Effects of extra year programs prior to first grade

This study addressed the issue of whether providing an extra year of schooling prior to first grade is related to higher achievement at the end of first grade. Thirty-one children who had been placed in either developmental Kindergarten or Transition First Grade were matched on entry-level characteristics (chronological age, Battelle Developmental Inventory score, sex, socio-economic status, and recommendation for extra year) with 31 children who had experienced only one year of regular kindergarten before being promoted to first grade. At the end of first grade, the achievement of the two groups was compared. Results showed that the one-to two-month advantage of those receiving the extra year was statistically significant only on the language subtest but not on reading or math. These findings are consistent with the bulk of the literature on this topic that shows extra year programs to be minimally cost-effective in preventing later school failure or enhancing the educational opportunities of young children.     

Do school-based tobacco prevention programmes pay off? The cost-effectiveness of the 'Smoke-free Class Competition'

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to determine the cost-effectiveness of a school-based tobacco prevention programme. STUDY DESIGN: Using data from a previous effectiveness study of the 'Smoke-free Class Competition' (SFC), an economic analysis was conducted to determine the cost-effectiveness of the SFC. Cost data were collected from financial statements of the operating agency, surveys of regional co-ordinators and participating classes (direct and productivity costs). The benefit was the product of the number of students prevented from becoming established smokers, based on a stochastic progression model extending the programme's outcome evaluation, and the (direct and indirect) value per prevented smoker. INTERVENTION: To take part in the SFC, classes make the decision to be a non-smoking class for 6 months (from autumn to spring). The pupils themselves and their teachers monitor the smoking status of the pupils and report on it regularly. Classes that refrain from smoking can win a number of attractive prizes. In the school year 2001/2002, 150,566 German students participated in the SFC, representing approximately 4% of the total target population of 11-14-year-old German students. The effectiveness evaluation is based on 2,142 students who participated in the programme in the school year 1998/1999. RESULTS: In the school year 2001/2002, it is estimated that the SFC prevented 3,076 students from becoming established smokers, with net benefits of 5.59 Mio. Euro (direct net benefits) and 15.00 Mio. Euro (total net benefits). The direct benefit/cost ratio was 8.2 and the total benefit/cost ratio was 3.6. CONCLUSIONS: Data suggest that the SFC is a cost-effective school-based intervention.     

Cardiovascular disease education in Texas health education classes -- a needs assessment.

This study ascertained to what extent cardiovascular diseases and associated risk factors are taught in public secondary health education classes in Texas, the disparity between what is taught and what is desired in terms of time allotment and educational materials, to what extent health education teachers are academically prepared to teach cardiovascular diseases and associated risk factors, and to what extent teachers utilize self-instructional materials. A questionnaire was mailed to a random sample of health education teachers in Texas. There was a return of 45.4%. The findings indicated that more time is devoted to teaching the cardiovascular system than disease and risk factors; there is a disparity between what is taught and what is desired; the teachers rated their preparation as average; and the use of self-instructional materials by high school students as average to excellent.     

Food pyramids, keeping clean and sex talks: pre-service teachers' experiences and perceptions of school health education

This paper reports findings from the first stage of an anticipated four-stage research project investigating the effectiveness of teacher education in health education. Prior to receiving any teacher education in health education, pre-service teachers (student teachers) were surveyed for their experiences of secondary school health education, and their beliefs about and attitudes towards the subject. Data were collected from questionnaire surveys (n = 295) and focus group interviews (n = 61). Results showed that student teachers had more exposure to school health education than had been assumed and had more positive attitudes towards the subject area than indicated by other studies into school health education. Many reported having had sexuality education and drug and alcohol programmes, but these were commonly described in contexts of safety rules and risk avoidance behaviours. Participants had greater understanding of and more exposure to mental health education than had been predicted. Those aged 20 years and younger reported significantly greater exposure to a range of school health education topics than did those aged 21-30 years or 30+ years. This difference is attributed to the younger participants receiving health education based on the Health and Physical Education in the New Zealand Curriculum, introduced into schools in 1999.     

Vaccine coverage levels after implementation of a middle school vaccination requirement, Florida, 1997-2000

OBJECTIVE: Little information is available about the effectiveness of school entry vaccination requirements at the middle school level. This study examined coverage levels among students entering seventh grade in Florida following implementation of a school entry vaccination requirement in 1997. METHODS: The authors analyzed county-specific vaccination coverage levels (three doses of hepatitis B vaccine, a second dose of measles, mumps, and rubella [MMR] vaccine, and a booster dose of tetanus and diphtheria toxoids [Td]) among students entering public and private schools in Florida from 1997 through 2000. In 1998, a survey of all county health departments was conducted, and the resulting data were linked to county-specific vaccination rates. RESULTS: During the 1997-1998 school year, the first year the requirement went into effect, at school entry 121,219 seventh-grade students (61.8%) were fully vaccinated, 72,275 seventh grade students (36.9%) lacked one or more doses of vaccine but were considered in process, 1,817 were non-compliant (0.9%), and 763 had medical or religious exemptions (0.4%). In the 2000-2001 school year, the proportions of students reported fully vaccinated at school entry had increased to 66%. Most of this change was related to an increase in hepatitis B coverage. There was a significant inverse relationship between the proportion of students fully vaccinated and the size of the county''s seventh grade population. CONCLUSIONS: The seventh grade vaccination entry requirement was associated with sustained high levels of vaccination coverage. Passing a school entry vaccination requirement appears may be sufficient to increase coverage, but other strategies may be required to achieve full immunization of middle school students.     

The effect of endorsement by local opinion leaders and testimonials from teachers on the dissemination of a web-based smoking prevention program

The effect of endorsement by local opinion leaders and teacher testimonials on dissemination of a web-based program to prevent smoking was tested in a group-randomized 2 x 2 factorial post-test-only design with 394 junior and senior high schools. Schools were assigned to condition by region served by local tobacco control coalitions. Visits to the 'Consider This' (CT) website were recorded. Teachers at 226 schools completed a post-test. More schools receiving the opinion leader letter had visits to the website by teachers (12%) than schools not receiving it (4%, P = 0.015). More teachers at schools receiving the testimonials reported reading the materials (29%) than those not receiving them (22%, P = 0.059). Testimonials created more intentions to use CT (49% testimonials, 35% no testimonials, P = 0.047). Testimonials may be effective at increasing teachers' exposure to the promotional materials but recommendations from opinion leaders appear to convince some teachers to visit and assign students to use it.     

Primary grade teachers' perceptions and practices regarding pedestrian safety education

BACKGROUND: Pedestrian injury is the third leading cause of unintentional injury and death among children 1-14 years old. The purpose of this study was to examine primary grade teachers' perceived role in pedestrian safety education. METHODS: A total of 630 surveys were sent to a national random sample of primary school teachers and 54% responded. RESULTS: The results of the study found that 85% of primary grade teachers believed it was extremely important or important to teach pedestrian safety. Forty percent of the teachers identified that they had been teaching pedestrian safety for more than 1 year (maintenance stage), whereas 1 in 3 teachers had never thought about (precontemplation stage) teaching pedestrian safety to their students. Eighty-eight percent of primary grade teachers were very confident about teaching students how to safely cross the street, where to safely cross the street (87%), when to safely cross the street (86%), and how to safely walk along streets with sidewalks (83%). An examination of how pedestrian safety information was presented found that a plurality (39%) of the teachers who taught pedestrian safety presented information through classroom discussion. Also, 46% of the teachers who taught pedestrian safety identified the following as the most common curriculum content: when to safely cross the street (46%), how to safely cross the street (45%), and where to safely cross the street (43%). CONCLUSIONS: Only 16% of primary school teachers reported pedestrian safety education was required for their grade levels. Yet, pedestrian safety education decreases pedestrian-related deaths. Therefore, it is important for schools and primary grade teachers to expose their students to this essential topic.     

Teacher expectations and cognitive style: Implications for students' academic achievement

This study investigated the effects second and fifth grade teachers' expectations and cognitive styles have on their students' academic achievement. Second and fifth grade teachers (20 from each grade) and a sample of their students (six males and six females) were administered the Embedded Figures Test to be identified as more FD or Fl. After school had been in session four weeks, the teachers ranked their students' academic competence. The students' achieve-ment scores on the Comprehensive Tests of Basic Skills (CTBS) were recorded twice over a one year period. Deviation scores, the extent to which teachers deviated in ranking their students on academic competence in comparison to rankings on the first CTBS score, were computed. Pre- and post-CTBS scores provided the students' gains on this achievement test. A multiple regression analysis identified a relationship between the students' CTBS gains and the teachers' cognitive styles and discrepancy scores. The students with the Flteachers achieved significantly higher achievement gains than did those students with the FD teachers. The Fl teachers' students achieved higher gain scores than did the FD teachers' students.     

健康促进学校干预模式对学校和家庭控烟环境的影响

目的了解健康促进学校模式预防和控制青少年吸烟对学校和家庭环境的影响,为评价干预效果提供参考。方法在广州市4所中学开展为期1a的初中生吸烟干预试验,评价指标为与吸烟相关的学校物质环境和社会环境、对学生家庭的辐射作用和父母参与学生控烟的积极性。结果52.7%的学生能感觉到拒烟的校风在过去1a中增加,46.1%报告教师当面吸烟的情况减少,40.2%报告厕所内烟蒂减少,39.2%报告后勤人员吸烟减少,38.4%报告校道操场烟蒂减少,35.5%报告来访人员在校内吸烟减少,而报告班上吸烟同学减少和学校吸烟同学减少的分别为35.0%和32.7%。62.2%的学生家长报告“孩子在家提及了学校控烟工作”,71.5%报告“孩子携带控烟资料回家”,68.4%“阅读了孩子带回的资料”,69.8%和孩子“签订了无烟家庭协议书”。干预后,家长“教育孩子不要吸烟”的比例有所上升,“向孩子讲述吸烟危害健康知识”的也有所增加。家长“自己参与控烟的意愿”在干预后有明显的上升(P<0.05)。结论干预项目的实施对吸烟相关的学校环境产生了积极的作用,还部分辐射到学生家庭,一定程度上提高了父母参与控烟的积极性。     

Long-term reductions in sexual initiation and sexual activity among urban middle schoolers in the reach for health service learning program.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the sustained effectiveness of a middle school service learning intervention on reducing sexual initiation and recent sex among urban African-American and Latino adolescents from 7th grade through the 10th grade. METHODS: During the fall of seventh grade and again in eighth grade, students were randomly assigned by classroom to participate either in community youth service (CYS) or not (controls). Service learning is an educational strategy that couples meaningful service in the community with classroom instruction. Students in both intervention and control conditions received classroom health lessons. Surveys were conducted at seventh grade baseline and at the end of 10th grade, approximately 2 years after intervention. Self-reported sexual behaviors of youths who had participated in CYS were compared with those of controls receiving classroom curriculum alone (n = 195). RESULTS: CYS participants were significantly less likely than controls to report sexual initiation (2 years CYS, odds ratio [OR] = 0.32; 1 year, OR = 0.49) as well as recent sex (2 years CYS, OR = 0.39; 1 year CYS, OR = 0.48). Among those who were virgins at seventh grade, 80% of males in the curriculum-only condition had initiated sex, compared with 61.5% who received 1 year of CYS, and 50% who received 2 years. Among females, the figures were 65.2%, 48.3%, and 39.6%, respectively. CONCLUSION: A service learning intervention that combines community involvement with health instruction can have a long-term benefit by reducing sexual risk taking among urban adolescents.     

Prevalence of low visual acuity in public school's students from Brazil

OBJECTIVE: Low visual acuity (VA) is an important public health problem due to its high prevalence and because it needs early diagnosis in order to prevent damage in childhood development and apprenticeship. To describe and analyze low visual acuity (VA) prevalence among school children. METHODS: Once performed the VA test to 1st and 4th grades primary school children data were analyzed by separating students according to sex, school grade, wearing of glasses, residence area and level of access to the supplementary medical assistance (SMA). RESULTS: The total of 9,640 students was evaluated during the year of 2000 and they presented a prevalence of low VA of 13.1% (CI 12.5-13.8%). There was a statistical significant lower prevalence in males (11.5%) compared to females (14.9%) - (PR=0.77). There was a statistical significant higher prevalence in 1st grade students (14.1%) compared to 4th grade (11.5%) - (PR=1.22). There was also a statistical significant lower prevalence for those who were not wearing glasses (12.1%) compared to those who were using glasses (42.0%) - (PR=0.29). Concerning to residence areas, Cajuru neighborhood had the lower prevalence of low VA (1.8%) and Vila Sabia neighborhood had the higher prevalence (32.4%), and a positive correlation, according to residence area, between the proportion of people with access to the Supplementary Medical Assistance and the proportion of children wearing glasses was found (r=0.64, p<0.001). CONCLUSIONS: The low VA high prevalence shows lack in early diagnosis and continuity of assistance pointing out to the urgent need of implementation in visual health public.     

Focus points for school health promotion improvements in Dutch primary schools

To enable improvements in school health promotion, this paper examines associations between the number of health-promotion issues addressed by primary school teachers in the Netherlands and factors thought to influence this behavior. The main factors studied are context characteristics and constructs of attitude, social influence, self-efficacy (SE) and perceived barriers. A total of 180 primary school teachers teaching 9- to 12-year olds (Grades 6, 7 and 8) participated in a cross-sectional survey. The results show that it is possible to differentiate between teachers addressing three or more health issues per year versus those who address fewer based on grade level (more health issues are addressed at higher grades), perceived disadvantages, SE and staff support. The latter seems to exert the greatest influence and may be one of the most promising focus points for improvements of school health promotion in the Netherlands.     

A Profile of Rural Texas Adolescents Who Carry Handguns to School

ABSTRACT: Students in randomly selected eighth and 10th grade English classrooms (n = 1,072) in central Texas schools were surveyed in fall 1994 regarding carrying weapons to school and associated risk factors. Students who carried a handgun to school one or more times during the preceding 12 months were compared to those who had not done so, using discriminant analysis and chisquare. Gun carrying at school increased 138% from seven years earlier in the same area using the same survey procedures. Most students reported they carried a gun out of fear or anger. Those who carried a gun at school had extremely elevated rates of repeated victimization of several types during the previous year: 589% higher for attack at school. 552% higher for attack outside school supervision. 576% higher for attempts to force sex at school, and 216% higher for rape. They also were more likely to enter dangerous situations repeatedly, were 17 times more likely to have used crack cocaine, had less instruction on preventing violence, less knowledge about means of avoiding fighting, and felt an obligation to fight under a wider variety of situations. Study variables accurately classified 78.4% of gun carriers as such. Researchers concluded that efforts at prevention of handgun violence in schools should include interventions to increase the safety of a select group of vulnerable students, while providing psychological counseling to assist them in overcoming emotional effects of victimization as part of larger violence prevention efforts. (J Sch Health. 1996;66(1):18–22)     

The Long Term Educational Effects of Half-Day vs Full-Day Kindergarten

This study examined the effects of full-day and half-day kindergarten on children's second grade academic outcomes. The subjects for the study were 974 second grade children from a large Midwestern school district. Of these second-graders, 730 of them had been in full-day kindergarten and 244 were in half-day kindergarten. The following measures were compared: (a) children's second grade reading and math scores from the Iowa Test of Basic Skills; (b) whether or not they had been retained in grade during the first three years of school; (c) whether or not they had been referred for special education services during the first three years of school; and (d) kindergarten attendance records. The results indicated that children who were in a full-day kindergarten program scored significantly higher on both math and reading on a standardized achievement test. In addition, there were fewer children from the full-day cohort who had been retained in grade. There were no differences in the number of special education referrals between the two groups. Finally, children who attended full-day kindergarten were absent less during the school year than the half day kindergarten group. The results are discussed in terms of both social and academic perspectives.     

Addressing Gaps in Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation Education: Training Middle School Students in Hands‐Only Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation

BACKGROUND

Training middle school students to perform hands‐only cardiopulmonary resuscitation (HOCPR) is a potential method to increase overall rates of bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). We aimed to examine the feasibility of teaching this population CPR using teacher‐implemented education sessions guided by American Heart Association (AHA) training kits and resources.

METHODS

We conducted a national HOCPR training campaign in middle schools during the 2014‐2015 school year. Participating schools utilized AHA CPR training kits to train seventh and eighth grade students. We assessed pretest/posttest knowledge and comfort in performing HOCPR.

RESULTS

We recruited 1131 schools and trained approximately 334,610 students in HOCPR. The average pretest score on knowledge questions was 50% and the average posttest score was 84%. Most students (76%) felt comfortable performing HOCPR after the education session. Overall, 98% of teachers said they would continue to implement CPR training in the future.

CONCLUSIONS

Large‐scale, teacher‐implemented CPR education sessions in the middle school setting are a successful approach to increase middle school student's knowledge and comfort in performing HOCPR and to increase overall bystander CPR rates.

     

Pro-Innovation Bias: The Case of the Giant Texas SmokeScream

ABSTRACT: A common approach to promoting improvements in school health instruction involves development and dissemination of new curricula and teaching materials. Ironically, potential effects of innovative materials on student outcomes and actual teacher instructional practices rarely are considered important in decisions concerning use of new material. This study examined the impact of a new curricular innovation, the Giant Texas SmokeScream (GTSS), on 512 middle grade students' knowledge, perceptions, and behavioral intent about smoking. The data provided a basis for discussion of what Rogers labeled "pro-innovation bias." Data indicated the program had no effect on students. The GTSS program itself, although popular with schools, was questioned as being atheoretical in its approach to health education and ineffective in its outcomes. These data illustrate the need for programs to be based on sound theory and evaluated rigorously prior to general adoption. Additionally, program evaluations focused solely on student effects are insufficient in their assessment of adoption and implementation practices.     

The Impact of Instructional Experience and the Effects of Cumulative Instruction

Two substudies were conducted within the School Health Education Evaluation (SHEE) to assess implementation practices and cumulative effects. In both studies, special samples were identified that permitted independent analysis of contributing factors. For the implementation study, teachers who had taught only one year were assessed in their second year to determine what changes they made during implementation and how those changes were related to classroom performance. Teachers taught significantly fewer hours, fewer components of the curriculum, and made more changes. However, the classroom performance, compared with the first year, improved for both knowledge and attitude with a marginal trend toward improvement in self-reported practices. These results suggest that teachers became both more efficient and effective in the second iteration. The cumulative effects study tracked children through different levels of exposure to health instruction across two consecutive grade levels. Using partial classrooms as the unit of analysis, the results revealed that for knowledge, attitudes, and self-reported practices, exposure to two units of School Health Curriculum Project (SHCP) were more effective than one which was, in turn, more effective than no exposure. Analysis of self-reported smoking practices indicated cumulative program effectiveness in reducing both current smoking and future intent to smoke.     

The Long Term Educational Effects of Half‐Day vs Full‐Day Kindergarten

This study examined the effects of full‐day and half‐day kindergarten on children's second grade academic outcomes. The subjects for the study were 974 second grade children from a large Midwestern school district. Of these second‐graders, 730 of them had been in full‐day kindergarten and 244 were in half‐day kindergarten. The following measures were compared: (a) children's second grade reading and math scores from the Iowa Test of Basic Skills; (b) whether or not they had been retained in grade during the first three years of school; (c) whether or not they had been referred for special education services during the first three years of school; and (d) kindergarten attendance records. The results indicated that children who were in a full‐day kindergarten program scored significantly higher on both math and reading on a standardized achievement test. In addition, there were fewer children from the full‐day cohort who had been retained in grade. There were no differences in the number of special education referrals between the two groups. Finally, children who attended full‐day kindergarten were absent less during the school year than the half day kindergarten group. The results are discussed in terms of both social and academic perspectives.     

Calibration and reliability of a school food checklist: a new tool for assessing school food and beverage consumption

There is a pressing need in Australia and other countries to develop systems for monitoring secular trends in childhood obesity and related behavioural and environmental determinants. Energy from foods and beverages consumed at school is an accessible indicator of children's eating patterns and we have developed a school food checklist (SFC) to measure this. The SFC records the number of serves and source (home, canteen, vending machine) of 20 food and beverage categories. This study aims to assess the accuracy and to calibrate the SFC by comparing it to a weighed record (WR) and to evaluate inter-recorder reliability. Participants were 910 primary school children aged 5 to 12 years from a rural township in Victoria, Australia. WR were collected from a non-random sub-sample of 106 and a second sub-sample (n=46) had intake measured twice using the SFC to assess inter-recorder reliability. Mean energy values were 2992 kJ +/- 924 and 3008 kJ +/- 952 for the SFC and WR respectively and the correlation coefficient was strong (Pearson r = 0.77). The mean difference between the WR and SFC methods was 15 kJ (95% CI, -107 kJ to 138 kJ) and the limits of agreement (+2 standard deviations) were +/- 1270 kJ. The SFC overestimated the energy/serve of breads and fruit drinks and under-estimated energy/serve from fat spreads, biscuits/crackers, muesli/fruit bars and fruit. Inter-recorder reliability was good (kappa 0.51). The SFC was designed to measure energy from food and beverages in schools. It has good accuracy and reliability and the revised version should further improve accuracy of the instrument.     

中小学校健康教育课教师对学校健康教育的认识、态度和需求

目的：了解中小学校健康教育课教师对学校健康教育的认识、态度和需求。方法：对6省市下属12个市／县的57所中小学校中58名健康教育课教师进行访谈。结果：80％学校开设了健康教育课，并制定了教学计划和教案，健康教育课教师普遍认为有必要在中小学设置健康教育课，且应从小学一年级开始；很多教师对现有教材提出一些不足；教学方式以课堂讲授为主，缺少辅助教具；学校师资配备不足，70％任课教师为兼职教师；社会各界对学校健康教育工作的重视不够。结论：应尽快加强对现有健康教育教师的培训，教育主管部门应组织有关人员对现有教材进行评估，调整内容，分学段编写全国统一教材，改进教学方法，加强社会各界对学校健康教育的认识。