Method and media of health education

Methods of health education are the techniques or ways in which series of activities are carried out to
communicate ideas, information and develops necessary skills and attitude. Mainly methods have been
classified into three main groups according to the number of people who are willing to get health education
i.e. Individual Method, Group Method and Mass Method.
1. Individual method: This method involves person-to-person or faces-to -face communication, which
provides maximum opportunity for two-way flow of ideas, knowledge and information. Adequate
interaction between the health educator and his client help provide health education successfully
resulting in attitude and expected behavioral change. The examples of individual methods of health
education are interview and counseling.
 Counseling
 Interview
2. Group method: An ideal group may consist of six to twelve members depending upon situation. This
small group also can get some opportunity to ask questions and share ideas, information and
experiences. In spite of the advantage of individual methods a health educator can not be use because
of time limitation and shortage of manpower. So it will be more practicable for him to provide health
education in-group situations as well. Teaching in group can also be effective because it also
provides ample opportunity for question answer and discussion.
 Group discussion
 Demonstration
 Mini-lecture
 Problem solving
 Brain storming
 Panel discussion
 Role play
 Field trip/educational tour
 Workshop/seminar
3. Mass method: This method is especially meant for a large number of heterogeneous people. Such group
of people is commonly termed as mass.
 Lecture
 Exhibition
Individual method
Interview
Interview is to meet and talk each other and collect information and ideas. It is a kind of process or method
of providing health education through the means of question and answer between the health educator and
the learner. In this process, interviews, knowledge, attitude, feeling and health practices are studied and
essential suggestions are given to bring about the positive change.
Advantages of interview
1. Helps to know knowledge , attitude and practice
2. Helps for intensive and systematic teaching with exchange of ideas and feelings
3. Help to reach a better conclusion for solution of a problem.
4. Easy to conduct with less cost and limited facilities.
5. Even illiterate persons can be interviewed and taught
6. Easy to make follow-up
7. It is a two way communication
8. The expression and gestures can be observed.
Disadvantages of interview
1. Time consuming
2. Difficult to cover wide range of target people
3. Limited manpower
4. Tedious if has to repeat too many people. 
 
Counseling
Counseling is a process of encouraging and helping an individual in identifying his or her health problem,
the cause of the problem, the ways of its solution and also encourage to take necessary actions to solve it.
The decision of actions strategies is made on his own choice with least of advice from the counselor. A
counselor will have to play a serious role of helping the client in identifying the actual problems and the
appropriate method to solve it. So he must encourage for adequate interactions between him and his client.
Opportunities for counseling
 At Hospital
 At Home
 At School
Techniques of counseling
The following techniques which can help for effective and successful counseling
1. Building rapport
It is a process of developing relationship with the client and gaining faith. The counselor should show
positive attitude towards client. He should first introduce himself and try to get clients introduction
establishment of such relations will help to gen confidence, truth and mutual understanding. Which help to
keep client at ease and help to exchange ideas, feelings, and experiences in maximum level.
2. Identifying clients need or problems.
Individuals have their own values, norms, beliefs and attitude all which influence decision .Counselor must
try to understand the problem as the client see himself.. Counseling should conducted in a respectful way
using a communication process that seeks to understand the client's needs .Counselor must speak politely ,
cleanly, listen to, exchange ideas and help in identifying the health problems of the clients.
3. help the client in finding ways to solve the problems
The counselor should help the client in finding ways to solve the problems by encouraging in discussion and
develop problem solving strategies based on his situation. Counselor should provide appropriate
information's and help to find resources. He can guide the client a sound decision and encourage
implementing what he is planned.
4. Maintaining patience
A councilor should be patience while giving information, listening the client's ideas and guiding to help
him, identifying the health problems and help to solve it by necessary actions. A counselor should be patient
throughout the counseling period. He should do responsibility seriously.
5. Keeping secret
Counselor should maintain confidence on sensible personal matter is highly necessary during counseling. In
ability on the part of counselor to maintain confidentiality will result in non cooperation and failure in
counsel ling.
Advantage of counseling
1. It is helpful in dealing with individual clients and motivate him to take necessary action to solve his
health problem
2. Provides maximum opportunity for feedback.
3. Helps to maintain two way communications.
4. Illiterate people can be taught by this method.
5. Easy to make follow up studies on the basis of counseling records.
Disadvantage of Counseling
1. Counseling takes long period of time.
2. It is difficult to cover wide range of people through counseling method.                                          

Group Methods of Health Education

Demonstration
Demonstration is the process of providing knowledge and skills as well as developing attitude of a small
group of people through the manipulation of appropriate teaching devices or materials. Teaching by
demonstration involves verbal and visual explanation. It is a mixture of theoretical and practical teaching. It
is organized to teach about the specific topics and it takes 45 minutes to complete the demonstration but it
slightly vary according to the topic. The numbers of learners in the group may be about 15 to the maximum.
The learners are given opportunity to see and manipulate the device or materials used in demonstration and
also give opportunity to practice the process and questions and answers to clarify doubts.
Advantages
1. It is the effective teaching method which involves varied learning experiences like seeing, hearing,
feeling , testing and smelling depending upon the subject of demonstration.
2. It is interesting and draws attention of the learners because of the active learning process.
3. It helps to develop not only knowledge and attitude but also skills for required work performance.
4. Student’s achievement could be immediately assessed through verbal expression and skill practice.
5. Provides concrete and realistic visual picture of what is being taught resulting in a more lasting
impression.
6. It is cheap, practicable, accessible and useful for different categories of learners. It needs only
limited materials and object. It can be used at different teaching-learning situations at different places.
Disadvantages
1. Sometimes it may be difficult to get necessary equipment and materials for certain demonstration.
2. May not be appropriate to conduct demonstrative teaching on certain topic especially when there
will be only cognitive gain.

Mini lecture
Mini lecture is a small group method of health education. Mini lecture is the method of giving information
about any subject matter with the help of short lecture or speech, maintaining the exchange of ideas between
the speaker and the audience, as well as evaluating about what the audience perceived in between the
speech.
Advantages
1. Two way communication is maintained between the speaker and audience
2. The audience gives maximum concentration on the speech.
3. Since there is quick evaluation in between the speech , the mini-lecture can be changed
according to fit to the knowledge condition of the audience.
4. It can be effective in small groups within short time interval
Disadvantages
1. It will be difficult for the speaker to present mini-lecture in short time , as well as to evaluate and
change the mini-lecture according to the perception of the audience.
2. The audience feels shy and embarrassed when they cannot answer the questions asked by the
speaker.
3. It can be applicable only for small groups.
Brain Storming
Brain storming is also called ‘Creative Ideation’. This is a modern method of eliciting from the participants,
their ideas and solutions on debatable issues or current problems. Instead of discussing a problem at great
length the participants in brain storming session are encouraged to make a list in a short period of time all
the ideas that come to their mind regarding some problems without debating amongst themselves about the
pros and cons of their own ideas.
Advantages
1. Provides varieties of useful ideas in short time for quick group decision
2. Enables individuals to think and responses quickly
3. Decision made by group thinking is better than by individual thinking.

Disadvantages
1. Ideas pulled out may not always be relevant and helpful to make group decision. It may happen
especially with the new learners.
2. It might take some longer time and may not be appropriate for packed programme.

Role Playing
Role play is a socio drama which can be carried out by individual or a group of people taking different roles
and acting out problem situation similar to that they encounter in their real life situation. They enact roles as
they have observed or experienced and act or pretend to be a sick. Person, as a mother, child, health worker
etc. In a role playing there will be about 5 to 6 characters and 15-20 audience but the number may be
slightly vary according to situation .
Advantages
1. Give learners opportunity to express their ideas based on real life situation and can learn from each
other.
2. Enables the learners to see things through the eyes of others. Start learning how knowledge and
attitude affect health behaviour.
3. Develops the power of quick thinking and expression .Helps the characters to explore their
potentialities and come to a better decision. They can apply those skills in their real life situation while
dealing with health problems.
4. Develop careful listening habit.
5. Makes people think in a more constructive way.
6. It interesting and provides active learning opportunity in a realistic way.
7. It simple and inexperience and can easily be conducted at different situation.
8. The best way to teach people about health in order to make them understand it.

Disadvantages
1. It may lead to only a recreational activity not educational.
2. Everybody cannot successfully act due to shyness, lack of experience, lack of confidence and
expression skills.
3. Every learner may not get opportunity to participate as role player.

Group Discussion
The practice of meeting group of people and discuss to solve problem existed since the beginning of man's ability
to communicate with verbal symbols. Today, group discussion is also used commonly in teaching a ' group of
people about how to identify their health problem and find out ways and means to solve it. It is a method of teaching
through the direct share of knowledge, ideas and experiences among small group of persons about a particular
subject or problem within a limited period of time with a view to solve the problem. Any discussion should take
only an hour or less to avoid boredom.
Group size
An ideal group may consist of Six to Twelve members depending upon the situation so that each person is able to
communicate with all the others face to face to reach to a decision and achieve the common goal.
Members of group discussion and their roles: They are:

1) Leader or chairperson:
2) Recorder:
3) General members

Advantages
 Develops creativity, confidence and ability of judgment in the members or learners.
 Helps learners to come to a group decision and solve their common problem. Group decision is better than
individual decision.
 Helps members to become active learners and learn new knowledge, ideas and experiences about their
subject of concern through a cooperative process.
 Provides adequate communication among all the members with exchange of ideas and experiences.
 The health educator can make a closer study of the members of target group regarding their need,
interest, attitude, ability and other potentialities.
 Disadvantages
 Some self-conscious members may not venture to bring forth their valid idea "for fear of disapproval by
other members.
 Sometimes discussion may be prolonged without any fruitful result, or it may take longer time to come
to the conclusion or decision.
 Somebody may not feel personally responsible for the result of discussion. So, they may not participate
well.

Panel discussion
Panel discussion is one of the methods of group teaching. It can be adopted both for school students and
community people in order to provide health education. The panel members will be a group of experts normally 3 or 4
persons who themselves enter into question and answer process regarding a specific topic of discussion. The
health educator can manage to identify and bring the experts. He can work as a coordinator to introduce topic
and the experts, and also help conduct the discussion.
Advantages
 Provides varied knowledge, ideas and experiences about the subject of concern to the learners.
 Interesting and .can draw attention of the audience or learners.
 Learners get opportunity to ask questions and pass comments, which help, in teaching-learning process. 
Disadvantages 

 Sometimes it is difficult to get the appropriate experts.

 Difficult to set definite time to suit the experts.
Field trip
A study field is a planned visit to a place outside the classroom to provide practical knowledge in real
situation. It is also called a study trip or an educational excursion or an educational tour. A study trip may be
made to places within walking distance of the school taking few hours or even a day. A study trip may also be
taken within the school complex to see and study the waste disposal system, latrines, water supply system,
kitchen complex, cafeteria or canteen, and the food Store. Study trip can also be taken to a distant place for
several days.
Mass Methods of Health Education
Exhibition
Exhibition is the systematic and meaningful display of educational materials with an intention to educate
large number of people within a limited period of time and at a particular place.
Exhibition can sometimes be organized to provide health education to the community people. Exhibition
consists of the use of different teaching materials and methods to illustrate and explain the points of
teaching. They are posters, charts, graphs, models, real objects, cassette playing with some health message,
demonstration, puppet show, videocassette, etc.
Advantages
 Provides better learning through varieties of experiences like hearing, seeing, touching, feeling and tasting.
 Opportunity may be provided for practical learning through demonstration, manipulation of objects and through
practice.
 Interesting and attractive because of decorations, good setting, and other lively displays.
 Helps students to develop creativity.
 Organizing exhibition can also help learn some new knowledge and skills.

Disadvantages
 Difficult to organize in terms of money, materials and manpower.
 Difficult to organize to suit different kinds of people with different needs, background, interest, etc.
 Difficult to get appropriate place and adjust to the available time due to lack of resources, unfavorable weather, etc.

What are the criteria of selecting appropriate method and media of health education explain with examples.
1) Feasibility or practicability :-
There should be possibility of using the required methods at the place where we are giving health education,
like we cannot use electrical devices where there is no electricity. Showing film, using overhead projector is
impossible at such places.
2) Nature of the audience:-
Proper methods should be used and selected by considering the nature of audience, we cannot use panel
discussion and symposium for children and news papers, pamphlets and other written document for
uneducated persons.
3) Accessibility:-
The method should be effective enough to reach and influence each members of the total population, where
we have to give message. It should not happen that one part of a community has well access to all sorts of
methods and next part is avoided. These problems usually arise in hilly remote areas.
4) People's attitude and belief on the method or media: -
Usually people have more believe on radio, television and national magazines, but they have less believe on
lecture, miking and pamplating are more reliable and accepted more by people. So giving message through
radio, television and magazines are more reliable and accepted more by people.
5) Subject or purpose of teachings:-
We have to select such sorts of methods which will help to fulfill the objective and needs of the people. It
should be selected according to the interest of the people so that the audience will eagerly participate.
                                
 HEALTH EDUCATION MEDIA
Media are the teaching aids by which knowledge, information and ideas are communicated with view of
dissemination of messages. The teaching aids helps to health educator to impart knowledge to the
audiences.  The media or teaching aids are used to create awareness and in enforcing learning. They are
used different ways and at different situations of individual, group and mass teaching.
Classification of health education Media
Generally teaching aids or media can be broadly Categorized into 3 types:-
1) Audio Aids: learning occurs by hearing e.g. Radio, cassette player
2) Visual Aids: People learn by seeing e.g. Posters, pamphletes, flipchart, flannel graph, Butte tin board
etc.
3) Audio -visual aids: learning occurs by hearing and seeing e.g. Television, film & sound, videotape,
movie etc.

Audio-Aids
Radio
Radio is the audio aids through which messages are relayed to a heterogeneous and large number of people
at one time, who are not physically present before the communicator. It is a mass media, which provides
one-way communication. The concerned audience are informed and asked to attend the broadcast at the
particular time and place.
Advantages
 It is very much helpful for illiterate people; the message should be simple to understand.
 It leaps the barriers of distance and space.
 Radio transmitter can be carried with and attend the radio health programme anywhere the individual
goes.
 One can give up to date information  t a large  number of people in a very short t period of time.
Disadvantages
 It is one-way communication system.
 The communicator cannot be sure of it people sure listening to and understanding his message.
 There may be electricity and batteries problems & broadcasting facilities are available only in the
limited area.
 It is difficult to evaluate   the impact of radio teaching.
 Sometimes there may be language barrier to certain group of people.
 Message received only through verbal teaching so it is easy to forget.
 Difficult in timing to fit the convenience of the specific target people.

Cassette player/Tape recorder:

Cassette player is a small portable audio machine or equipment, which can be operated with the help of the
electricity or batteries. It is useful for providing health education (message) to a group of audience. These
days cassette player or tape recorder is commonly used media. Different cassettes can be recorded with
different health messages and be used according to the need and interest of the audience group.

Advantages
 Useful for group teaching session and make discussion.
 It can be recorded and played easily at various place.
 The recorded  message can be pre -tested before using for  actual  teaching session
 It can be played at learner’s speed of learning by stopping in between or by playing over.
 It can be   played with the help of batteries where there is on electricity supply.
 It is portable and easy to carry at different   places of teaching
Disadvantages
 It is little costly to afford.
 Some people become confused about the operation of equipment
 It is little costly afford and added Problem of repairing.
 Break of electricity supply or lack of batteries might pose problem.
 Learning by hearing only is not effective.

Visual Aids

Poster: -
Poster is a visual aid. This is pictorial and graphical non-projected visual combination of bold design, color
and message, which is intended to catch attention of learners from long distance to implant a significant idea
in his/her mind. Sometime, poster is made even without picture, such poster is not useful for the illiterates, a
perfect poster should be good for both literate and illiterate.
A good poster must contain
 Caption
 Pictures,
 Course of action suggested and
 Logo
Qualities of poster 
 A good poster should carry only one unit of message
 Colored poster is more natural, attractive and clear
 An ideal size of the poster is (60×60) cm but it may be different in size.
 The picture   and letters should be big enough to be seen clearly a distance of about five meters
 Message should be   based on the need of target of people and should conform   the existing culture of
the community concerned.
Advantages
 Pictorial and colored posters are attractive and effective.
 It can be carried easily from one place to another. 
 Can be locally prepared in limited number to meet immediate and local health education needs
 Many People can learn something from limited number of posters on display.
 Even illiterate people can learn something by looking at the picture of the poster.
 Helps  to develop  creativity of  in the learners  by involving  them in designing   and making  posters 
 Can be saved for future use.
Disadvantages
 It provides one-way communication.
 Color printing of poster is very expensive and printing services may not be available in rural area or
place.
 It can damage easily.
 Difficult to sure indented group have seen or read the displayed posters.

Pamphlet:-
Pamphlets are visual media. It is considered as mass media of health education. The message can be written
in the form of poem, song, and diagram. It can be written in the form of dialogue. It can also be introduced
in the form of leaflets, folders to convey health related message. A pamphlet   should be as brief as possible;
it should be not exceed more that four pages
Advantages
 Help in propagating messages rapidly in mass scale through wide distribution.
 Pamphlets are very easy to Cary from place to place.
 The first reader can pass the read pamphlets to others.
 It covers the large number of people place through wide distributions for the purpose of propaganda
 It is easy to prepare and not costly
 People can read them at them free time and I\understand the message well.
 It can be kept safely to read again and again, which helps remainder of the information.
Disadvantages
 Provides only one-way communication.
 Not useful for illiterates.
 There is no sure either the people have read and understood the distributed pamphlets.
 Printing service may not be available everywhere especially in remote or back ward areas.

Flip chart: -
A flip chart is a visual teaching aid, which is just like photo album. It is the series of related charts or poster
assembled in a booklet form. It is also called flipbook or turnover chart. A set of flip chart normally consists
of 6-8 charts the size of individual sheet of chart   should be approximately 50cm×70cm is normal size. But
it may also vary depending upon the available paper size. A flip chart is mainly used in classroom teaching,
training program, Group teaching in community etc.
Techniques of using flip chart
 Have the group seated   inform of you in such way  that no none blocks  the other  in looking  at the
chart
 Place the flip chart high enough so that it can be seen clearly.
 Introduce your topic of presentation
 Explain each chart well before going the next.
 Encourage participants to as questions
 Be careful, you should not block any part the picture or message. You can refer   to any one of the used
charts during the presentation as needed
Advantages
 Flip chart is helpful to make systematic presentation and to explain the point clearly and comfortable
with in the limited period of time.
 It helps to show abstract information visually. Pictorial explanation is better and more effective.
 It is portable ad easy to carry form place to place for providing
 It is helpful for both literate and illiterate person to learn.
 It can be used repeatedly whenever needed.
Disadvantages
 Flip chart is expensive to produce in large scale.
 There may be difficulty to draw the appropriate picture.
 Ready-made flip chart may not achieve education goals.
 It doesn't cover the large number of people at once.

Bulletin Board: -
Bulletin board is a non-projected visual aid, which health education message and any other information is
displayed with view to informing people. The board   is made of sheet of light plank or plywood, card
-board sheet or similar   rigid   material usually   set within a frame. Different education material like
cuttings, picture, graphs, chart, leaflets and other appropriate teaching aids  are displayed with the  help of
thumb pin or cello tape. We can keep the bulletin board in library section, waiting hall, offices, hospitals,
health post, nursing home etc. The normal size of the bulletin board is 60cm×40cm in size.
Advantages
 It is attractive, simple and economical way of providing information and message
 Stimulate learners' thoughts when they are involved in the preparation of display.
 People get opportunity to learn smoothing while waiting in the hall, passing through corridors, etc.
 Students learn through   share of knowledge and skills among fellow learners while preparing for the
displays
 Helps to provide up -to date information
 Learners learn through share of knowledge and skills among learners while preparing for the display.

Wall chart:-
It is diagrammatic representation of certain message. It serves as self-explanatory visual media in providing
health education. It is displayed on the walls of office, waiting halls so it is called wall chart. The average or
normal size of these charts is often 20cm×15cm. The size may slightly vary depending upon the nature of
content or message. A health educator   can draw a chart   to arrange or clarify the relationships among
individuals within an organization, the ingredients of a product, steps in a process, the sequence of event in
a historical period.
Disadvantages
 Ordinary people may be confused or mislead because of their inability to read the chart property.
 A chart alone does not provide detail description of the subject of teaching.
 All kinds of message may not be presented through chart.
 Less useful for illiterate people.

Flannel-graph: A flannel-graph consists of flannel board and a series of cut pieces or cut-outs. The use of
flannel-graph helps the health educator to illustrate the points of teaching and reinforce the message
presented. The edges should be fixed on the board with the help of thumb-pins or appropriate nails.
Advantages
 The pictorial explanation is interesting and attractive.
 Organized and systematic display of cut pieces can make the teaching impressive and effective.
 Could be used at different teaching situations — in the classroom, community group, group of mothers
attending FP/MCH clinic etc.
 It is easy to carry the sets of cut pieces to distant places.
 It is durable and can be preserved well for future use.
 It is not expensive to make a flannel graph.
Disadvantages
 There may be problem of drawing appropriate pictures. Also appropriate pictures may not be available
in the magazines to trace or for cutting.
 Sometimes the cut pieces may not properly stick on the flannel board and may fall down