COMBINATION OF DIRECT INSTRUCTION AND TOOTH BRUSHING DEMONSTRATION METHODS ON TOOTH BRUSHING SKILLS IN PRESCHOOL CHILDREN

Abstract

Background: Tooth decay in early childhood remains very high, with an average national def-t index of 8.43 and a caries prevalence of 92.6%. This figure indicates that preschool children have a history of cavities in 8-9 primary teeth, still far from the WHO target of 2030 for preschool children to have caries of only 50%. Appropriate promotional efforts are needed, aligned with the development of preschoolers, one of which is a combination of direct instruction and tooth-brushing demonstrations to improve preschoolers' tooth-brushing skills. Objective: This study aims to analyze the effectiveness of tooth-brushing skills before and after education with a combination of direct instruction and tooth-brushing demonstration methods. Method: This research used a pre-experimental design with a pretest and posttest with control group design. This research was carried out on pre-school children at Pertiwi VI Kindergarten, Pondok Labu Village, South Jakarta. The sampling technique was purposive sampling of 34 respondents. The instruments used to measure teeth brushing skills were observation sheets. The data was tested using wilcoxon t-test analysis, namely a pre-post design. Results: The mean tooth-brushing skill before education was 42.35 and after education was 92.06. The results of the data effectiveness test before and after being given education with a combination of direct instruction and tooth-brushing demonstration methods show that the p-value 0.001 (p <0.05). Conclusion: the combination of direct instruction and tooth brushing demonstration methods is effective in improving teeth brushing skills in preschool children.