Knowledge and attitude of teachers towards life skills education of school going adolescents.

Reg ID: 144

Abstract

Introduction: Life skills enable individuals to cope with everyday challenges. Life skills education in schools can influence adolescents’ social and emotional development. Knowledge and attitude of teachers is critical in ensuring effective implementation. Methods: An analytical cross-sectional study was conducted among teachers of senior secondary schools of district Amritsar. An equal number of government and private schools (4 each) were selected from rural and urban areas. At least one teacher each of 9th, 10th, 11th and 12th from each of these 16 schools was included. A self-reporting, validated, structured questionnaire was used to assess their knowledge and attitude towards lifeskills. Results: 73 teachers were included in the study. 41(56.16%) were trained in and 43 (58.90%) had ever taught life skills. Knowledge and attitude scores were calculated and graded. Analysis showed significant positive correlations: age with attitude [rs(71) = .29, p = .012], knowledge with attitude [rs (71) = .30, p = .010], teaching experience with knowledge [rs (71) = .24, p =.041] and teaching experience with attitude [rs (71) = .30, p < .01]. There was no significant correlation between age and knowledge. Teachers who had ever taught life-skills had significantly higher attitude score than those who had not (z = −3.04, p = .002). Knowledge and attitude scores among those trained and not trained were not significantly different.

Conclusion: Incorporating life-skills education as regular routine instruction for students is likely to enhance adolescents’ life skills.

Keywords: Life skills, Adolescents, Teachers, Knowledge, Attitude, Amritsar