Health Promotion through Entertainment Education

Ever wondered why "Soul City" and "Yizo Yizo" are amongst South Africa's most highly rated TV dramas? Or, what the relationship is between entertainment and education? Or whether people can actually change the way they think and live simply by watching television? Did you know that a study in the USA showed that serial dramas are the number-one source of health information?

If you want to learn how to create entertainment education programmes, the Centre for Culture, Communication and Media Studies (CCMS) at the University of Natal's Durban campus offers a graduate module in Health Promotion through Entertainment Education.

This Honours / MA module acquaints students with broad approaches to communicating for health promotion, focusing specifically on the role of entertainment education (EE). The module can also be taken on its own for certificate rather than degree purposes. Students will obtain a clear understanding of key theories of health promotion communication, of EE interventions, and of how to apply theoretical understanding in the development of frameworks for EE activities.

The module includes an introduction to public health and health communication, theories of health behaviour, behavioural and social change, communication research and conceptual frameworks for strategic health communication. Throughout the course, the relation of EE to other modules - e.g. development communication, visual anthropology, media in the global world, media and society, etc. - is demonstrated and theorised through practical assignments.

CCMS works with academics and professionals from three partner organisations: the Johns Hopkins University Center for Communications Programs, Baltimore, USE; the Centre for AIDS Development, Research and Evaluation (CADRE - Johannesburg, Cape Town, Grahamstown) and Drama in AIDS (DramAidE) in Durban. Other contributors include "Soul City".

Students will be located, where possible, within the research, administrative and project infrastructures of CADRE and DramAidE as well as the Development, Media and Arts Research Unit. This Unit, a joint centure between CCMS and DramAidE, is geared towards action research relating to health communication.

The Unit works via DramAidE with schools and grassroots community organisations, especially on life skills and HIV/AIDS prevention and education. The funded research is project-based and designed to teach graduate students to work in the field on actual projects, with real communities as beneficiaries.

Selection of South African candidates for the annual internships and bursaries will be based on relevant project experience and commitment to delivery, ability to work in teams and commitment to full-time studies in the field. Students will receive specialised supervision and field experience via these participating NGOs. CCMS has a vibrant graduate community composed of studnets from Africa and all over the world.

For further information, visit CCMS's extensive website on:
http://www.nu.ac.za/ccms/ [Go to the "Media - Communication" hyperlink], or contact [email protected].

Graduate Programme
Culture, Communication and Media Studies
University of Natal, Durban 4041, South Africa
Fax: +27 31 260 1519
Tel: +27 31 260 2505