RESUMEN
BACKGROUND: As summarized in this article, the widespread implementation of modern school health education (SHE) could become one of the most effective means available to improve the well-being of people in the United States and in other nations. However, the development and evolution of SHE largely remains unorganized, underdeveloped, and neglected by health and education agencies, policymakers, and the public. METHODS: Essential to the development of any scientific discipline, scientists today use the word ontology to refer to efforts to organize knowledge in particular domains. A useful working definition of a scientific ontology is an explicit, formal specification of a shared conceptualization-a systematic set of shared terms and an explication of their interrelationships. Nine interdependent questions are outlined to help guide the development of an initial, broad, and actionable scientific ontology for SHE. RESULTS: Whether and how we respond to these questions arguably will determine the future of SHE research, policy, practice, and equity in the United States. CONCLUSIONS: An initial ontology might help conceptualize, inform, and facilitate more systematic and strategic local, state, national, and international deliberations and actions to improve SHE.
Asunto(s)
Educación en Salud , Servicios de Salud Escolar , Humanos , Estados Unidos , Educación en Salud/organización & administración , Servicios de Salud Escolar/organización & administración , Instituciones AcadémicasRESUMEN
Diabetes affects tens of thousands of school-aged children in the United States. The ability to appropriately manage their diabetes is essential to preventing life-threatening health complications if occurring during the school day. The purpose of this study was to assess school personnel's knowledge of diabetes (types 1 and 2) and perceived self-competence in performing diabetes management skills. A non-probability sample of elementary school personnel (N = 809) from five different school districts in Georgia completed a diabetes knowledge and competence questionnaire. Descriptive statistics, one-way analysis of variance, and principal component analysis were performed to analyze the data. School personnel reported limited knowledge of diabetes basics and an overall low perceived self-competence in performing many of the diabetic management skills. Despite state legislation enacted to assist children with diabetes in school and available training for school districts, the study found that school personnel are not well trained and lack confidence in performing diabetes management.
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Diabetes Mellitus/enfermería , Servicios Médicos de Urgencia , Conocimientos, Actitudes y Práctica en Salud , Instituciones Académicas/legislación & jurisprudencia , Autoeficacia , Consejeros/psicología , Femenino , Georgia , Humanos , Masculino , Enfermeras y Enfermeros/psicología , Maestros/psicología , Autoevaluación (Psicología)RESUMEN
BACKGROUND: Physical education (PE) can provide opportunities to engage in daily moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA), but MVPA levels in many classes are low. This study examines MVPA during middle school PE lessons before and after receiving the SPARK (Sports, Play, and Active Recreation for Kids) program. METHODS: Sixteen schools were enrolled in the study. PE teachers at eight schools received the intervention. PE lessons at all schools (N = 561) were observed over 2 years. Hierarchical linear regression models examined the effect of the intervention on the amount and consistency of MVPA and sedentary behavior. RESULTS: An average of 13.7% of observed class time was spent in MVPA (approximately 5 minutes of a 60-minute class), compared to 27.5% of time spent sedentary. There was no evidence that the curriculum resulted in increased MVPA or consistent MVPA, or that it decreased sedentary behavior. Findings also suggested that contextual factors may contribute to physical activity levels in PE. CONCLUSIONS: Mixed evaluation findings of the SPARK middle school curriculum demonstrate that an out-of-the-box curriculum does not have the same results in all contexts. Implications for school health are described based upon findings. Further research is needed to identify effective strategies to increase MVPA for adolescents both in and outside of PE.
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Ejercicio Físico , Educación y Entrenamiento Físico , Pobreza , Instituciones Académicas , Población Urbana , Adolescente , Curriculum , Promoción de la Salud , Humanos , Los Angeles , Observación , Análisis de Regresión , EstudiantesRESUMEN
BACKGROUND: Schools struggle to support health needs of students with diabetes due to limited funding/resources. A competency framework can help individual schools clarify the knowledge and skills required for school-based diabetes care within their unique context, and inform the development of standardized diabetes education for health staff. METHODS: A consensus-building technique, known as the Delphi method, was used to create a competency framework for diabetes care at school with a panel of 37 stakeholders. A continuing education program based on the resultant framework was developed and pilot-tested with school nurses. Pretest and post-test scores on knowledge, perceived competence, and self-efficacy were compared to evaluate the effectiveness of the program. RESULTS: Consensus was obtained for a total of 70 competencies: 22 competencies for health aids, 36 additional competencies for school nurses, and 12 additional competencies for diabetes resource nurses. Thirty school nurses completed the continuing education program and demonstrated significant improvement in diabetes knowledge, self-efficacy, and competence in pathophysiology and diabetes care tasks (p < .01 for all). CONCLUSIONS: Developing a consensus framework is an excellent starting place for stakeholders to identify the skills and knowledge required for various school personnel and to ensure that all school health staff members receive adequate diabetes education.
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Competencia Clínica , Curriculum , Diabetes Mellitus/terapia , Personal de Salud/educación , Servicios de Salud Escolar , Servicios de Enfermería Escolar/educación , Colorado , Técnica Delphi , Modelos Educacionales , Proyectos PilotoRESUMEN
BACKGROUND: School-based programs represent an ideal setting to enhance healthy eating, as most children attend school regularly and consume at least one meal and a number of snacks at school each day. However, current research reports that elementary school teachers often display low levels of nutritional knowledge, self-efficacy, and skills to effectively deliver nutrition education. METHODS: The purpose of this review was to understand the availability and quality of resources that are accessible for elementary school teachers to use to support curriculum delivery or nutrition education programs. The review included 32 resources from 4 countries in the final analysis from 1989 to 2014. RESULTS: The 32 resources exhibited 8 dominant teaching strategies: curriculum approaches; cross-curricular approaches; parental involvement; experiential learning approaches; contingent reinforcement approaches; literary abstraction approaches; games-based approaches; and web-based approaches. The resources were accessible to elementary school teachers, with all the resources embedding curriculum approaches, and most of the resources embedding parental involvement strategies. CONCLUSIONS: Resources were less likely to embed cross-curricular and experiential learning approaches, as well as contingent reinforcement approaches, despite recent research suggesting that the most effective evidence-based strategies for improving healthy eating in elementary school children are cross-curricular and experiential learning approaches.
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Dieta Saludable , Educación en Salud/organización & administración , Promoción de la Salud/organización & administración , Maestros/organización & administración , Curriculum , Humanos , Internet , Estado Nutricional , Padres , Juego e Implementos de Juego , AutoeficaciaRESUMEN
BACKGROUND: Socioeconomic status (SES) influences students' school perceptions and affects their performance, engagement, and personal beliefs. This study examined the effects of school population SES and school resources on the association between student SES and student perceptions. METHODS: School liking, classmate social relationships, family affluence, and experience of hunger were assessed in a nationally representative sample of 12,642 students (grades 5-10) in the 2009-2010 Health Behavior in School-Aged Children study. School characteristics included school meal program, Title 1 dollars received per student, school resources, and urban/rural status. Multilevel analysis was used. RESULTS: At the individual level, both school liking and social relationships were negatively associated with student grade level. Boys liked school less and had more positive perceptions of social relationships than girls. Students in rural schools and who experienced hunger liked schools less and had poorer perceptions of social relationships than their respective counterparts. School-level percentage of students eligible for free/reduced meals accounted for 33% of the between-school variance in social relationships. CONCLUSIONS: Family and school economic characteristics and grade level influenced students' school perceptions. The associations between student SES, school population SES, and school perceptions suggests that school health professionals should recognize and address student economic issues at school.
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Pobreza/psicología , Pobreza/estadística & datos numéricos , Población Rural/estadística & datos numéricos , Instituciones Académicas/organización & administración , Clase Social , Estudiantes/psicología , Población Urbana/estadística & datos numéricos , Adolescente , Conducta del Adolescente , Factores de Edad , Niño , Femenino , Humanos , Masculino , Factores Sexuales , Medio Social , Estados UnidosRESUMEN
BACKGROUND: Whereas many education programs expect students to use national standards in various content areas, few studies have been conducted that examine pre-service teachers' confidence in demonstrating their use of the professional teacher standards. PURPOSE: The purpose of this project was 2-fold: (1) To develop the Pre-service Health Education National Standards Self-efficacy (PHENSS) Scale; and (2) To establish the instrument's ability to draw inferences from PHENSS Scale scores. METHODS: The final instrument consisted of 29 items and 4 demographic items. Validation was established using qualitative and quantitative procedures. After the instrument had been validated, pre-service elementary education and pre-service secondary health education teachers were recruited to complete the instrument at 2 different times. RESULTS: Items were grouped to form 7 subscales (a subscale for each standard) and were analyzed to determine test-retest reliability and internal consistency. All scales were found to be statistically significant (p ≤ .05). Cronbach's alpha for the 7 subscales ranged from .73 to .96, and α = .94 for the entire instrument. CONCLUSION: The instrument, which assessed self-efficacy toward implementing Professional Teacher Standards in Health Education, was found to be both valid and reliable.
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Docentes/normas , Educación en Salud/normas , Competencia Profesional/normas , Autoeficacia , Desarrollo de Personal/normas , Enseñanza/normas , Curriculum/normas , Femenino , Humanos , Capacitación en Servicio/normas , Masculino , Estados UnidosRESUMEN
BACKGROUND: Professional development (PD) and collaboration help ensure the quality of school health education. The purpose of this study was to examine trends in the percentage of lead health education teachers (LHETs) receiving PD on health topics and collaborating with other school staff on health education activities. METHODS: This study analyzed representative data from 41 states participating in School Health Profiles surveys between 2000 and 2010. Logistic regression examined linear trends in the percentage of LHETs who received PD on 12 topics and who collaborated on health education activities. RESULTS: Significant increases in the percentage of LHETs receiving PD on nutrition and physical activity and significant decreases in the percentage of LHETs receiving PD on alcohol- and other drug-use prevention and human immunodeficiency virus prevention were seen. Significant increases in the percentage of LHETs who collaborated with physical education staff and nutrition services staff were seen in 29 and 39 states, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Although 10-year increases in PD and collaboration in the areas of nutrition and physical activity are encouraging, PD and collaboration in other topic areas still need improvement. These results will help states target more resources toward PD and collaboration in areas where they have been decreasing.