plan 459Hygiene Instruction and Clean Water Filter Systems In Schools in Port au Prince, Haiti

Summary

This project is designed to reduce disease and save lives by installing a coordinated system of hygiene instruction and water filters in 16 schools located in Metropolitan PAP, Haiti.

Background

The majority of children in Haiti live in extreme poverty and do not have access to clean water. This places them at particular risk for the consequences of poverty: poor health, diarrheal disease, malnutrition, illiteracy and the marginalization that results from these social inequalities. Diarrheal disease is a leading cause of death in children. Worldwide over one million children die each year from this preventable cause. It is also the leading cause of absenteeism in schools and a leading proximate contributory factor to malnutrition.1

Haiti also has the largest cholera epidemic in the world. Started in October 2010, it is the direct result of lack of access to clean water, safe hygiene and sanitation. The already poor infrastructures were disrupted by the earthquake and created an environment whereby the introduction of cholera into the water supply resulted in a rapid cascade of events creating an epidemic. Experts predict another year before case numbers are low and stable and that each year there will be spikes during rainy seasons. Currently 35,000-45,000 cases diagnosed each month; 5 % of the population has been diagnosed. Overall, 500,000 people have been diagnosed with 6,000 deaths.

Pure Water for the World, Inc. (PWW) schools program focuses on ensuring clean and safe water to schoolchildren and providing them with a curriculum that focuses on water and sanitation hygiene consistent with established guidelines. This validated social policy of teaching health and safety in schools and then encouraging students to carry the messages into their homes and neighborhoods is a cornerstone of the extraordinary results that our programs enjoy. Implementation of clean water programs has consistently been shown to decrease diarrheal disease in children by up to 45%.2 The PWW water and education programs in Haiti have demonstrated direct evidence based improvements for over 200,000 children in the areas of increased school attendance, decreased diarrheal disease and improved hygiene behaviors at school and in the home.

1. Clasen, T.; Schmidt, W. P.; Rabie, T.; Roberts, I.; Cairncross, S. Interventions to improve water quality for preventing diarrhoea: systematic review and meta-analysis. BMJ 2007, 334 (7597)
2.Fewtrell, L.; Kaufmann, R. B.; Kay, D.; Enanoria, W.; Haller, L.; Colford, J. M., Jr. Water, sanitation, and hygiene interventions to reduce diarrhoea in less developed countries: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Lancet Infect. Dis. 2005, 5 (1), 42–52.

Location

Port au Prince, , Haiti

Attachments

  • PWW_Hait...
  • Kids_in_...
  • Filters.jpg
  • PWX_16_S...
  • HP_Anima...
  • 2 participants | show more

    Filter numbers

    Lynn Roberts of Agua Para La Salud (APLS)

    The filter used here is similar to that used in rural Guatemala. The homes that have these filters indicate that they can get about 3-4 galons of water a day if the charge them with water in the evening and let set over night. According to the budget for the project the 64 filters will serve 6000 students or about 94 students per filter. T...

    The filter used here is similar to that used in rural Guatemala. The homes that have these filters indicate that they can get about 3-4 galons of water a day if the charge them with water in the evening and let set over night. According to the budget for the project the 64 filters will serve 6000 students or about 94 students per filter. The filters will produce about 15 liters ( 15,000 ml) per day which amounts to about 160 ml per student a day. This is about 1/2 a PEPSI bottle per student a day. Check my figure, but is this sufficient for the project goals?
    Friends in Haiti have indicated that this is a pressing need. Should your ratio of water per student and numbers of filters be increased?

    A cleaning process is necessary to keep the fliters functioning properly. Please describe your method for cleaning the filter and how often this needs to be done in your climate zone.

    • Carolyn Meub of Pure Water for the World

      Hello Lynn, Thank you for your review. Below is information provided by our staff in Haiti. Let me know if you have any other thoughts or questions regarding this. Thanks! Jamin Peck, Pure Water for the World BSF daily water yield: The biosand filter produces 400 ml per minute with a one hour rest period between charges. The...

      Hello Lynn,

      Thank you for your review. Below is information provided by our staff in Haiti. Let me know if you have any other thoughts or questions regarding this. Thanks!
      Jamin Peck,
      Pure Water for the World

      BSF daily water yield:

      The biosand filter produces 400 ml per minute with a one hour rest period between charges.
      The schools charge the filters with 20 liters of water 5 times per day, yielding 100 liters per day per filter or 400 liters per day per school.
      With the average enrollment of 400 students per school this provides one liter (1000 ml) of drinking water per student per day.

      Maintenance:
      The outlet tube will become contaminated during normal use and can be cleaned regularly with soap and water or a chlorine solution.
      The inside of the treated water storage container is to be cleaned when it looks dirty or at least once a month with soap or a dilute chlorine solution and rinsed with filtered water.
      Chlorine cannot be poured into the top of the filter – it will kill the biolayer.

      The flow rate through the filter will slow down over time as the biolayer develops and suspended solids are trapped in the upper layer of the sand. Users will know when the ““swirl & dump”” is required because the flow rate will drop to an unacceptable level. The filter is still effectively treating the water at this point; however the length of time that it takes to get a container of filtered water may become too long and be inconvenient for the user. Alternately, you can measure the flow rate and if it is less than 0.1 litre/minute, then the ““swirl & dump”” maintenance is required. This is variable depending on the turbidity of the water and amount of use. In practice it is required 3-4 times per year.

      Steps:
      1. Remove the filter lid and diffuser plate
      2. Using the palm of your hand, lightly touch the very top of the sand and move your hand in a circular motion; be careful to not mix the top of the sand deeper into the filter.
      3. Scoop out the dirty water with a small container and discard.
      4. Make certain the sand is smooth and level.
      5. Replace the diffuser.and recharge the filter with water

  • 2 participants | show more

    Katie Chandler of Etta Projects

    Hi there, Thanks for the opportunity to read your project. It seems like a well-developed project that has the potential to improve the overall health of the community. I have a couple inquiries to better understand your project design: 1. Are the hygiene and sanitation trainings facilitated by community agents or your staff? How...

    Hi there,

    Thanks for the opportunity to read your project. It seems like a well-developed project that has the potential to improve the overall health of the community. I have a couple inquiries to better understand your project design:

    1. Are the hygiene and sanitation trainings facilitated by community agents or your staff? How many training workshops are offered?
    2. Do you have photos or a more detailed description of your latrine model and your hand washing station? Why did you choose to use Sawyer filters in schools and biosand filters in homes? Perhaps this speaks to Lynn’s concerns regarding a sufficient quantity of water per student…
    3. Does this project have 100% coverage of the village or is only a certain part of the village participating in the project?
    4. Do you monitor parasite levels (via fecal samples) any time after providing families with deworming medicine, or do you only use interviews and observations?
    5. Do the community agents receive stipends? Etta Projects uses the same design but we often find it difficult to motivate community agents to continue with this work after the completion of the project.

    Thanks again!

    • Katie Chandler of Etta Projects

      First, totally scratch my last post. I am trying to catch up on four projects that I am reviewing and my last comments were intended to respond to PWW’s project in Honderas and not in Haiti…sorry about the confusion. Anyway, congratulations on all your work in Haiti! I enjoyed reading your grant and learning about your work in water a...

      First, totally scratch my last post. I am trying to catch up on four projects that I am reviewing and my last comments were intended to respond to PWW’s project in Honderas and not in Haiti…sorry about the confusion.

      Anyway, congratulations on all your work in Haiti! I enjoyed reading your grant and learning about your work in water and hygiene education. Most areas of your grant are very clear. I do have a concern with the one-month duration indicated on your budget. Based on project budget, it appears as if the whole project cycle lasts only one month. Does this funding only cover one of the three assessments?

      You mention you have worked in this area in the past. Have you worked directly with the 16 participating schools? If so, what services have you provided to these schools in the past and have the schools been able to successfully sustain these projects?

      Have any water improvement projects been offered directly to households? As Lynn mentions, the consumption of water per student provided by this project will be fairly low. What is the condition of water outside the school?

      Again, sorry about the confusion earlier! Thanks!

      • Carolyn Meub of Pure Water for the World

        Hello Katie, No worries! Thanks for your review! Below is information provided by our Haiti staff. Let me know if you have any other thoughts or questions. Thanks, Jamin Pure Water The one month duration indicated on the budget is the time to do the initial program hygiene education and filter installation. The follow up wi...

        Hello Katie,

        No worries! Thanks for your review! Below is information provided by our Haiti staff. Let me know if you have any other thoughts or questions.

        Thanks,
        Jamin
        Pure Water

        The one month duration indicated on the budget is the time to do the initial program hygiene education and filter installation.
        The follow up will be at 3-6-12 mos. by the PWW mobile training unit established to do program follow up on all projects.

        We have worked in many schools in the area, not with these specific schools. Our experience with schools is that they are highly motivated for the programs and the continued use rate is very high.

        In FY 2011-12 PWW Haiti implemented programs in:
        580 Schools
        3242 Homes
        104 Health Clinics and Orphanages

        Outside the schools: Families in rural Haiti obtain water from springs, rivers, rainwater harvesting, wells or buy trucked non potable water. Those who can afford to, buy potable water from private vendors (about 65 US cents per bucket).

        PWW balances the number of filters per school with the school's ability to maintain a given number of filters in addition to the enrollment. While more filters would provide more water per student, the schools water supply and/or ability to buy water to treat is very limited. The schools have very small staffs (6-8 for a school of 400 students) and maintaining a large number of filters is neither practical nor feasible. We have through experience arrived at this number of filters to balance a satisfactory potable water production with sustainability of the project.

    • Carolyn Meub of Pure Water for the World

      Hello Katie, No worries! Thanks for your review! Below is information provided by our Haiti staff. Let me know if you have any other thoughts or questions. Thanks, Jamin Pure Water The one month duration indicated on the budget is the time to do the initial program hygiene education and filter installation. The follow up wi...

      Hello Katie,

      No worries! Thanks for your review! Below is information provided by our Haiti staff. Let me know if you have any other thoughts or questions.

      Thanks,
      Jamin
      Pure Water

      The one month duration indicated on the budget is the time to do the initial program hygiene education and filter installation.
      The follow up will be at 3-6-12 mos. by the PWW mobile training unit established to do program follow up on all projects.

      We have worked in many schools in the area, not with these specific schools. Our experience with schools is that they are highly motivated for the programs and the continued use rate is very high.

      In FY 2011-12 PWW Haiti implemented programs in:
      580 Schools
      3242 Homes
      104 Health Clinics and Orphanages

      Outside the schools: Families in rural Haiti obtain water from springs, rivers, rainwater harvesting, wells or buy trucked non potable water. Those who can afford to, buy potable water from private vendors (about 65 US cents per bucket).

      PWW balances the number of filters per school with the school's ability to maintain a given number of filters in addition to the enrollment. While more filters would provide more water per student, the schools water supply and/or ability to buy water to treat is very limited. The schools have very small staffs (6-8 for a school of 400 students) and maintaining a large number of filters is neither practical nor feasible. We have through experience arrived at this number of filters to balance a satisfactory potable water production with sustainability of the project.

  • 2 participants | show more

    Beneficiary counts

    Rajesh Shah of Peer Water Exchange

    Can you mark the number of people getting water to be zero, since that is normally interpreted as people getting water at home all the time. We want to avoid over- and double-counting. Thanks, Rajesh

    Can you mark the number of people getting water to be zero, since that is normally interpreted as people getting water at home all the time.

    We want to avoid over- and double-counting.

    Thanks,
    Rajesh

    • Carolyn Meub of Pure Water for the World

      Okay, I've made the changes; let me know if anything else needs to be changed. Thanks, Jamin

      Okay, I've made the changes; let me know if anything else needs to be changed.

      Thanks,
      Jamin

      • Rajesh Shah of Peer Water Exchange

        Thanks, i only wanted you to zero out the "Number of People Getting Safe Drinking Water". The number of school children needs to be 6000 or 6032, not zero! Which brings up a question: 32 staff for 6000 kids? Is that true? Regards, Rajesh

        Thanks, i only wanted you to zero out the "Number of People Getting Safe Drinking Water". The number of school children needs to be 6000 or 6032, not zero!

        Which brings up a question: 32 staff for 6000 kids? Is that true?

        Regards,
        Rajesh

        • Carolyn Meub of Pure Water for the World

          Okay, I made the change. There are usually 2 teachers per school. For some of these schools, two sessions are held. So this would mean one group of students will come to school in the morning, and another group in the afternoon. Thus the number of students is that much greater than the number of teachers. Thanks, Jamin

          Okay, I made the change. There are usually 2 teachers per school. For some of these schools, two sessions are held. So this would mean one group of students will come to school in the morning, and another group in the afternoon. Thus the number of students is that much greater than the number of teachers.

          Thanks,
          Jamin

      • Carolyn Meub of Pure Water for the World

        Okay, I made the change. There are usually 2 teachers per school. For some of these schools, two sessions are held. So this would mean one group of students will come to school in the morning, and another group in the afternoon. Thus the number of students is that much greater than the number of teachers. Thanks, Jamin

        Okay, I made the change. There are usually 2 teachers per school. For some of these schools, two sessions are held. So this would mean one group of students will come to school in the morning, and another group in the afternoon. Thus the number of students is that much greater than the number of teachers.

        Thanks,
        Jamin

    • Rajesh Shah of Peer Water Exchange

      Thanks, i only wanted you to zero out the "Number of People Getting Safe Drinking Water". The number of school children needs to be 6000 or 6032, not zero! Which brings up a question: 32 staff for 6000 kids? Is that true? Regards, Rajesh

      Thanks, i only wanted you to zero out the "Number of People Getting Safe Drinking Water". The number of school children needs to be 6000 or 6032, not zero!

      Which brings up a question: 32 staff for 6000 kids? Is that true?

      Regards,
      Rajesh

      • Carolyn Meub of Pure Water for the World

        Okay, I made the change. There are usually 2 teachers per school. For some of these schools, two sessions are held. So this would mean one group of students will come to school in the morning, and another group in the afternoon. Thus the number of students is that much greater than the number of teachers. Thanks, Jamin

        Okay, I made the change. There are usually 2 teachers per school. For some of these schools, two sessions are held. So this would mean one group of students will come to school in the morning, and another group in the afternoon. Thus the number of students is that much greater than the number of teachers.

        Thanks,
        Jamin

    • Carolyn Meub of Pure Water for the World

      Okay, I made the change. There are usually 2 teachers per school. For some of these schools, two sessions are held. So this would mean one group of students will come to school in the morning, and another group in the afternoon. Thus the number of students is that much greater than the number of teachers. Thanks, Jamin

      Okay, I made the change. There are usually 2 teachers per school. For some of these schools, two sessions are held. So this would mean one group of students will come to school in the morning, and another group in the afternoon. Thus the number of students is that much greater than the number of teachers.

      Thanks,
      Jamin

  • 3 participants | show more

    Metrics and long-term assessment

    Rajesh Shah of Peer Water Exchange

    Thanks for your metrics info. Is there any other info you can track - attendance, health, ... - that would demonstrate the impact of your work over time? Also, you said you would monitor three metrics for a year. What is your experience in marking the time in which these habits soak in? Here in India, a friend is find out that it tak...

    Thanks for your metrics info. Is there any other info you can track - attendance, health, ... - that would demonstrate the impact of your work over time?

    Also, you said you would monitor three metrics for a year.

    What is your experience in marking the time in which these habits soak in? Here in India, a friend is find out that it takes 3 years of visits at schools for kids and the administration to create lasting traditions.

    Regards,
    Rajesh

    • Carolyn Meub of Pure Water for the World

      Hello, The behaviors and practices that PWW monitors are proxy indicators for the continued and proper use of the filters and of safe hygiene practices. We use these indicators with the assumption (based on data from large well designed studies) that when they are positive then the impact of reducing diarrheal disease will be realized....

      Hello,

      The behaviors and practices that PWW monitors are proxy indicators for the continued and proper use of the filters and of safe hygiene practices.
      We use these indicators with the assumption (based on data from large well designed studies) that when they are positive then the impact of reducing diarrheal disease will be realized.
      We do not use school attendance, health records or anecdotal reports as they are extremely difficult to interpret in a meaningful way.
      We recognize the importance of repeated messages to effect behavior changes so the cornerstone of PWW's education is an intensive hygiene curriculum taught to teachers who then adopt hygiene education into the regular school curriculum ensuring that the children are receiving the messages on a regular basis.

      Thanks,
      Jamin

      • Rajesh Shah of Peer Water Exchange

        I am still grappling with how 1 teacher can handle a 100 kids in a session (6000/32=188 and even 1/2 of that if you have 2 sessions). Much less get intensive hygiene training and even less teach the kids. How high is teacher turnover? How long is your 'intensive' teacher training? And is it repeated? ------- I agree partiall...

        I am still grappling with how 1 teacher can handle a 100 kids in a session (6000/32=188 and even 1/2 of that if you have 2 sessions).

        Much less get intensive hygiene training and even less teach the kids.

        How high is teacher turnover?

        How long is your 'intensive' teacher training? And is it repeated?

        -------

        I agree partially with you saying: " do not use school attendance, health records or anecdotal reports as they are extremely difficult to interpret in a meaningful way", but it is possible to be able measure and analyze something to demonstrate impact.

        How can you monitor "practicing of proper hygiene habits ( hand washing, etc,)" in the first year 3 times and declare success? What exactly are you monitoring and how? Isn't it anecdotal when you step into a class filled with around a 100 kids to measure these habits?

        Regards,
        Rajesh

        • Carolyn Meub of Pure Water for the World

          Good morning, Our Haiti staff has responded to the questions below. Just to clarify, 2 teachers per school are required to attend the PWW hygiene training sessions. There are more than 2 teachers per school, however in the cases with the two school sessions per day, that would increase the number of students per teacher. Sorry for the c...

          Good morning,

          Our Haiti staff has responded to the questions below. Just to clarify, 2 teachers per school are required to attend the PWW hygiene training sessions. There are more than 2 teachers per school, however in the cases with the two school sessions per day, that would increase the number of students per teacher. Sorry for the confusion above.

          The PWW hygiene education course is taught to groups of teachers (usually about 20 per training session) in a participatory workshop session over the course of 2.5 days. It is an education course to teach teachers how to incorporate hygiene and safe water use and storage into their curriculums. The course was developed in partnership with CAWST, a Canadian NGO who specialize in education and technology in developing countries. (cawst.org)

          The teachers then return to their schools and it is the teachers who teach the hygiene education and safe water use to the children. PWW teaches the teachers how to teach the children about safe hygiene and safe water use.It becomes a regular part of the curriculum. The teachers are provided with curriculum materials and educational poster set (you can see these on cawst.org) Two teachers from each participating school take the course.

          I am attaching a curriculum outline and training schedule for the teachers.

          For follow up; projects receive follow up 3 times in the first year. The purpose of the follow up is to measure the acceptance and uptake of the program and to address barriers or challenges that the schools are encountering. It is an opportunity to review the curriculum with the teachers and principals, verify that the curriculum is being taught and to ask questions to children and staff (knowledge, attitude and practice). For example, we ask about handwashing, look for the presence of soap and observe what is practiced. We ask the children about hygiene and safe water use to gauge the effectiveness of the teaching. We inspect the filters to see that they are being used and well maintained and are able to observe the use of the filters.

          • Katie Chandler of Etta Projects

            Hi Jamin, I'm struggling with some of the same concerns that Rajesh mentions. Based on my own experience, I think the project would be a challenge for most participating teachers. How do you select the teachers that take the 2.5-day course if there are more than two teachers per school? Do they receive any incentives for taking the c...

            Hi Jamin,

            I'm struggling with some of the same concerns that Rajesh mentions. Based on my own experience, I think the project would be a challenge for most participating teachers. How do you select the teachers that take the 2.5-day course if there are more than two teachers per school? Do they receive any incentives for taking the course, or do you hold the workshops during school hours? Does PWW partner with the Department of Education or any other government agency so there participation is recognized and/or the work done in the schools is incorporated into the curriculum, and not considered an “additional workload”?

            Etta Projects has been working with a Healthy School program for a number of years providing training to teachers as well as school directors and parent groups. Our hygiene education program stretches over a two year cycle working themes from education- (trying to break the traditional ways of teaching so that hygiene and sanitation themes can be introduced in fun, interactive, impactful ways by the teachers to the students) to hygiene and sanitation to values (such as self-esteem in order to motivate students (and teachers) to modify hygiene habits). Like your project states, we learned that this kind of change does not happen. I wonder if a two day training session is sufficient to create the sustainability PWW hopes to achieve.

            I am also a little skeptical on the project’s ability to impact health, particularly due to the amount of filtered water available per student coupled with the poor quality of water in places outside the school. Do you find the children are changing their drinking habits outside the school as well?

            Thanks!

            • Carolyn Meub of Pure Water for the World

              Hello Katie, Our Haiti staff members do not have access to internet due to Tropical Storm Isaac, so I will try to answer your questions. PWW meets with the principals prior to the project to discuss. The principals then determine which of their teachers or principals will attend the trainings. The workshop is held during school hours a...

              Hello Katie,

              Our Haiti staff members do not have access to internet due to Tropical Storm Isaac, so I will try to answer your questions. PWW meets with the principals prior to the project to discuss. The principals then determine which of their teachers or principals will attend the trainings. The workshop is held during school hours and the teachers are paid their usual salary while attending the training. Pure Water provides meals and upon completion they receive hygiene training materials for their school. The vast majority of schools in Haiti are privately operated ( organized and run by churches or other organizations) with no government involvement and little to no oversight from the Ministry of Education. The Ministry of Education does not have a strong enough infrastructure in place to implement the hygiene program on their own and they do not recognize the teachers for their time teaching the hygiene materials.

              There is a lot of data to support that implementing hygiene and clean water in schools impacts the health of children. This is driven by the same philosophy used in American schools that by teaching children healthy habits in schools, the children will continue to practice those proper habits in their homes and communities. By promoting safe water, hygiene and sanitation habits in children at their schools, we can also reinforce their home practices. When children learn important health habits at school, they tend to relay this newly acquired knowledge to parents and siblings at home.

              Thanks,
              Jamin

          • Carolyn Meub of Pure Water for the World

            Hello Katie, Our Haiti staff members do not have access to internet due to Tropical Storm Isaac, so I will try to answer your questions. PWW meets with the principals prior to the project to discuss. The principals then determine which of their teachers or principals will attend the trainings. The workshop is held during school hours a...

            Hello Katie,

            Our Haiti staff members do not have access to internet due to Tropical Storm Isaac, so I will try to answer your questions. PWW meets with the principals prior to the project to discuss. The principals then determine which of their teachers or principals will attend the trainings. The workshop is held during school hours and the teachers are paid their usual salary while attending the training. Pure Water provides meals and upon completion they receive hygiene training materials for their school. The vast majority of schools in Haiti are privately operated ( organized and run by churches or other organizations) with no government involvement and little to no oversight from the Ministry of Education. The Ministry of Education does not have a strong enough infrastructure in place to implement the hygiene program on their own and they do not recognize the teachers for their time teaching the hygiene materials.

            There is a lot of data to support that implementing hygiene and clean water in schools impacts the health of children. This is driven by the same philosophy used in American schools that by teaching children healthy habits in schools, the children will continue to practice those proper habits in their homes and communities. By promoting safe water, hygiene and sanitation habits in children at their schools, we can also reinforce their home practices. When children learn important health habits at school, they tend to relay this newly acquired knowledge to parents and siblings at home.

            Thanks,
            Jamin

        • Katie Chandler of Etta Projects

          Hi Jamin, I'm struggling with some of the same concerns that Rajesh mentions. Based on my own experience, I think the project would be a challenge for most participating teachers. How do you select the teachers that take the 2.5-day course if there are more than two teachers per school? Do they receive any incentives for taking the c...

          Hi Jamin,

          I'm struggling with some of the same concerns that Rajesh mentions. Based on my own experience, I think the project would be a challenge for most participating teachers. How do you select the teachers that take the 2.5-day course if there are more than two teachers per school? Do they receive any incentives for taking the course, or do you hold the workshops during school hours? Does PWW partner with the Department of Education or any other government agency so there participation is recognized and/or the work done in the schools is incorporated into the curriculum, and not considered an “additional workload”?

          Etta Projects has been working with a Healthy School program for a number of years providing training to teachers as well as school directors and parent groups. Our hygiene education program stretches over a two year cycle working themes from education- (trying to break the traditional ways of teaching so that hygiene and sanitation themes can be introduced in fun, interactive, impactful ways by the teachers to the students) to hygiene and sanitation to values (such as self-esteem in order to motivate students (and teachers) to modify hygiene habits). Like your project states, we learned that this kind of change does not happen. I wonder if a two day training session is sufficient to create the sustainability PWW hopes to achieve.

          I am also a little skeptical on the project’s ability to impact health, particularly due to the amount of filtered water available per student coupled with the poor quality of water in places outside the school. Do you find the children are changing their drinking habits outside the school as well?

          Thanks!

          • Carolyn Meub of Pure Water for the World

            Hello Katie, Our Haiti staff members do not have access to internet due to Tropical Storm Isaac, so I will try to answer your questions. PWW meets with the principals prior to the project to discuss. The principals then determine which of their teachers or principals will attend the trainings. The workshop is held during school hours a...

            Hello Katie,

            Our Haiti staff members do not have access to internet due to Tropical Storm Isaac, so I will try to answer your questions. PWW meets with the principals prior to the project to discuss. The principals then determine which of their teachers or principals will attend the trainings. The workshop is held during school hours and the teachers are paid their usual salary while attending the training. Pure Water provides meals and upon completion they receive hygiene training materials for their school. The vast majority of schools in Haiti are privately operated ( organized and run by churches or other organizations) with no government involvement and little to no oversight from the Ministry of Education. The Ministry of Education does not have a strong enough infrastructure in place to implement the hygiene program on their own and they do not recognize the teachers for their time teaching the hygiene materials.

            There is a lot of data to support that implementing hygiene and clean water in schools impacts the health of children. This is driven by the same philosophy used in American schools that by teaching children healthy habits in schools, the children will continue to practice those proper habits in their homes and communities. By promoting safe water, hygiene and sanitation habits in children at their schools, we can also reinforce their home practices. When children learn important health habits at school, they tend to relay this newly acquired knowledge to parents and siblings at home.

            Thanks,
            Jamin

        • Carolyn Meub of Pure Water for the World

          Hello Katie, Our Haiti staff members do not have access to internet due to Tropical Storm Isaac, so I will try to answer your questions. PWW meets with the principals prior to the project to discuss. The principals then determine which of their teachers or principals will attend the trainings. The workshop is held during school hours a...

          Hello Katie,

          Our Haiti staff members do not have access to internet due to Tropical Storm Isaac, so I will try to answer your questions. PWW meets with the principals prior to the project to discuss. The principals then determine which of their teachers or principals will attend the trainings. The workshop is held during school hours and the teachers are paid their usual salary while attending the training. Pure Water provides meals and upon completion they receive hygiene training materials for their school. The vast majority of schools in Haiti are privately operated ( organized and run by churches or other organizations) with no government involvement and little to no oversight from the Ministry of Education. The Ministry of Education does not have a strong enough infrastructure in place to implement the hygiene program on their own and they do not recognize the teachers for their time teaching the hygiene materials.

          There is a lot of data to support that implementing hygiene and clean water in schools impacts the health of children. This is driven by the same philosophy used in American schools that by teaching children healthy habits in schools, the children will continue to practice those proper habits in their homes and communities. By promoting safe water, hygiene and sanitation habits in children at their schools, we can also reinforce their home practices. When children learn important health habits at school, they tend to relay this newly acquired knowledge to parents and siblings at home.

          Thanks,
          Jamin

      • Carolyn Meub of Pure Water for the World

        Good morning, Our Haiti staff has responded to the questions below. Just to clarify, 2 teachers per school are required to attend the PWW hygiene training sessions. There are more than 2 teachers per school, however in the cases with the two school sessions per day, that would increase the number of students per teacher. Sorry for the c...

        Good morning,

        Our Haiti staff has responded to the questions below. Just to clarify, 2 teachers per school are required to attend the PWW hygiene training sessions. There are more than 2 teachers per school, however in the cases with the two school sessions per day, that would increase the number of students per teacher. Sorry for the confusion above.

        The PWW hygiene education course is taught to groups of teachers (usually about 20 per training session) in a participatory workshop session over the course of 2.5 days. It is an education course to teach teachers how to incorporate hygiene and safe water use and storage into their curriculums. The course was developed in partnership with CAWST, a Canadian NGO who specialize in education and technology in developing countries. (cawst.org)

        The teachers then return to their schools and it is the teachers who teach the hygiene education and safe water use to the children. PWW teaches the teachers how to teach the children about safe hygiene and safe water use.It becomes a regular part of the curriculum. The teachers are provided with curriculum materials and educational poster set (you can see these on cawst.org) Two teachers from each participating school take the course.

        I am attaching a curriculum outline and training schedule for the teachers.

        For follow up; projects receive follow up 3 times in the first year. The purpose of the follow up is to measure the acceptance and uptake of the program and to address barriers or challenges that the schools are encountering. It is an opportunity to review the curriculum with the teachers and principals, verify that the curriculum is being taught and to ask questions to children and staff (knowledge, attitude and practice). For example, we ask about handwashing, look for the presence of soap and observe what is practiced. We ask the children about hygiene and safe water use to gauge the effectiveness of the teaching. We inspect the filters to see that they are being used and well maintained and are able to observe the use of the filters.

        • Katie Chandler of Etta Projects

          Hi Jamin, I'm struggling with some of the same concerns that Rajesh mentions. Based on my own experience, I think the project would be a challenge for most participating teachers. How do you select the teachers that take the 2.5-day course if there are more than two teachers per school? Do they receive any incentives for taking the c...

          Hi Jamin,

          I'm struggling with some of the same concerns that Rajesh mentions. Based on my own experience, I think the project would be a challenge for most participating teachers. How do you select the teachers that take the 2.5-day course if there are more than two teachers per school? Do they receive any incentives for taking the course, or do you hold the workshops during school hours? Does PWW partner with the Department of Education or any other government agency so there participation is recognized and/or the work done in the schools is incorporated into the curriculum, and not considered an “additional workload”?

          Etta Projects has been working with a Healthy School program for a number of years providing training to teachers as well as school directors and parent groups. Our hygiene education program stretches over a two year cycle working themes from education- (trying to break the traditional ways of teaching so that hygiene and sanitation themes can be introduced in fun, interactive, impactful ways by the teachers to the students) to hygiene and sanitation to values (such as self-esteem in order to motivate students (and teachers) to modify hygiene habits). Like your project states, we learned that this kind of change does not happen. I wonder if a two day training session is sufficient to create the sustainability PWW hopes to achieve.

          I am also a little skeptical on the project’s ability to impact health, particularly due to the amount of filtered water available per student coupled with the poor quality of water in places outside the school. Do you find the children are changing their drinking habits outside the school as well?

          Thanks!

          • Carolyn Meub of Pure Water for the World

            Hello Katie, Our Haiti staff members do not have access to internet due to Tropical Storm Isaac, so I will try to answer your questions. PWW meets with the principals prior to the project to discuss. The principals then determine which of their teachers or principals will attend the trainings. The workshop is held during school hours a...

            Hello Katie,

            Our Haiti staff members do not have access to internet due to Tropical Storm Isaac, so I will try to answer your questions. PWW meets with the principals prior to the project to discuss. The principals then determine which of their teachers or principals will attend the trainings. The workshop is held during school hours and the teachers are paid their usual salary while attending the training. Pure Water provides meals and upon completion they receive hygiene training materials for their school. The vast majority of schools in Haiti are privately operated ( organized and run by churches or other organizations) with no government involvement and little to no oversight from the Ministry of Education. The Ministry of Education does not have a strong enough infrastructure in place to implement the hygiene program on their own and they do not recognize the teachers for their time teaching the hygiene materials.

            There is a lot of data to support that implementing hygiene and clean water in schools impacts the health of children. This is driven by the same philosophy used in American schools that by teaching children healthy habits in schools, the children will continue to practice those proper habits in their homes and communities. By promoting safe water, hygiene and sanitation habits in children at their schools, we can also reinforce their home practices. When children learn important health habits at school, they tend to relay this newly acquired knowledge to parents and siblings at home.

            Thanks,
            Jamin

        • Carolyn Meub of Pure Water for the World

          Hello Katie, Our Haiti staff members do not have access to internet due to Tropical Storm Isaac, so I will try to answer your questions. PWW meets with the principals prior to the project to discuss. The principals then determine which of their teachers or principals will attend the trainings. The workshop is held during school hours a...

          Hello Katie,

          Our Haiti staff members do not have access to internet due to Tropical Storm Isaac, so I will try to answer your questions. PWW meets with the principals prior to the project to discuss. The principals then determine which of their teachers or principals will attend the trainings. The workshop is held during school hours and the teachers are paid their usual salary while attending the training. Pure Water provides meals and upon completion they receive hygiene training materials for their school. The vast majority of schools in Haiti are privately operated ( organized and run by churches or other organizations) with no government involvement and little to no oversight from the Ministry of Education. The Ministry of Education does not have a strong enough infrastructure in place to implement the hygiene program on their own and they do not recognize the teachers for their time teaching the hygiene materials.

          There is a lot of data to support that implementing hygiene and clean water in schools impacts the health of children. This is driven by the same philosophy used in American schools that by teaching children healthy habits in schools, the children will continue to practice those proper habits in their homes and communities. By promoting safe water, hygiene and sanitation habits in children at their schools, we can also reinforce their home practices. When children learn important health habits at school, they tend to relay this newly acquired knowledge to parents and siblings at home.

          Thanks,
          Jamin

      • Katie Chandler of Etta Projects

        Hi Jamin, I'm struggling with some of the same concerns that Rajesh mentions. Based on my own experience, I think the project would be a challenge for most participating teachers. How do you select the teachers that take the 2.5-day course if there are more than two teachers per school? Do they receive any incentives for taking the c...

        Hi Jamin,

        I'm struggling with some of the same concerns that Rajesh mentions. Based on my own experience, I think the project would be a challenge for most participating teachers. How do you select the teachers that take the 2.5-day course if there are more than two teachers per school? Do they receive any incentives for taking the course, or do you hold the workshops during school hours? Does PWW partner with the Department of Education or any other government agency so there participation is recognized and/or the work done in the schools is incorporated into the curriculum, and not considered an “additional workload”?

        Etta Projects has been working with a Healthy School program for a number of years providing training to teachers as well as school directors and parent groups. Our hygiene education program stretches over a two year cycle working themes from education- (trying to break the traditional ways of teaching so that hygiene and sanitation themes can be introduced in fun, interactive, impactful ways by the teachers to the students) to hygiene and sanitation to values (such as self-esteem in order to motivate students (and teachers) to modify hygiene habits). Like your project states, we learned that this kind of change does not happen. I wonder if a two day training session is sufficient to create the sustainability PWW hopes to achieve.

        I am also a little skeptical on the project’s ability to impact health, particularly due to the amount of filtered water available per student coupled with the poor quality of water in places outside the school. Do you find the children are changing their drinking habits outside the school as well?

        Thanks!

        • Carolyn Meub of Pure Water for the World

          Hello Katie, Our Haiti staff members do not have access to internet due to Tropical Storm Isaac, so I will try to answer your questions. PWW meets with the principals prior to the project to discuss. The principals then determine which of their teachers or principals will attend the trainings. The workshop is held during school hours a...

          Hello Katie,

          Our Haiti staff members do not have access to internet due to Tropical Storm Isaac, so I will try to answer your questions. PWW meets with the principals prior to the project to discuss. The principals then determine which of their teachers or principals will attend the trainings. The workshop is held during school hours and the teachers are paid their usual salary while attending the training. Pure Water provides meals and upon completion they receive hygiene training materials for their school. The vast majority of schools in Haiti are privately operated ( organized and run by churches or other organizations) with no government involvement and little to no oversight from the Ministry of Education. The Ministry of Education does not have a strong enough infrastructure in place to implement the hygiene program on their own and they do not recognize the teachers for their time teaching the hygiene materials.

          There is a lot of data to support that implementing hygiene and clean water in schools impacts the health of children. This is driven by the same philosophy used in American schools that by teaching children healthy habits in schools, the children will continue to practice those proper habits in their homes and communities. By promoting safe water, hygiene and sanitation habits in children at their schools, we can also reinforce their home practices. When children learn important health habits at school, they tend to relay this newly acquired knowledge to parents and siblings at home.

          Thanks,
          Jamin

      • Carolyn Meub of Pure Water for the World

        Hello Katie, Our Haiti staff members do not have access to internet due to Tropical Storm Isaac, so I will try to answer your questions. PWW meets with the principals prior to the project to discuss. The principals then determine which of their teachers or principals will attend the trainings. The workshop is held during school hours a...

        Hello Katie,

        Our Haiti staff members do not have access to internet due to Tropical Storm Isaac, so I will try to answer your questions. PWW meets with the principals prior to the project to discuss. The principals then determine which of their teachers or principals will attend the trainings. The workshop is held during school hours and the teachers are paid their usual salary while attending the training. Pure Water provides meals and upon completion they receive hygiene training materials for their school. The vast majority of schools in Haiti are privately operated ( organized and run by churches or other organizations) with no government involvement and little to no oversight from the Ministry of Education. The Ministry of Education does not have a strong enough infrastructure in place to implement the hygiene program on their own and they do not recognize the teachers for their time teaching the hygiene materials.

        There is a lot of data to support that implementing hygiene and clean water in schools impacts the health of children. This is driven by the same philosophy used in American schools that by teaching children healthy habits in schools, the children will continue to practice those proper habits in their homes and communities. By promoting safe water, hygiene and sanitation habits in children at their schools, we can also reinforce their home practices. When children learn important health habits at school, they tend to relay this newly acquired knowledge to parents and siblings at home.

        Thanks,
        Jamin

    • Rajesh Shah of Peer Water Exchange

      I am still grappling with how 1 teacher can handle a 100 kids in a session (6000/32=188 and even 1/2 of that if you have 2 sessions). Much less get intensive hygiene training and even less teach the kids. How high is teacher turnover? How long is your 'intensive' teacher training? And is it repeated? ------- I agree partiall...

      I am still grappling with how 1 teacher can handle a 100 kids in a session (6000/32=188 and even 1/2 of that if you have 2 sessions).

      Much less get intensive hygiene training and even less teach the kids.

      How high is teacher turnover?

      How long is your 'intensive' teacher training? And is it repeated?

      -------

      I agree partially with you saying: " do not use school attendance, health records or anecdotal reports as they are extremely difficult to interpret in a meaningful way", but it is possible to be able measure and analyze something to demonstrate impact.

      How can you monitor "practicing of proper hygiene habits ( hand washing, etc,)" in the first year 3 times and declare success? What exactly are you monitoring and how? Isn't it anecdotal when you step into a class filled with around a 100 kids to measure these habits?

      Regards,
      Rajesh

      • Carolyn Meub of Pure Water for the World

        Good morning, Our Haiti staff has responded to the questions below. Just to clarify, 2 teachers per school are required to attend the PWW hygiene training sessions. There are more than 2 teachers per school, however in the cases with the two school sessions per day, that would increase the number of students per teacher. Sorry for the c...

        Good morning,

        Our Haiti staff has responded to the questions below. Just to clarify, 2 teachers per school are required to attend the PWW hygiene training sessions. There are more than 2 teachers per school, however in the cases with the two school sessions per day, that would increase the number of students per teacher. Sorry for the confusion above.

        The PWW hygiene education course is taught to groups of teachers (usually about 20 per training session) in a participatory workshop session over the course of 2.5 days. It is an education course to teach teachers how to incorporate hygiene and safe water use and storage into their curriculums. The course was developed in partnership with CAWST, a Canadian NGO who specialize in education and technology in developing countries. (cawst.org)

        The teachers then return to their schools and it is the teachers who teach the hygiene education and safe water use to the children. PWW teaches the teachers how to teach the children about safe hygiene and safe water use.It becomes a regular part of the curriculum. The teachers are provided with curriculum materials and educational poster set (you can see these on cawst.org) Two teachers from each participating school take the course.

        I am attaching a curriculum outline and training schedule for the teachers.

        For follow up; projects receive follow up 3 times in the first year. The purpose of the follow up is to measure the acceptance and uptake of the program and to address barriers or challenges that the schools are encountering. It is an opportunity to review the curriculum with the teachers and principals, verify that the curriculum is being taught and to ask questions to children and staff (knowledge, attitude and practice). For example, we ask about handwashing, look for the presence of soap and observe what is practiced. We ask the children about hygiene and safe water use to gauge the effectiveness of the teaching. We inspect the filters to see that they are being used and well maintained and are able to observe the use of the filters.

        • Katie Chandler of Etta Projects

          Hi Jamin, I'm struggling with some of the same concerns that Rajesh mentions. Based on my own experience, I think the project would be a challenge for most participating teachers. How do you select the teachers that take the 2.5-day course if there are more than two teachers per school? Do they receive any incentives for taking the c...

          Hi Jamin,

          I'm struggling with some of the same concerns that Rajesh mentions. Based on my own experience, I think the project would be a challenge for most participating teachers. How do you select the teachers that take the 2.5-day course if there are more than two teachers per school? Do they receive any incentives for taking the course, or do you hold the workshops during school hours? Does PWW partner with the Department of Education or any other government agency so there participation is recognized and/or the work done in the schools is incorporated into the curriculum, and not considered an “additional workload”?

          Etta Projects has been working with a Healthy School program for a number of years providing training to teachers as well as school directors and parent groups. Our hygiene education program stretches over a two year cycle working themes from education- (trying to break the traditional ways of teaching so that hygiene and sanitation themes can be introduced in fun, interactive, impactful ways by the teachers to the students) to hygiene and sanitation to values (such as self-esteem in order to motivate students (and teachers) to modify hygiene habits). Like your project states, we learned that this kind of change does not happen. I wonder if a two day training session is sufficient to create the sustainability PWW hopes to achieve.

          I am also a little skeptical on the project’s ability to impact health, particularly due to the amount of filtered water available per student coupled with the poor quality of water in places outside the school. Do you find the children are changing their drinking habits outside the school as well?

          Thanks!

          • Carolyn Meub of Pure Water for the World

            Hello Katie, Our Haiti staff members do not have access to internet due to Tropical Storm Isaac, so I will try to answer your questions. PWW meets with the principals prior to the project to discuss. The principals then determine which of their teachers or principals will attend the trainings. The workshop is held during school hours a...

            Hello Katie,

            Our Haiti staff members do not have access to internet due to Tropical Storm Isaac, so I will try to answer your questions. PWW meets with the principals prior to the project to discuss. The principals then determine which of their teachers or principals will attend the trainings. The workshop is held during school hours and the teachers are paid their usual salary while attending the training. Pure Water provides meals and upon completion they receive hygiene training materials for their school. The vast majority of schools in Haiti are privately operated ( organized and run by churches or other organizations) with no government involvement and little to no oversight from the Ministry of Education. The Ministry of Education does not have a strong enough infrastructure in place to implement the hygiene program on their own and they do not recognize the teachers for their time teaching the hygiene materials.

            There is a lot of data to support that implementing hygiene and clean water in schools impacts the health of children. This is driven by the same philosophy used in American schools that by teaching children healthy habits in schools, the children will continue to practice those proper habits in their homes and communities. By promoting safe water, hygiene and sanitation habits in children at their schools, we can also reinforce their home practices. When children learn important health habits at school, they tend to relay this newly acquired knowledge to parents and siblings at home.

            Thanks,
            Jamin

        • Carolyn Meub of Pure Water for the World

          Hello Katie, Our Haiti staff members do not have access to internet due to Tropical Storm Isaac, so I will try to answer your questions. PWW meets with the principals prior to the project to discuss. The principals then determine which of their teachers or principals will attend the trainings. The workshop is held during school hours a...

          Hello Katie,

          Our Haiti staff members do not have access to internet due to Tropical Storm Isaac, so I will try to answer your questions. PWW meets with the principals prior to the project to discuss. The principals then determine which of their teachers or principals will attend the trainings. The workshop is held during school hours and the teachers are paid their usual salary while attending the training. Pure Water provides meals and upon completion they receive hygiene training materials for their school. The vast majority of schools in Haiti are privately operated ( organized and run by churches or other organizations) with no government involvement and little to no oversight from the Ministry of Education. The Ministry of Education does not have a strong enough infrastructure in place to implement the hygiene program on their own and they do not recognize the teachers for their time teaching the hygiene materials.

          There is a lot of data to support that implementing hygiene and clean water in schools impacts the health of children. This is driven by the same philosophy used in American schools that by teaching children healthy habits in schools, the children will continue to practice those proper habits in their homes and communities. By promoting safe water, hygiene and sanitation habits in children at their schools, we can also reinforce their home practices. When children learn important health habits at school, they tend to relay this newly acquired knowledge to parents and siblings at home.

          Thanks,
          Jamin

      • Katie Chandler of Etta Projects

        Hi Jamin, I'm struggling with some of the same concerns that Rajesh mentions. Based on my own experience, I think the project would be a challenge for most participating teachers. How do you select the teachers that take the 2.5-day course if there are more than two teachers per school? Do they receive any incentives for taking the c...

        Hi Jamin,

        I'm struggling with some of the same concerns that Rajesh mentions. Based on my own experience, I think the project would be a challenge for most participating teachers. How do you select the teachers that take the 2.5-day course if there are more than two teachers per school? Do they receive any incentives for taking the course, or do you hold the workshops during school hours? Does PWW partner with the Department of Education or any other government agency so there participation is recognized and/or the work done in the schools is incorporated into the curriculum, and not considered an “additional workload”?

        Etta Projects has been working with a Healthy School program for a number of years providing training to teachers as well as school directors and parent groups. Our hygiene education program stretches over a two year cycle working themes from education- (trying to break the traditional ways of teaching so that hygiene and sanitation themes can be introduced in fun, interactive, impactful ways by the teachers to the students) to hygiene and sanitation to values (such as self-esteem in order to motivate students (and teachers) to modify hygiene habits). Like your project states, we learned that this kind of change does not happen. I wonder if a two day training session is sufficient to create the sustainability PWW hopes to achieve.

        I am also a little skeptical on the project’s ability to impact health, particularly due to the amount of filtered water available per student coupled with the poor quality of water in places outside the school. Do you find the children are changing their drinking habits outside the school as well?

        Thanks!

        • Carolyn Meub of Pure Water for the World

          Hello Katie, Our Haiti staff members do not have access to internet due to Tropical Storm Isaac, so I will try to answer your questions. PWW meets with the principals prior to the project to discuss. The principals then determine which of their teachers or principals will attend the trainings. The workshop is held during school hours a...

          Hello Katie,

          Our Haiti staff members do not have access to internet due to Tropical Storm Isaac, so I will try to answer your questions. PWW meets with the principals prior to the project to discuss. The principals then determine which of their teachers or principals will attend the trainings. The workshop is held during school hours and the teachers are paid their usual salary while attending the training. Pure Water provides meals and upon completion they receive hygiene training materials for their school. The vast majority of schools in Haiti are privately operated ( organized and run by churches or other organizations) with no government involvement and little to no oversight from the Ministry of Education. The Ministry of Education does not have a strong enough infrastructure in place to implement the hygiene program on their own and they do not recognize the teachers for their time teaching the hygiene materials.

          There is a lot of data to support that implementing hygiene and clean water in schools impacts the health of children. This is driven by the same philosophy used in American schools that by teaching children healthy habits in schools, the children will continue to practice those proper habits in their homes and communities. By promoting safe water, hygiene and sanitation habits in children at their schools, we can also reinforce their home practices. When children learn important health habits at school, they tend to relay this newly acquired knowledge to parents and siblings at home.

          Thanks,
          Jamin

      • Carolyn Meub of Pure Water for the World

        Hello Katie, Our Haiti staff members do not have access to internet due to Tropical Storm Isaac, so I will try to answer your questions. PWW meets with the principals prior to the project to discuss. The principals then determine which of their teachers or principals will attend the trainings. The workshop is held during school hours a...

        Hello Katie,

        Our Haiti staff members do not have access to internet due to Tropical Storm Isaac, so I will try to answer your questions. PWW meets with the principals prior to the project to discuss. The principals then determine which of their teachers or principals will attend the trainings. The workshop is held during school hours and the teachers are paid their usual salary while attending the training. Pure Water provides meals and upon completion they receive hygiene training materials for their school. The vast majority of schools in Haiti are privately operated ( organized and run by churches or other organizations) with no government involvement and little to no oversight from the Ministry of Education. The Ministry of Education does not have a strong enough infrastructure in place to implement the hygiene program on their own and they do not recognize the teachers for their time teaching the hygiene materials.

        There is a lot of data to support that implementing hygiene and clean water in schools impacts the health of children. This is driven by the same philosophy used in American schools that by teaching children healthy habits in schools, the children will continue to practice those proper habits in their homes and communities. By promoting safe water, hygiene and sanitation habits in children at their schools, we can also reinforce their home practices. When children learn important health habits at school, they tend to relay this newly acquired knowledge to parents and siblings at home.

        Thanks,
        Jamin

    • Carolyn Meub of Pure Water for the World

      Good morning, Our Haiti staff has responded to the questions below. Just to clarify, 2 teachers per school are required to attend the PWW hygiene training sessions. There are more than 2 teachers per school, however in the cases with the two school sessions per day, that would increase the number of students per teacher. Sorry for the c...

      Good morning,

      Our Haiti staff has responded to the questions below. Just to clarify, 2 teachers per school are required to attend the PWW hygiene training sessions. There are more than 2 teachers per school, however in the cases with the two school sessions per day, that would increase the number of students per teacher. Sorry for the confusion above.

      The PWW hygiene education course is taught to groups of teachers (usually about 20 per training session) in a participatory workshop session over the course of 2.5 days. It is an education course to teach teachers how to incorporate hygiene and safe water use and storage into their curriculums. The course was developed in partnership with CAWST, a Canadian NGO who specialize in education and technology in developing countries. (cawst.org)

      The teachers then return to their schools and it is the teachers who teach the hygiene education and safe water use to the children. PWW teaches the teachers how to teach the children about safe hygiene and safe water use.It becomes a regular part of the curriculum. The teachers are provided with curriculum materials and educational poster set (you can see these on cawst.org) Two teachers from each participating school take the course.

      I am attaching a curriculum outline and training schedule for the teachers.

      For follow up; projects receive follow up 3 times in the first year. The purpose of the follow up is to measure the acceptance and uptake of the program and to address barriers or challenges that the schools are encountering. It is an opportunity to review the curriculum with the teachers and principals, verify that the curriculum is being taught and to ask questions to children and staff (knowledge, attitude and practice). For example, we ask about handwashing, look for the presence of soap and observe what is practiced. We ask the children about hygiene and safe water use to gauge the effectiveness of the teaching. We inspect the filters to see that they are being used and well maintained and are able to observe the use of the filters.

      • Katie Chandler of Etta Projects

        Hi Jamin, I'm struggling with some of the same concerns that Rajesh mentions. Based on my own experience, I think the project would be a challenge for most participating teachers. How do you select the teachers that take the 2.5-day course if there are more than two teachers per school? Do they receive any incentives for taking the c...

        Hi Jamin,

        I'm struggling with some of the same concerns that Rajesh mentions. Based on my own experience, I think the project would be a challenge for most participating teachers. How do you select the teachers that take the 2.5-day course if there are more than two teachers per school? Do they receive any incentives for taking the course, or do you hold the workshops during school hours? Does PWW partner with the Department of Education or any other government agency so there participation is recognized and/or the work done in the schools is incorporated into the curriculum, and not considered an “additional workload”?

        Etta Projects has been working with a Healthy School program for a number of years providing training to teachers as well as school directors and parent groups. Our hygiene education program stretches over a two year cycle working themes from education- (trying to break the traditional ways of teaching so that hygiene and sanitation themes can be introduced in fun, interactive, impactful ways by the teachers to the students) to hygiene and sanitation to values (such as self-esteem in order to motivate students (and teachers) to modify hygiene habits). Like your project states, we learned that this kind of change does not happen. I wonder if a two day training session is sufficient to create the sustainability PWW hopes to achieve.

        I am also a little skeptical on the project’s ability to impact health, particularly due to the amount of filtered water available per student coupled with the poor quality of water in places outside the school. Do you find the children are changing their drinking habits outside the school as well?

        Thanks!

        • Carolyn Meub of Pure Water for the World

          Hello Katie, Our Haiti staff members do not have access to internet due to Tropical Storm Isaac, so I will try to answer your questions. PWW meets with the principals prior to the project to discuss. The principals then determine which of their teachers or principals will attend the trainings. The workshop is held during school hours a...

          Hello Katie,

          Our Haiti staff members do not have access to internet due to Tropical Storm Isaac, so I will try to answer your questions. PWW meets with the principals prior to the project to discuss. The principals then determine which of their teachers or principals will attend the trainings. The workshop is held during school hours and the teachers are paid their usual salary while attending the training. Pure Water provides meals and upon completion they receive hygiene training materials for their school. The vast majority of schools in Haiti are privately operated ( organized and run by churches or other organizations) with no government involvement and little to no oversight from the Ministry of Education. The Ministry of Education does not have a strong enough infrastructure in place to implement the hygiene program on their own and they do not recognize the teachers for their time teaching the hygiene materials.

          There is a lot of data to support that implementing hygiene and clean water in schools impacts the health of children. This is driven by the same philosophy used in American schools that by teaching children healthy habits in schools, the children will continue to practice those proper habits in their homes and communities. By promoting safe water, hygiene and sanitation habits in children at their schools, we can also reinforce their home practices. When children learn important health habits at school, they tend to relay this newly acquired knowledge to parents and siblings at home.

          Thanks,
          Jamin

      • Carolyn Meub of Pure Water for the World

        Hello Katie, Our Haiti staff members do not have access to internet due to Tropical Storm Isaac, so I will try to answer your questions. PWW meets with the principals prior to the project to discuss. The principals then determine which of their teachers or principals will attend the trainings. The workshop is held during school hours a...

        Hello Katie,

        Our Haiti staff members do not have access to internet due to Tropical Storm Isaac, so I will try to answer your questions. PWW meets with the principals prior to the project to discuss. The principals then determine which of their teachers or principals will attend the trainings. The workshop is held during school hours and the teachers are paid their usual salary while attending the training. Pure Water provides meals and upon completion they receive hygiene training materials for their school. The vast majority of schools in Haiti are privately operated ( organized and run by churches or other organizations) with no government involvement and little to no oversight from the Ministry of Education. The Ministry of Education does not have a strong enough infrastructure in place to implement the hygiene program on their own and they do not recognize the teachers for their time teaching the hygiene materials.

        There is a lot of data to support that implementing hygiene and clean water in schools impacts the health of children. This is driven by the same philosophy used in American schools that by teaching children healthy habits in schools, the children will continue to practice those proper habits in their homes and communities. By promoting safe water, hygiene and sanitation habits in children at their schools, we can also reinforce their home practices. When children learn important health habits at school, they tend to relay this newly acquired knowledge to parents and siblings at home.

        Thanks,
        Jamin

    • Katie Chandler of Etta Projects

      Hi Jamin, I'm struggling with some of the same concerns that Rajesh mentions. Based on my own experience, I think the project would be a challenge for most participating teachers. How do you select the teachers that take the 2.5-day course if there are more than two teachers per school? Do they receive any incentives for taking the c...

      Hi Jamin,

      I'm struggling with some of the same concerns that Rajesh mentions. Based on my own experience, I think the project would be a challenge for most participating teachers. How do you select the teachers that take the 2.5-day course if there are more than two teachers per school? Do they receive any incentives for taking the course, or do you hold the workshops during school hours? Does PWW partner with the Department of Education or any other government agency so there participation is recognized and/or the work done in the schools is incorporated into the curriculum, and not considered an “additional workload”?

      Etta Projects has been working with a Healthy School program for a number of years providing training to teachers as well as school directors and parent groups. Our hygiene education program stretches over a two year cycle working themes from education- (trying to break the traditional ways of teaching so that hygiene and sanitation themes can be introduced in fun, interactive, impactful ways by the teachers to the students) to hygiene and sanitation to values (such as self-esteem in order to motivate students (and teachers) to modify hygiene habits). Like your project states, we learned that this kind of change does not happen. I wonder if a two day training session is sufficient to create the sustainability PWW hopes to achieve.

      I am also a little skeptical on the project’s ability to impact health, particularly due to the amount of filtered water available per student coupled with the poor quality of water in places outside the school. Do you find the children are changing their drinking habits outside the school as well?

      Thanks!

      • Carolyn Meub of Pure Water for the World

        Hello Katie, Our Haiti staff members do not have access to internet due to Tropical Storm Isaac, so I will try to answer your questions. PWW meets with the principals prior to the project to discuss. The principals then determine which of their teachers or principals will attend the trainings. The workshop is held during school hours a...

        Hello Katie,

        Our Haiti staff members do not have access to internet due to Tropical Storm Isaac, so I will try to answer your questions. PWW meets with the principals prior to the project to discuss. The principals then determine which of their teachers or principals will attend the trainings. The workshop is held during school hours and the teachers are paid their usual salary while attending the training. Pure Water provides meals and upon completion they receive hygiene training materials for their school. The vast majority of schools in Haiti are privately operated ( organized and run by churches or other organizations) with no government involvement and little to no oversight from the Ministry of Education. The Ministry of Education does not have a strong enough infrastructure in place to implement the hygiene program on their own and they do not recognize the teachers for their time teaching the hygiene materials.

        There is a lot of data to support that implementing hygiene and clean water in schools impacts the health of children. This is driven by the same philosophy used in American schools that by teaching children healthy habits in schools, the children will continue to practice those proper habits in their homes and communities. By promoting safe water, hygiene and sanitation habits in children at their schools, we can also reinforce their home practices. When children learn important health habits at school, they tend to relay this newly acquired knowledge to parents and siblings at home.

        Thanks,
        Jamin

    • Carolyn Meub of Pure Water for the World

      Hello Katie, Our Haiti staff members do not have access to internet due to Tropical Storm Isaac, so I will try to answer your questions. PWW meets with the principals prior to the project to discuss. The principals then determine which of their teachers or principals will attend the trainings. The workshop is held during school hours a...

      Hello Katie,

      Our Haiti staff members do not have access to internet due to Tropical Storm Isaac, so I will try to answer your questions. PWW meets with the principals prior to the project to discuss. The principals then determine which of their teachers or principals will attend the trainings. The workshop is held during school hours and the teachers are paid their usual salary while attending the training. Pure Water provides meals and upon completion they receive hygiene training materials for their school. The vast majority of schools in Haiti are privately operated ( organized and run by churches or other organizations) with no government involvement and little to no oversight from the Ministry of Education. The Ministry of Education does not have a strong enough infrastructure in place to implement the hygiene program on their own and they do not recognize the teachers for their time teaching the hygiene materials.

      There is a lot of data to support that implementing hygiene and clean water in schools impacts the health of children. This is driven by the same philosophy used in American schools that by teaching children healthy habits in schools, the children will continue to practice those proper habits in their homes and communities. By promoting safe water, hygiene and sanitation habits in children at their schools, we can also reinforce their home practices. When children learn important health habits at school, they tend to relay this newly acquired knowledge to parents and siblings at home.

      Thanks,
      Jamin