvic inflammatory illness, dyspareunia, infertility, persistent pelvic discomfort, an increased risk of ectopic pregnancies, abortions, stillbirths, and perinatal and neonatal morbidities, all of which jeopardize their future reproductive abilities (FMH 2015).

Understanding STI and its consequences, as observed by, is critical for

proper prevention and treatment, because those who do not recognize their need and thus do not seek treatment. Apart from HIV/AIDS, poor countries have little knowledge of other STIs. There is little, if any, literature on STI awareness in junior secondary schools. The goal of this study was to determine junior secondary school students’ knowledge and information sources on sexually transmitted diseases (STIs), identify their special health educational needs, and make appropriate recommendations to the government and Ministry of Education.

1.3 THE STUDY’S OBJECTIVES

The broad goal of this study is to examine junior secondary students’ knowledge and information sources about sexually transmitted infections (STIs). Other specific goals include:

i. Determine the level of the student

Junior secondary school students’ knowledge of sexually transmitted diseases

ii. To look into the sources of student information on sexually transmitted diseases in junior high schools.

iii. Investigating the risk factors for sexually transmitted diseases in junior secondary schools.

iv. To assess student information sources’ attitudes toward sexually transmitted diseases in junior secondary schools.

1.4 QUESTION FOR RESEARCH

The following questions guide the research:

i. How well do students in junior secondary schools understand sexually transmitted diseases?

ii. Where can students get information about sexually transmitted diseases in junior secondary schools?

iii. What factors increase the risk of sexually transmitted diseases in junior secondary schools?

iv. How do students feel about sexually transmitted disease information sources?

Diseases are prevalent in junior secondary schools.

1.5 THE IMPORTANCE OF THE STUDY

A lot of research has been done on the level of knowledge and source of information on sexually transmitted diseases among junior secondary students.

The study will allow the researcher to make recommendations to junior secondary school policymakers, particularly those in information units and the Ministry of Education and Health, on what policies and strategies can be used to improve the level of knowledge and the source of information on sexually transmitted diseases in junior secondary school of learning.

The discovery will assist the Junior Secondary Education Board in revising its admissions procedures in order to raise awareness. The report will also serve as a resource for other researchers who wish to conduct research.

the level of knowledge and source of information on sexually transmitted diseases among secondary school students. Empirically, the study will contribute to the general body of knowledge and serve as a resource for students and scholars interested in conducting additional research in a related field.

1.6 STUDY OBJECTIVES

The scope of this study includes a critical review of students’ knowledge and information sources on sexually transmitted infection (STIS) in junior secondary school. The context scope included factors such as sexually transmitted infection risk and knowledge, as well as school awareness of how to address STIs among youth in schools. The study, however, is limited to selected junior secondary schools in Cross River State’s Calabar South Local Government Area.

LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY

The researchers encountered minor constraints while conducting the study, as with any human endeavor. The significant constraint was the scarcity of literature on the subject because it is a new discourse, so the researcher incurred more financial expenses and spent more time sourcing for relevant materials, literature, or information and in the data collection process, which is why the researcher resorted to a limited sample size covering only junior secondary schools in Calabar South Local Government Area in Cross River State. As a result, the findings of this study cannot be generalized to other junior schools in other Nigerian states. Furthermore, the researcher’s commitment to this study will be hampered by his or her other academic obligations. the investigation. Nonetheless, despite the constraints encountered during the research, all factors were minimized in order to provide the best results and make the research a success.