While there is a history of proposing direction for research in school health education, no formal, profession-wide agenda has been developed in over 25 years. In this commentary the author proposes the development of a new profession-driven research agenda for school health education. He includes suggestions for the process of development of the…

Background: The activity patterns of children, especially after-school patterns, are receiving more professional attention. However, evidence regarding the value of various activities in children's lives is contradictory. The purpose of this study was to assess perceptions of discretionary activities, overscheduling, and levels of stress from…

Background: Health illiteracy is a societal issue that, if addressed successfully, may help to reduce health disparities. It has been associated with increased rates of hospital admission, health care expenditures, and poor health outcomes. Because of this, much of the research in the United States has focused on adults in the health care system.…

Early adolescents in the United States are increasingly exposed to a culture of worrisome messages. A degree of adolescent worry is normal, but the likelihood of a young person being anxious or depressed increases with the perceived number of worries. This study examined the effect of age, gender, and worry behavior on frequency of 8 adolescent…

Because 1 in 5 elementary school and 1 in 10 middle school students in the United States report being bullied, understanding student perspectives is crucial to prevention. This study solicited opinions of 9- to 13-year-olds regarding the magnitude of, causes of, and remedies for bullying. Data were obtained from 1229 students visiting 11 health…

Breast cancer ranks as the second-leading cause of death for women. Until recently the American Cancer Society advocated teaching breast self-examination (BSE) procedures. The Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation, active in the fight against breast cancer, continues to support educational efforts to teach breast self-examination skills to…

Investigated what middle and high school master health educators considered important regarding content, skills, and experiences for preparing school health educators. Surveys indicated that both groups considered the most important priorities to be: awareness/use of various instructional techniques; skill in working with parents; knowledge of…

Presents activities to help adolescent and young-adult students become aware of the different types and possible benefits of social support and help them develop skills for obtaining social support. The process involves introducing them to different types of social support, discussing social support, creating social support webs, and having…

Describes an organized set of materials prospective school health educators should develop to accurately represent their newly acquired skills and competencies. The portfolio should include cooperating teacher evaluations, videotapes of teaching episodes, examples of their work, samples of assessment instruments, statements of philosophy, examples…

Involving family members can be useful in school health education. Involvement requires planned intervention developed and facilitated by health educators. Professional preparation programs in school health education should provide appropriate learning opportunities for students. The article presents sample activities to help preservice teachers…