Teach to say “NO” – A mixed methods evaluation of a child sexual abuse prevention training for primary school teachers in Phnom Penh, Cambodia

Background and objective

Child sexual abuse is a point of contention around the world. Protecting children from sexual abuse and ensuring primary prevention approaches has been a predominant task for LMICs. The research objective is to evaluate the effectiveness of the “teach to say-NO” blended theory-based CSA prevention program by measuring knowledge and attitudes and analyzing the feasibility and acceptability of the intervention among primary school teachers in a school environment.

Participants and setting

In total, 146 primary schoolteachers from 27 public schools in Phnom Penh, Cambodia were employed. and 29 teachers were employed for the qualitative study.

Method

The study was designed as a mixed-method study, consisting of a quasi-experimental study and a qualitative case study. The “teach to say-NO” program was delivered to intervention schoolteachers for 4 weeks. Both groups completed knowledge and attitude questionnaires at baseline, first, and second follow-up. The qualitative study was evaluated through in-depth face-to-face interviews conducted to analyze the feasibility and acceptability of intervention.

Results

Study participants had poor knowledge on CSA and at baseline the knowledge (t = 0.72, d = 0.131) and attitude (t = −0.069, d = −0.011) scores between the intervention and comparison groups were the same. After the intervention participants demonstrated a significant improvement (p < 0.05) within and between groups. The feasibility and acceptability of the intervention “teach to say-NO” themes were coded into three main areas: interest of participation, challenging factors, and benefits.

Conclusion

These findings suggest the presence of knowledge gaps concerning child sexual abuse among teachers, thus highlighting the imperative for training in this field to enhance teachers' knowledge on CSA prevention.