News from the SHE Secretariat
COVID-19 has affected our communities, our lives, our schools, and our work. The pandemic is far from over yet, but luckily the situation is improving in some countries. Health is on the agenda more than ever and SHE’s tools are important and useful in the process of reopening schools. We are pleased to introduce the SHE School Manual 2.0 in a Russian and Greek translation while versions in Portuguese, Polish and Spanish are in the pipeline and will also be available shortly. The 2019 publication Materials for teachers is now available with a Slovenian translation.
Each year, SHE provides a new module on school health promotion to be used in the classroom. The modules are made for teachers to use with classes in primary and secondary school. In 2020, the theme for SHE’s materials for teachers is ‘Inequality in Schools’. In addition, SHE publishes a fact sheet each year and in 2020, this fact sheet will focus on Health Literacy.
Have you seen SHE’s new YouTube Channel? As a new initiative, we will publish a series of videos about SHE-related research and the health promotion school – click to see the published videos and subscribe to the channel to follow future videos. |
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SHE Academy 2020
Due to Corvid-19 situation throughout Europe, the 2020 SHE Academy will change to an online event. The dates are still the same – 4th to 6th November 2020. The focus of the 2020 SHE Academy – Health Literacy – is as relevant as ever and you will still have the chance to listen to experts, discuss and present you own work at the Academy. A more detailed program and links for signing up will be available in late august but untill then, see the second call. The team you will meet will among others be Orkan Okan, Leena Paakari, Kathelijne Bessems and Jesper von Seelen. Please keep the dates available in you calendars and share this information with you colleagues, students and friends. |
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Austria-nationwide School Study Ready to go Abroad
In Austria, a nationwide school study is ready to expand with follow-up projects. The title is: "From Science 2 School: Sustainably healthy – active & veggy - Prevalence of vegetarian diets linked to sports & physical exercise among Austrian pupils, teachers and principals of secondary levels I and II". To date approximately 8,600 Austrian students and 1,300 adults have participated in the project. Researchers are planning on expanding with future projects including: • pupils from secondary school and students/lecturers from tertiary level; • participation initially from EU-member states, and then from across the globe; • large-scale samples/cross-sectional to small cohort/longitudinal mixed method studies. Researcher Katharina Wirnitzer hopes to connect with interested colleagues from all areas of expertise. Read more. |
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Invitation: Questionnaire about Reopening of Schools
An evidence and practice-based reopening of schools after COVID-19: SHE, the UNESCO Chairs and WHO Collaborating Centre in Global Health and Education have launched a knowledge sharing process about the reopening of schools. The key idea is that we need both evidence-based and practice-based decisions and educational practices. We would be grateful if you would complete a short questionnaire about the situation in your country, region, city or school. This will enrich and contribute to our understanding of the inventory of different practices. |
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Stay at Home, Stay Fit
Lea Smrtnik (Professor of physical education in Ljubljana, Slovenia) explains that her school is aware of the importance of being healthy in relation to physical activity especially during lockdowns due to the pandemic. For this reason, she regularly prepares a daily dose of sport exercise with a video demonstration. It helps all pupils and their families to do exercise during homeschooling. Pupils receive the content by mail. It is also possible to access the content on official school web site (in Slovenian) with more detailed information. |
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Schools Promotes Health ... Even When They Are Closed
A Health Promoting School in the time of Covid 19 can choose to focus on developing individual skills of students - mediated by teachers or proposed by students, for example choosing active breaks between video lessons at home. DoRS (the Documentation Center for Health Promotion of Piedmont Region) and the Office IV - Regional Physical and Sports Education Conference USR Piedmont - offer a “Physical activity and active breaks” padlet. It’s a virtual space dedicated to providing the service of available validated and updated resources. Read more. |
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HBSC Report Launched
Recently, the newest Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) survey was launched. This HBSC/WHO report puts the spotlight on adolescent health and well-being by presenting key findings from 227,441 young people aged 11, 13 and 15 years in 45 countries who took part in the survey in 2017/2018. The report reveals new insights about the physical health, social relationships and mental well-being of school-aged children in Europe and Canada. Find the report and the Journal of Adolescent Health's special issue with findings from the HBSC study. |
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Be Active, Healthy and Creative Despite Staying at Home!
In April, the contest "Change your habits – You can do it!" helped to involve Latvian children in health promotion activities during the closing down of schools. Children were asked to complete seven health promoting tasks (called challenges), one each day for one week. The tasks included: Planting and growing herbs; designing a hand hygiene promoting poster; cooking healthy snacks; and organizing physical activities for the family. Children documented their results with photographs and videos which they sent to the organizer, the Latvian Centre for Disease Prevention and Control. The contest was a success as students actively involved themselves in this challenge. |
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The Best Expertise to Help the Educational Sector in Kazakhstan
In Kazakhstan most teaching has been moved to remote learning during the pandemic. Experts from the National Center for Public Health, jointly with colleagues from UNICEF, the National Education Academy, the University Medical Center, UNICEF, UNESCO and the Center for mental stress relief conduct weekly webinars for rural low-capacity schools to deliver key messages for COVID-19 prevention and precautions during and post lockdown. Participants have the opportunity to listen to the regulatory requirements in relation to infection prevention and control, COVID-19 facts, key messages and recommendations for the school communities. |
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Portuguese Inequality and Solidarity Project
The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed health inequality as a serious problem. For example, how can you teach children via virtual lessons when families do not own a computer? How do you cope with families who can’t afford to buy masks or food due to loss of employment? The Almeida Garrett Secondary School in Portugal have involved the local community to solve these problems. Computer equipment from companies and private contacts was loaned to 50 students from 7th to 12th grade. Masks for those who required them were provided via the schools’ social networks call for collaboration. Many people volunteered to make these masks with care and enthusiasm and this process will continue until the end of the school year. Other families in need have been supported with solidarity baskets. |
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Research: Gender Differences Relating to Lifestyle Habits
The objective of this Spanish study was to analyse the lifestyle differences associated with the health of adolescents as a function of gender. For this, a cross-sectional study was conducted with a sample of 761 adolescents. Relative to males, females presented significantly lower values for engaging in physical activity, maximal oxygen uptake, physical wellbeing, psychological wellbeing, and body satisfaction. In exchange, females demonstrated higher vegetable consumption in the daily diet and greater satisfaction in the educational context. The differences suggest that educational and health organisations should give more consideration to establishing intervention strategies that are appropriate to the needs of each gender. Read more. |
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'FAST Heroes 112' Educational Programme in Greece
A stroke is a time-sensitive emergency, necessitating an important chain of actions leading to fast and accurate diagnosis. It’s important to educate the general population to recognize stroke symptoms and the appropriate course of action. In Greece, the “Fast Heroes 112” program educates children on how to recognize a stroke and react appropriately. See this video with Harikla Proios from the University of Macedonia in Greece, describing a kindergarten-based educational stroke intervention for the whole family. |
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New Danish Assessment Tool on Physical Literacy
Danish Assessment of Physical Literacy (DAPL) is a new Danish assessment tool for measuring physical literacy which will be developed and disseminated in a new project. Physical Literacy incorporates the affective, cognitive and physical aspects that are significant for movement and physical activity behaviour through life. DAPL is currently being validated and tested in a sample of approximately 1000 school students across eight Danish schools. When validated, it will be made publicly available, ready for direct implementation. E.g. physical education teachers can use DAPL for evaluating their teaching efforts. The project is carried out as a collaboration between the Centre for Clinical Research and Prevention, Steno Diabetes Center Copenhagen, Danish School Sport and the University of Copenhagen. Read more. |
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Physical Activity for Healthy Brain Functions in School Children
A newly started Swedish multistep study investigates the relationship between physical activity and healthy brain functions in adolescents aged 13-14 years, and how physical activity which promotes healthy brain function can be sustainably implemented longer term in schools. The project contains three sub-projects:
- Which aspects of a physical activity pattern relate to healthy brain functions?
- How do physiological factors that underpin healthy brain functions change acutely with changed activity? Are these changes observable in a school setting?
- What are the organisational and pedagogical challenges with implementing activity changes in schools, and how can these challenges be negotiated and resolved?
Watch this video. |
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World No Tobacco Day
The 31st of May is World No Tobacco Day. WHO will be posting on social media about exposing the tactics the tobacco industry use to target youth #TobaccoExposed #SpeakOut and the risk of using tobacco in the context of COVID-19. All WHO’s social media information and resources can be accessed in the campaign toolkit. All young people are invited to join the fight to become a tobacco-free generation. Read more. |
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Help Your Friends and Colleagues to Follow SHE's News
Facebook is the platform where teachers and other members from the school community can continuously find news about the health promoting school and SHE. Teachers share their stories about health promotion in practice. The language on Facebook is ‘short and sweet’ ensuring ease in accessing information about SHE’s activities. Find SHE’s Facebook profile, sign up as a follower on the site and ask friends and colleagues to to so as well to let even more people learn from international practice stories. |
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Exercises at home when school is closed down in Marijampolė, Lithuania
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