The effect of environmental health education on microplastic pollution awareness

Aim: The aim of this research is to examine the effect of environmental health education given at the 9th grade level on the microplastic pollution awareness level of students. Materials and Methods: The research was carried out as an experimental research with pretest-posttest control group in three high schools located in province of Elâzığ between 2022-2023 years. The sample of the study consisted of 90 ninth grade students (experimental group: 45, control group: 45) determined by power analysis. Tools such as "Personal Information Form" and "Microplastic Pollution Awareness Scale" were used to collect data. Training was given to the experimental group as a nursing intervention in a total of 4 sessions with 15-day intervals. No intervention was applied to the individuals in the control group. In the data evaluation process, "percentage distribution, arithmetic mean, standard deviation, chi- square test, t test for independent groups and t test for dependent groups" were used. Results: While no significant difference was observed in the MPAS total score in the control group according to the pre-test and post-test mean scores, a significant difference was observed in the MPAS total score in the experimental group (p<0.05). When the posttest mean scores of the experimental and control groups were examined, it was observed that the posttest mean scores of the experimental group were higher than the posttest mean scores of the control group and there was a statistically significant difference (p<0.05). Conclusion: It was observed that the microplastic pollution awareness level of the experimental group students who received environmental health training increased significantly. Keywords: Environmental Health, Microplastic, Student