The problem is that few teachers have been trained to cope with the educational, social and psychological consequences of HIV and AIDS.

As a teacher, you need to know not only the HIV facts, but also about condom use, pregnancy and other sexually-related issues. This may mean that you have to become comfortable with talking about these subjects—not an easy task when we have been culturally conditioned to avoid them.

There is a lot of information available, so you should be able to make sure you know the facts. If you don’t, you risk spreading myths and false information that could lead to stigmatization and other negative consequences.

As a teacher you need to be able to facilitate responsible decision-making with learners and should be comfortable about integrating life-skills education into their syllabuses where possible.

To be an effective HIV and AIDS educator is to be aware of your own values, beliefs, feelings and behavior, because what you believe, feel and do in the classroom will convey either a positive or negative message around HIV and people living with HIV and AIDS.

Here are a few things that teachers should ask themselves before teaching about HIV/AIDS: (link1)

If you are looking for some creative ideas to create a supportive environment in your classroom, click here (link2)

Here are some “Do’s and Don’ts that teachers should be aware of when teaching about HIV/AIDS (link3)

In spite of the added stress and challenges that HIV presents for education, it also presents an opportunity to rethink your approach to teaching and learning.

Teachers can take the chance to integrate life-skills and sexuality education into the curriculum, to talk about safety and gender issues, to encourage a greater level of caring and empathy at schools and to bring back the nurturing element of education.

HIV and AIDS could be the catalyst we need to humanize teaching, to make sure education contributes to developing learners who will be compassionate, caring, responsible and HIV-free citizens.