Preparing Classroom Teachers for Delivering Health Instruction. ERIC Digest.

Overview & Synopsis

This digest examines the preparation of classroom teachers in health, noting what teachers should know to effectively provide school health education. Most states and school districts require some health education. Health is generally taught by regular classroom teachers in elementary school, by classroom teachers with some health certification in middle school, and by teachers with health credentials in high school. Few states require coursework in health for prospective elementary teachers, while one half of the states require it for middle school teachers. Lack of teacher preparation is a major obstacle to implementing high quality school health education. Several factors hinder teacher preparation in health, including lack of time in the preservice curriculum and emphasis on standardized testing. Standards for teacher preparation in health education include: provide elementary teachers with strategies for infusing health instruction into the curriculum and for laying the groundwork for intensive middle school health education, and include content and process courses in health education within all teacher preparation programs. Competencies in health education recommended for elementary, middle, and special education teachers include the ability to incorporate health concepts into other curricular areas and to select and use valid and reliable sources of health information. (Contains 12 references.) (SM)