School-based one health education shapes young minds and households to prevent zoonoses: A comparison of four teaching strategies.

Health education initiatives have received increasing attention in public policy; however, empirical evidence on the comparative efficacy of different teaching strategies remains limited. This study evaluated four educational approaches: group discussion, theater, board games, and traditional board-based instruction, among 166 elementary school students participating in activities focused on zoonoses, including rabies, sporotrichosis, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, and leishmaniasis. Adjusted exploratory analyses showed higher knowledge gain for board game than for group discussion, while no statistically significant differences were detected among the other strategies. Post-intervention scores were significantly higher than pre-intervention scores, indicating knowledge gains after the educational activities. The proportion of correct responses related to zoonoses increased from 15.7% to 56.6% (p < 0.05), while knowledge of One Health concepts rose from 38.2% to 55.7% (p < 0.05). Overall, the findings indicate that the educational interventions showed efficacy in enhancing students' knowledge and fostering behavioral changes within their family environments. These results highlight the potential of structured school-based health education to promote awareness and prevention of zoonotic diseases.