UNESCO IITE and UNAIDS present a video lesson on HIV with Vera Brezhneva

Many schools all over the world mark the 1st of December, the World AIDS Day, by organizing lessons or other special events to discuss with learners issues related to HIV prevention, treatment and care.

To help teachers deliver HIV education, UNESCO Institute for Information Technologies in Education (IITE UNESCO) and UNAIDS Regional Support Group for Eastern Europe and Central Asia (EECA) have prepared a video lesson on HIV with participation of Vera Brezhneva, UNAIDS goodwill ambassador.

This video was created in response to a call for help from a 14-year old Katya Poliakova. At school she got a task to collect information about HIV to conduct a lesson. Katya wrote to Vera Brezhneva, a popular actress and singer, well known for her active work in the capacity of UNAIDS Goodwill Ambassador. Katya asked Vera to come to her school to talk to her classmates about HIV and AIDS. Vera met with Katya and her friend Marina. Their conversation was recorded to make visual aids for a lesson about HIV.

In the video, Vera Brezhneva tells about HIV and how to prevent it, explains why it is important to get tested to detect the disease at early stage and timely start lifesaving treatment. Care, support and protection of people living with HIV from discrimination is the focus of discussion.

The video is recommended by the Russian Ministry of Education and Science for extracurricular activities on HIV prevention and healthy lifestyle promotion among 14-year old adolescents and older. A brief guide has been developed to provide teachers with tips on the lesson content, structure and facilitation. 

Globally, over 36,7 million people live with HIV. The number of cumulative registered cases of HIV in the Russian Federation has reached over 1 million. In 26 Russian regions, where over 40% of the country’s population is located, one in every 200 people is known to be living with HIV; in some cities, HIV is found in one of every 50 residents. Of all parts of the world, only Eastern Europe, Central Asia, the Middle East and North Africa failed to halt the spread of HIV.

There is no medical vaccine to prevent or cure HIV, but there is a social vaccine – knowledge which is provided by education.

The video and the guide for teachers in Russian can be downloaded by the following links: