Using Middle School Science Teachers to Address Health Disparities

Summary

The CARES4You study is testing a middle school science curriculum designed to teach students about cancer risk and prevention. The lessons are taught by regular science teachers during class time and are aligned with national science education standards. The curriculum includes six units (14 lessons) that help students learn about cancer, understand how lifestyle and environmental factors influence risk, and think about ways to make healthy choices. The study will take place in 10 public middle schools in New York City. Some schools will begin using the CARES4You curriculum right away, while others will continue with their usual science lessons and receive the program later. Researchers will compare the two groups of schools. The main goal of the study is to see whether the curriculum increases students' intentions to engage in healthy behaviors that may reduce cancer risk. The study will also examine whether students talk more with their caregivers about cancer risk and prevention after participating in the program. Caregivers may also report on some health behaviors in the household. If the program is effective, CARES4You could provide schools with a practical and sustainable way to teach cancer prevention and promote healthy behaviors among adolescents and their families.

Detailed description

The investigators will evaluate whether the CARES4You intervention modifies health-promoting behavior intentions among middle school students in New York City. Participants in the control arm will receive the exact same 5-week educational curriculum as those in the intervention arm. Participants will: 1. Be assigned to either the control group or the study group; both will receive the same cancer educational curriculum over 5 weeks. 2. Receive weekly classroom lessons and labs over 5 weeks. 3. Students will complete a survey before and after the administration of the curriculum intervention. These questionnaires evaluate students' change in knowledge related to the curriculum, and questions about their cancer risk behaviors, and communication styles at home. 4. Caregivers of students in the intervention schools only will complete a survey at one time point and receive a $40 electronic gift card for completing the survey at the end of the curriculum implementation phase. 5. Instructors will complete a training program evaluation and a post-curriculum evaluation to assess the impact of the curriculum on their students.

Arms & interventions

• BehavioralCARES4You Curriculum

  CARES4You is a teacher-delivered middle school science curriculum focused on cancer risk and prevention. Public middle schools in New York City self-select into either an immediate-intervention group or a delayed-intervention group. In both groups, grade-level science teachers deliver the same curriculum during regular 50-minute science classes over approximately five weeks. The program includes six units delivered across 14 lessons, typically taught 4-5 days per week. Units cover Cancer Genetics, Cancer Epidemiology, Media Literacy and Tobacco Advertising, Nutrition and Cancer, Biotechnology and Cancer, and Cancer Risk Reduction. Lessons combine brief instruction with interactive activities such as identifying cancer risk factors and discussing ways families can reduce risk. Students also complete a final cumulative project.

Outcome measures

Eligibility criteria