Environmental health knowledge and practice survey among secondary schoolchildren in Zaria, Nigeria

Knowledge of environmental health was assessed in a sample of 192 students at Ja'afaru Secondary School, Zaria, Nigeria, by means of a questionnaire. A follow-up practice survey was also administered to assess the environmental sanitation of the school and the homes of a subsample of the students. Observations were recorded on the sources of water, the methods of refuse and sewage disposal, and the hygienic condition of the toilets in both the school and the homes surveyed. The findings indicated that the students' knowledge of environmental hygiene was high for all classes and that students whose fathers had primary, secondary, or post-secondary education scored slightly higher than those whose fathers were illiterate. Analysis of the observations on environmental sanitation showed that even though the school lacked indoor plumbing on the premises, the pupils were accustomed to pipe-borne and well water in their homes. The main method of refuse disposal for school and homes was open dumping, and the main method of sewage disposal for both school and homes was pit latrines, which were dirty and poorly maintained. Although the pupils had good knowledge of environmental hygiene, inadequate opportunities and lack of sanitation facilities at school and homes did not allow them to practice the health knowledge they had acquired. Recommendations were made to the school authority to direct more effort toward providing a safe and adequate water supply, good drainage systems, additional toilets, and renovating the existing toilets. The school should also emphasize the practice of good environmental hygiene to complement theoretical input.