Using Participatory Media to Explore Gender Relations and HIV/AIDS Amongst South African Youth

Prepared for the UNESCO Institute for Education workshop "Learning and Empowerment: Key Issues in Strategies for HIV/AIDS Prevention" (Chiangmai, Thailand, March 2004), this 25-page report explores and evaluates the work of the South African organisation DramAidE. Established in 1992, DramAidE (Drama in AIDS Education) uses drama, peer education, and participatory media development in an effort to critically engage young people to communicate effectively about issues relating to sex, sexuality, and HIV/AIDS.

The authors begin by outlining the context in South Africa in which DramAidE is working, and some of the challenges faced when working with young people in a multi-cultural and often divided society. After outlining the history of DramAidE, they explore the approaches that DramAidE has used in an attempt to reduce risk of HIV infection among young people, and to sensitise them to issues of gender, culture, and tradition.

Specifically, the paper focuses on two DramAidE materials development projects: Woza Nazo and Mobilising Young Men to Care. These projects are carried out in disadvantaged secondary and tertiary institutions in KwaZulu Natal (KZN), the province with the highest HIV prevalence rate in South Africa. The authors describe these projects in detail; in brief, the projects focus on using peer education and new materials (such as videos) that are developed in a participatory manner with the groups being addressed. Key elements of these projects are drawn from social learning theory (Bandura, 1997), which suggests that individuals learn and copy behaviours from observing others. To this end, peer educators and health promoters are used to model healthy behaviours. For example, DramAidE uses a workshop methodology that includes drama-based activities to pose problems creatively. Facilitators stimulate interactive engagement among participants using problem-posing techniques.

This paper details some of the successes of these two projects, culling out some lessons learned. To cite only one example, responses from teachers to the Mobilising Young Men to Care materials were very positive. The video developed as part of the initiative was found to be an effective discussion starter for gender issues, as well as a strategy for deepening the level of discussion about HIV/AIDS. Forum theatre - a technique in which young people create and present their own plays - was also characterised as a useful technique that is well demonstrated by the video. Following a discussion of such successes, the paper explores some of the challenges that DramAidE faces, and shares ideas on how to overcome these and move forward.

An excerpt from the "Application to Other Contexts" section of the document follows:

"A number of lessons can be learned from the DramAidE experience, and be applied to other contexts. Perhaps the most important of these is that participation by the target community should not be only in the intervention itself, but also in the planning and conceptual phases during the initiation of the project.

Participation by target community in conceptualising the materials development project and the materials to be developed, as well as involvement in the research and testing phases means that the materials will be appropriate to the context of their end use. They will also be accessible and pitched correctly for use by educators in the area.

The participatory workshops that DramAidE offers educators in the use of the new materials allows them to familiarise themselves with the materials and the facilitation styles best suited to exploring the issues covered. These training workshops also educators to ask questions and to experiment, so that they are adequately equipped to deal with real-life situations that may arise in their classrooms or communities.

The DramAidE approach is participatory and low-tech. Using drama and other participatory approaches does not require access to expensive technology. Young people are exited to participate in the programmes, and life-skills such as self-esteem are developed, ensuring that participants are confident to take the programme further in their communities. This means that a small organisation, such as DramAidE, can have an enormous reach. Establishing clubs, support groups and other peer-driven programmes means that the goal of spearheading a social movement for positive health behaviour may be reachable, even in a country where the HIV/AIDS epidemic is so severe."