A Comparative Study of Health Protocol Knowledge through Storytelling in Elementary Students

10.2478/bjlp-2023-00000159

Abstract

The Center for Health Communication Studies, Faculty of Communication, Universitas Padjadjaran, produced a comic book entitled “Healthy and Cheerful during the Pandemic.” This comic book was created as one of the media to prepare elementary school students to enter face-to-face learning after more than a year of distance learning due to the pandemic. This study aimed how to compare elementary school students’ knowledge on the application of health protocols before and after the comic was read.This study used a comparative design, followed by quantitative analysis. The study population consisted of 100 elementary students of the 3rd and 4th levels. The steps taken in this study were: first, students filled out a questionnaire in the form of 10 illustrated questions regarding the health protocol application at home and school. Then, students were given an intervention by reading a comic book by a storyteller. After the intervention, the students again filled out the questionnaire to determine changes in students' knowledge. The paired T-test results showed sufficient evidence that there was a significant difference between knowledge before and after the intervention. It could be seen from the value of t= -2.764 p<0.05. The results of this study indicated an increase in the average knowledge of respondents on the health protocol application compared to before reading of the comic book. It can be concluded that the storytelling method can increase elementary school students’ knowledge on the health protocol application.