WAEC Health Education Syllabus 2026/2027 & Textbooks
The WAEC Health Education Syllabus 2026/2027 & Textbooks: cover the human body, health, and the environment. Key topics include the structure and function of body systems, disease prevention, nutrition, first aid, drug education, and family life education. It also encompasses community and school health services, as well as environmental health topics such as water supply, waste disposal, and pollution.
Contents
Aims and Objectives
- Candidates must acquire basic knowledge of the human body and necessary skills for the maintenance of health
- Candidates must acquire positive health practices in the school and community
- Candidates must identify and show the ecological relationship between man and his environment as a basis for preventing diseases
- Candidates must make observations and draw inferences from practical experiences that may have implications for health
- Candidates develop the readiness necessary for professional training in health-related careers
Examination Guides
There will be three papers – Papers 1, 2, and 3, all of which must be taken. Papers 1 and 2 will be a composite paper to be taken in one sitting.
PAPER 1
It will consist of fifty multiple-choice objective questions, all of which must be taken in 1hour for 50 marks.
PAPER 2 –
It will consist of two sections, Sections A and B.
Section A will consist of six short-structured questions, all of which must be answered for 30 marks.
Section B will consist of three essay questions, out of which candidates will be required to answer two questions for 40 marks. The paper will last 1 hour.
PAPER 3 –
Paper 3 will be a practical test for school candidates and an alternative test of practical work for private candidates. The paper will last for 1¾ hours and carry 80 marks.
Materials needed in the Health Education Laboratory/Examination
- Models of various organs of the body;
- Models of various parts of the body e.g. tooth;
- Human skeleton;
- Bones of the body;
- Contraceptive devices;
- Reagents for testing of starch, protein, fat;
- Road safety signs;
- Different types of safety elements;
- Posters/charts of systems of the body e.g., reproductive, digestive, excretory;
- First aid box and kits;
- Fire extinguisher;
- Sand bucket;
- Photographs of health facilities and workers e.g., doctors , nurses, dentists at work;
- Photographs of methods of sewage and refuse disposals;
- Microscope
- Stethoscope
- Preserved worms;
- Preserved pests and vectors
- Photographs/posters of various types of communicable and non-communicable diseases;
- Model/poster showing parts of the body;
- Materials for personal hygiene e.g., toothpaste, comb, toothbrush;
- Dissecting set
- Photographs/posters of accident scenes;
- Photographs/posters showing methods of food preservation
- Photographs/posters showing disaster scenes;
- Safety;
- Photographs/posters of drugs commonly misused/abused
- Tobacco products;
- Hand lens;
- Real objects/photographs/posters/charts of classes of food;
- Photographs/posters showing correct postures
- Photographs/posters showing postural abnormalities;
- Poster/real object of sphygmomanometer, thermometer, litmus paper Snellen chart.
WAEC Health Education Syllabus 2026/2027
| Main Topic / Unit | Subtopics / Content Details |
|---|---|
| Meaning and Setting for Health Education | Meaning: Definition and scope of Health Education.Settings: Home-based, School-based, Community-based, Health facility-based, Workplace-based.Health Promotion: Meaning and importance.Notes: Students should visit and observe community, health facility and workplace-based health education programmes and services. |
| Human Anatomy and Physiology | Cells and Tissues: Types (somatic, sex), cell division (mitosis, meiosis), cell differentiation, tissue formation.Organs & Systems: Growth and development.Sense Organs: Structure and functions of eye, ear, skin, nose, tongue.Systems of the Body:– Skeletal and Muscular Systems: Axial/appendicular skeleton, functions, joints, muscle types, movement.- Circulatory System: Heart, vessels, blood/lymph composition, circulation, blood clotting, blood groups, disorders (sickle cell, leukaemia, hypertension, etc.).- Digestive System: Organs, processes, digestion, absorption, metabolism, diseases and prevention.- Excretory System: Kidney and skin structure/functions, urine formation, dialysis.- Respiratory System: Structure, functions, respiration, gaseous exchange, breathing mechanism, disorders.- Nervous System: Brain, spinal cord, nerves, reflex arc, voluntary/involuntary actions, disorders.- Endocrine System: Location and functions of glands, hormones, homeostasis, feedback mechanisms.- Posture: Correct posture, postural defects (flat foot, scoliosis, kyphosis, lordosis), causes, prevention, correction. |
| Personal Health | Meaning and importance of physical health.Personal Hygiene: Promotion and maintenance, factors affecting health.Health Screening: Eye defects (myopia, hypermetropia, astigmatism, presbyopia, squint), ear defects (conductive, neurosensory), skin disorders.Care: Eye, ear, skin, teeth, mouth, hands, hair and nails.Dental Health: Types of teeth, dental caries, gingivitis, prevention. |
| Community Health | Community Health Services: Definition, providers (orthodox & traditional), community efforts.School Health Programme: Definition, components (skill-based education, environment, feeding, nutrition, linkages: HPS, CFS, FRESH, LS, EFA).Family Health: Maternal and child health, family size, budgeting, ageing and death education, grief, causes of death.Epidemiology & Vital Statistics: Definitions, components (birth, mortality, morbidity rates), uses. |
| Environmental Health | Housing: Criteria (siting, ventilation, lighting, sanitation).Water Supply: Sources, purification, uses.Waste Disposal: Meaning, types (refuse, sewage), methods.Pollution: Meaning, types (air, water, soil, noise), sources, health effects.Industrial Health: Meaning, programmes, occupational hazards.Pests and Vectors: Meaning, habitats, harmful effects, control. |
| Nutrition and Food Nutrients | Nutrition: Classes, sources, functions, caloric values.Balanced Diet: Meaning, classification, nutritional problems, feeding habits.Water: Importance.Nutritional Processes: Ingestion, digestion, absorption, assimilation, metabolism, defecation.Beverages: Meaning, types, effects.Diet for Groups: Children, adolescents, athletes, pregnant women, adults, aged.Food Hygiene & Preservation: Principles, effects of cooking on nutrients, preservation methods (smoking, drying, freezing, canning, etc.). |
| Safety Education and First Aid | First Aid: Meaning, aims, principles, contents of first aid kit.Emergency Conditions: Cuts, wounds, bleeding, fractures, burns, shock, asphyxia, poisoning.Agencies: Providers of first aid services.Disaster: Meaning, types, relief activities.Accident: Causes, prevention.Disability and Rehabilitation: Meaning, types, prevention. |
| Drug, Alcohol and Tobacco Education | Drug Education: Key terms (abuse, misuse, addiction, dependence, self-medication, rehabilitation).Drug Abuse: Classes of abused drugs, routes of intake (oral, injection, inhalation, topical, anal), effects, prevention.Behaviour-Altering Substances: Tobacco (components, effects), alcohol (effects), drugs (effects).Control Measures: Reasons and prevention of abuse, smoking, and drinking. |
| Communicable and Non-Communicable Diseases | Diseases: Meaning and classification.Communicable: Definition, types and examples:- Airborne: Common cold, measles, whooping cough, TB, meningitis.- Water/Food-borne: Dysentery, cholera, typhoid, schistosomiasis.- Insect-borne: Malaria, yellow fever, trypanosomiasis, filariasis.- Worms: Ascaris, Taenia, Hookworm, Guinea worm.- Animal-borne: Rabies, leptospirosis.- Contact: Gonorrhoea, syphilis, ringworm, leprosy, AIDS.Factors: Agent, host, transmission route.Non-Communicable: Deficiency diseases (scurvy, rickets, etc.); hereditary/growth-related diseases (cancer, diabetes, hypertension, mental illness, etc.). |
| Family Life and Human Sexuality Education | Human Reproduction: Key terms, reproductive organs, conception, foetal development, childbirth, disorders.Human Sexuality: Meaning, importance, life skills (assertiveness, negotiation, communication).Family and Roles: Meaning, types, size, challenges (widowhood, single parenthood, in-laws, infidelity).Agencies Promoting Healthy Family Living.Family Planning & Safe Motherhood: Meaning, need, methods, safe motherhood practices.Population Education: Meaning, census, small/large populations, problems. |
| Emotional and Social Health | Interrelationship: Between mental, emotional and social health.Personality: Definition, traits, problems and solutions.Mental Health: Meaning, promotion, types, prevention, importance. |
| Consumer Health Education | Consumer Products & Services: Laws protecting consumers, factors influencing choice (authenticity, cost, availability, advertisement).Consumer Healthcare: Quacks and quackery (meaning, types), health insurance, advertising of health products.Nostrums: Meaning, types, reasons for avoiding. |
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