St. Jude Cancer Education for Children Program: The Feasibility of Teacher Delivery (Pilot Study)

-The St. Jude Cancer Education for Children Program was created in 2006 as part of the outreach mandate of the Comprehensive Cancer Center at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. The curriculum is designed to teach schoolchildren about cancer and dispel common misconceptions, inform students about healthy lifestyle choices that can translate to reduced cancer risk in adulthood, and to inspire an interest in science and scientific careers. In the 2010-2011 school year, researchers examined the impact of the program in regard to knowledge.

It has always been clear that St. Jude personnel are limited to visiting a small number of schools in person each year so in 2011, a teacher's kit to the education program was created. The kit includes all the lesson plans needed to complete the program without the presence of St. Jude staff members. As a result, researchers at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital want to test the feasibility of the intervention by schoolteachers, and how this mechanism of delivery will affect student knowledge, attitudes, and health behaviors associated with cancer and healthy living.

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Key information

Conditions

Healthy

Age range

8 year–11 year

Sex eligibility

All sexes

Study type

Observational

Primary location

St. Jude Children's Research Hospital

Memphis, Tennessee, 38105, United States

About this study

Teachers who agree to participate will use the teacher's kit developed by the St. Jude International Outreach Program to deliver the St. Jude Cancer Education for Children curriculum to 4th grade students over the course of 1 week. Pre and post survey data will be collected from students to measure knowledge, beliefs, attitudes, perceptions of vulnerability, intentions, and behaviors associated with cancer and healthy living. Rates of compliance and feedback about the curriculum will be collected from teachers via curriculum checklist, survey, and interviews.

Primary Objective:

To determine if it is feasible for classroom teachers to implement the St. Jude Cancer Education for Children Program.

Secondary/Exploratory Objectives:

To determine factors that may contribute to the program's feasibility such as school and teacher characteristics.
To measure the impact of the intervention on student knowledge, beliefs, attitudes, perceptions of vulnerability, intentions, and self-reported health behaviors.

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: Yes

Only the study team can determine whether someone qualifies for participation.

Inclusion criteria

Located in the United States or United States territories
District & school provide permission
3rd, 4th, or 5th grade student with cognitive capacity to complete questionnaires (as determined by the teacher)
Assents to study participation

Exclusion criteria

Located outside of the United States or United States territories
Student does not assent to participation
Student without cognitive capacity to complete questionnaires (as determined by the teacher)
Parent or guardian refuses consent

Treatment and study plan

Primary outcomes

Rate of compliance

Time frame: 1 week (at end of three teaching modules)

Delivery of the educational curriculum by classroom teachers will be demonstrated to be a feasible method of delivering the St. Jude Cancer Education for Children Program. The program will be determined to be feasible if 80% of the schools that agree to participate complete the delivery of the program. A complete delivery will be defined as all grade consenting teachers delivering 2/3 of the educational content in each of the three modules.

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

St. Jude Children's Research Hospital

Other

Registry information

Important dates

Study start: 2012
Primary completion: 2014
Study completion: 2014
First posted: May 3, 2012
Registry last updated: Jan 13, 2015

OpenTrials presents study information sourced from ClinicalTrials.gov. The official registry record should be consulted for the latest information.

View the official ClinicalTrials.gov record (opens in a new tab)

This listing is for discovery and informational purposes only. It is not medical advice, does not guarantee that a study is recruiting, and does not determine eligibility. Contact the study team and a qualified healthcare professional when considering participation.

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