StudentShare
Contact Us
Sign In / Sign Up for FREE
Search
Go to advanced search...
Free

Health and Physical Education Status in Schools - Essay Example

Cite this document
Summary
The paper "Health and Physical Education Status in Schools" highlights that the basic theoretical knowledge on health and physical education appears to be insufficient to enforce appropriate behavioral attitudes for health promotion and physical fitness…
Download full paper File format: .doc, available for editing
GRAB THE BEST PAPER92.8% of users find it useful
Health and Physical Education Status in Schools
Read Text Preview

Extract of sample "Health and Physical Education Status in Schools"

Jacksonville Department of Health, Physical Education and Recreation The Importance of Health Promotion And Physical Education In Schools An Assignment Submitted for HPE 508 Research in Health and Physical Education Professor: Dr. Glaucio Scremin By Chantry Gulledge Table of Contents Finally, the problem of time constraint allotted for health and physical education courses are addressed by incorporating certain topics in closely relevant subjects like science, social studies, language or arts, as the case may be. 17 Classes. Journal of Law and Education. Retrieved on April 3, 2009 from 20 Shilstone, M. (2004). The Importance Of Physical Education. Health and Wellness. 21 Retrieved on April 3, 2009 from 21 Introduction Schools are the primary place where children learn. Schools, as educational institutions provide the basic foundations to make choices in life. Epstein in his article, “Why Do We Send Our Children to School averred that “the foundational three "Rs" should empower them to be Righteous, Responsible and Reverent, as well as competitive in the market place.” (Epstein 2008 par. 7) However, school curriculum should not be confined to teaching academic subjects that hone the students’ intellectual skills. The personality and behavior of an individual is developed through absorbing diverse issues that shape their needs, preferences and actions. Individuals do not exist in a nutshell; they interact, relate, and behave in specific manners which eventually affect their health. According to Kolbe (1993 p. 12), “the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) finds that most major health problems in the United States today are caused by six categories of behavior: behaviors that lead to intentional and unintentional injuries; smoking; alcohol and other drug use; sexual behaviors leading to sexually transmitted diseases, HIV infection, and unintended pregnancy; poor nutrition; and lack of physical activity”. He further emphasized that “behaviors and attitudes about health that are initiated during childhood are responsible for most of the leading causes of death, illness, and disability in the United States today. Comprehensive school health education programs represent one effective way of providing students with the knowledge and skills to prevent health-impairing behaviors.” (Kolbe 1993 p. 13) The schools’ curriculum should include subjects which promote health and physical education to enforce correct behavioral patterns at a young age and continue this positive reinforcement until adulthood. Therefore, health promotion and physical education in the schools is of critical importance. Statement of the Problem There has been the underlying belief that “if young people (5-18 years) receive basic knowledge about a health issue, they will adopt appropriate health enhancing behaviours. Most school health programs, projects and packages were designed based on this belief. However, research in the last 20 years suggests that the provision of information will lead to behavior change approach is theoretically flawed” (St. Leger 2006 p. iii) This simply means that the basic health and physical education courses that provide theoretical concepts are not enough for the effective enforcement of these subjects in young people. School administrators and local health practitioners are tasked with devising programs to complement the basic health and physical education courses to ensure effectiveness on behavioral attitudes towards the benefits of these issues. It is therefore the objective of this research paper to determine the effectiveness, extent and the value that schools place in incorporating both health and physical education in their curriculum. Research Hypotheses Since the basic theoretical knowledge on health and physical education appears to be insufficient to enforce appropriate behavioral attitudes for health promotion and physical fitness, schools are better off taking these subjects out of their curriculum and delegate these responsibilities to a local health organization. This hypothesis will be validated using the current educational curriculum and measuring its effectiveness in enforcing positive behavioral attitudes of the young. Operational Definitions For purposes of clarifying terms that would be used in this research, the following definitions are pertinent, to wit: Health promotion has been defined in several researches differently. The World Health Organization (1986) defines health promotion as “the process of enabling people to increase control over, and to improve, their health”. In a book written by Green and Kreuter (1991) entitled Health promotion planning: An education and environmental approach, health promotion is defined as “any combination of health education and related organization, economic and environmental supports for behavior conducive to health and well-being.” Finally, Raeburn and Rootman (1998) claimed that “health promotion is concerned with positive health and well-being; with the whole of life… involving a complex notion of health to include bodily, mental, social and spiritual states… and which (health promotion) occurs incrementally over time… linked to everyday life and community and is about changing the balance of power in the human and health domain”. From these definitions, one can deduce that the relative importance of health promotion is its ability to support a positive behavior needed for a balanced life conducive for promoting the well being of an individual and one’s relation to society as a whole. Physical education, on the other hand, is a mandatory course promoting physical activity and sports mostly from grades 1 to 6. The objectives of physical education classes are teaching to ensure physical fitness, promoting regular exercises, and presenting nutrition and health subjects. Assumptions This research paper is conducted using secondary sources such as books, journals, web sources on the subject of health promotion and education, as well as physical education in the United States. Some theoretical issues and concerns are true and relevant globally, though the applications differ depending on states and countries. Limitations The discourse of this study is limited to the importance that health and physical education courses accord to the young through the curriculum provided in their respective schools. The topic on health, per se, is broad and has several sub topics relating to medical concerns. Physical education, on the other hand, also encompasses diverse topics that discuss sports, physical activities, exercises, and even nutrition. This essay would present the importance of incorporating these courses in the curriculum of schools in the United States and measure the effectiveness in enforcing positive behavioral attitude to prevent health crisis in one’s lifetime. Significance of the Study The study would validate the hypothesis stipulated herein. With a comprehensive presentation of research studies made on the importance of health and physical education, its promotion and utilization for prevention of diseases, conclusive evidence would be indicated to confirm if indeed, there still is a necessity to continue the mandatory incorporation of health and physical education in the schools’ curriculum. Literature Review The topic of health and physical education is rich and diverse. There are a multitude of sources that promote health education and emphasize the value of physical activity. In a research written by Gold and Seffrin on comprehensive school health education, the value of health education to preventing vices and unconventional behavior has been emphasized. They averred that “hundreds of studies have evaluated health education and concluded that it is effective in reducing the number of teenage pregnancies, decreasing smoking rates among young people, and preventing the adoption of many high-risk behaviors. But its effectiveness depends upon factors such as teacher training, comprehensiveness of the health program, time available for instruction, family involvement, and community support”. (Gold, 1994; Seffrin, 1990) The significance of behavioral patterns were identified in Delaune and Ladner’s book in Fundamentals of Nursing (2006). Gray, Young & Barnekow (2006) discussed factors which influence an individual to act in relation to health perceptions. Finally, Kolbe (1993) validated the concept that behavioral factors plays an important part in reinforcing health and physical education attitudes and patterns which shape their actions in the future. The US Dept. of Health and Human Services (US DHHS 2002) conducted a study which presented evidence that to support that physical activity is fundamental to preventing disease. Their research delved on topics such as the economic consequences of inactivity, the relation of physical activity and good physical and mental health, its role for maintaining energy balance and a healthy weight, and the epidemic of overweight and obesity, among others. In addition, in a related topic, physical activity and health, the US DHHS, enumerated direct effects of physical activity to improve the health condition of an individual. Health and Physical Education Status in Schools A relevant subsection to literature review on the subject of health and physical education in the school curriculum is a discussion of a committee which oversees and regulates standards for health enforcement in schools, the Joint Committee for National School Health Education Standards (1995). “The committees goal was to emphasize the need for school health education and create a framework for local school boards to use in determining content of the health curriculum in their communities. There are seven broad standards that promote health literacy, which is the capacity of individuals to obtain, interpret, and understand basic health information and services and the competence to use such information and services in ways which enhance health”. (Joint Committee, 1995, p. 5) The article written by Summerfield (2006) provided relevant information on national standards for health education and the topics which should form part of the health curriculum, of which physical activity is one. Effectiveness of Health Indicators To measure the effectiveness of health and physical education courses in schools, St. Ledger (2006) presented a comprehensive study on what indicators have been identified for this purpose. Research Results Importance of Health Promotion Gray, Young & Barnekow (2006, p. 15) in their article on developing a health promoting school appropriately discussed that the initial phase for promoting health is to determine behavioral patterns, to wit: Peoples’ health is not primarily determined by their knowledge, but that beliefs, emotions and their social environment are at the root of behaviors affecting their health. People choose whether to look after their health through, for example sensible eating, taking appropriate physical activity and avoiding harmful substances. However, whether they take these actions is influenced by other factors such as; Read More
Cite this document
  • APA
  • MLA
  • CHICAGO
(“Is health and physical education beneficial enough to students to keep Essay”, n.d.)
Retrieved from https://studentshare.org/miscellaneous/1552556-is-health-and-physical-education-beneficial-enough-to-students-to-keep-in-our-school-systems
(Is Health and Physical Education Beneficial Enough to Students to Keep Essay)
https://studentshare.org/miscellaneous/1552556-is-health-and-physical-education-beneficial-enough-to-students-to-keep-in-our-school-systems.
“Is Health and Physical Education Beneficial Enough to Students to Keep Essay”, n.d. https://studentshare.org/miscellaneous/1552556-is-health-and-physical-education-beneficial-enough-to-students-to-keep-in-our-school-systems.
  • Cited: 0 times

CHECK THESE SAMPLES OF Health and Physical Education Status in Schools

Can food education reduce the obesity levels in schools

This work investigates whether or not food education can reduce obesity levels in schools and how the UK approaches food education in schools.... This essay "Can food education reduce the obesity levels in schools?... The guidelines makes recommendations for the NHS, local authorities (LAs), the public and community partners that can be carried out in schools, the work environment, personally and within community projects (Aiken, Arai and Roberts 2008, 1)....
43 Pages (10750 words) Dissertation

Physical Education

s the papaper stresses pervasive factors contributing to varied notions on physical education in schools are depicted in the development of curriculum, the time allocation and priority assigned to other subjects.... This discussion talks about physical education provides a basis for positive developmental characteristics from early childhood, through adolescence to adulthood.... Time allocation is an issue that is generally complicated by localized control of curricula and practices of offering subject options or electives, which provide less opportunities and interest for additional engagement in physical education and/or school sport activity (Hardman, 2009)....
9 Pages (2250 words) Assignment

Sport Education and Siedentop SE Model

he schools' curriculum should include subjects which promote health and physical education through sports to enforce correct behavioral patterns at a young age and continue this positive reinforcement until adulthood.... Therefore, health promotion and physical education in the schools through sport education is of critical importance.... The objective of this research paper is to consider the potential barriers to fully implementing the sport education framework into the delivery of physical education (PE) in the UK, making particular reference to one's school sport experiences....
10 Pages (2500 words) Essay

Physical Education Effects

According to Active Living Research, 'in schools across the United States, physical education has been substantially reduced and in some cases completely eliminated'.... robably, physical education has much more important effects on human health than on academic performance, yet the relationship between physical education and academic performance is necessary to be defined in order to support physical education in schools.... The following thesis "physical education Effects" investigates the influence of Physical Training at school....
25 Pages (6250 words) Thesis

Contribution that Schools Can Make to Childrens Health and Well-Being

Within an international agenda and the UNICEF report, health and safety, material wellbeing, and family and peer relationships are some of the aspects in children's welfare (Mcauley and Rose 2010, p.... Health promoting programs involves a broad health education curriculum that assists in creating a supportive environment for healthy development at schools.... schools should develop a whole school strategy to welfare promotion incorporating broad health education curriculum....
11 Pages (2750 words) Essay

Value of Physical Education

This paper "Value of physical education" discusses the relationship between physical activity and academic achievement that has been the subject of research and speculation for many decades.... The survey covered every activity from walking to school, running around during recess, physical education participation, school sport participation to after-school activities.... In order to highlight the importance of physical education, a link to academic performance would be influential....
11 Pages (2750 words) Literature review

Improving Health Education Awareness in Schools

From the paper "Improving Health Education Awareness in schools" it is clear that the school's curriculum should be tailored to meet the fundamental principles of health education.... This paper will analyze problems encountered in promoting health education in schools and the possible solutions to the problems.... The approach will ensure comprehensive results are obtained on the challenges faced by health educators in schools.... A particular problem in relation to health education awareness in schools will be identified, analyzed and finally, a solution will be proposed....
13 Pages (3250 words) Coursework

Psychosocial Effect of Physical Education Programs in Schools

The term paper is a comprehensive study regarding the psycho-social aspects of games, sports, and physical education.... The purpose of this paper 'Psychosocial Effect of Physical Education Programs in schools' is to examine the impact of physical education and sports in schools on the psychological, physical and social well-being of children.... The paper will attempt to answer the research question of how physical education programs in schools can be promoted....
9 Pages (2250 words) Term Paper
sponsored ads
We use cookies to create the best experience for you. Keep on browsing if you are OK with that, or find out how to manage cookies.
Contact Us