What is it all about?
Students engage in role play to consider diverse perspectives on how diseases and health conditions affect one’s health and the actions one can take to care for personal health (e.g., diverse perspectives and views about vaccinations, individual’s choice about vaccines, how individual choices impact themselves and others, respecting peoples’ choices when they may not align with others, differing influences on decisions about vaccines). Students apply their understanding of factors that influence decisions related to different types of vaccinations, informed consent, and ways to engage in respectful discussions on topics with diverse viewpoints.
What is needed?
How is it done?
Use Activity 2: Factors in Decision Making about Vaccination, Student Resource: Talking Tips for Engaging in Respectful Discussions, and the following instructions to engage students in role play. This will help them to apply their understanding of factors that influence decisions related to different types of vaccinations, informed consent, and ways to engage in respectful discussions on topics with diverse viewpoints.
- Use direct instruction to review factors that may influence an individual’s decision about vaccinations. Post the Talking Tips for Engaging in Respectful Discussions poster and review with students.
- Post one or more of the scenarios for students to reference. Review the scenarios and explain any unfamiliar terms (e.g., natural immunity, informed consent).
- Have students work in small groups on their selected or assigned scenario to create a role play that demonstrates their understanding of factors that affect decisions about vaccinations as one choice to care for one’s health. The role play should also show how to support an individual’s choice about vaccinations while engaging in a respectful discussion.
- Group members determine their role in the scenario (e.g., younger sibling, older sibling, parent, trusted adult, health care provider), generate various ways to approach the situation, and then decide to write a script or role-play their scenario.
- Have groups share their script/role play with another group or with the larger group.
- Use the scripts/role plays to facilitate a discussion to consolidate students’ understanding of factors that influence personal health decisions related to vaccinations and how to engage in respectful discussions.
- Consider using the Blank Scenario Card to create one or more additional scenarios to engage students in discussions about vaccinations. For example:
- A grandparent has decided not to get vaccinated. They cannot attend your box lacrosse games now. You are very close to them, so you want to talk about it.
- Your cousin had some heart concerns shortly after receiving a vaccine. They were very healthy prior to receiving it. You decide to discuss it with your parent.
- You are aware of the discussions about vaccination on social media. You are not sure who to ask about it or where you can find more information.
