A review article by Lloyd J. Kolbe published in the Annual Review of Public Health in 2019 highlights the reciprocal relationship between health and learning, emphasizing that healthier children tend to perform better academically, while more educated adults often enjoy better health outcomes. It describes how the concept of school health, a cross-disciplinary field, serves as a fundamental strategy to enhance both health and education outcomes through the following ten interactive components:
- health education: health education within the school curriculum enhances health literacy and empowers individuals to make appropriate decisions about their health
- physical education and physical activity: The school setting provides the right environment for regular exercise to maximize health benefits for children. School based exercise has also been shown to have positive effects on academic performance
- nutrition environment and services: School nutrition services can be instrumental in maintaining positive health outcomes in children, sustaining growth and development and preventing behavioral habits that can lead to obesity
- health services: healthcare professional within the school setting has a fundamental role in preventing, detecting and managing health problems including care coordination for children with chronic disease and disabilities
- counseling, psychological, and social services: An increasing number of school aged children face mental health challenges. School mental health services can create safe school environments by providing programmes of primary prevention for all students, secondary prevention for high risk students and clinical programmes for students with existing mental disorders.
- physical environment: students spent a large part of their day in school. Good school facilities improve student health and achievements and reduce injuries on school ground.
- social and emotional climate: Learning and building social and emotional competencies in school such as understanding emotions, showing empathy to others and setting positive goals are important for academic achievements and life success
- family engagement: Parent engagement in school health activities leads to better health outcomes for children
- community involvement: Collaboration between schools and community stakeholders has a bi-directional beneficial effect on the health of the school children and the wider community
- employee wellness: Amongst other benefits to the individual employee, school employee wellness schemes can ensure that they can act as healthy role models for the children, the parents and the wider community
You can learn more about the crucial role that schools play in influencing both health and education of children by reading the full article
Access to full Article: https://www.annualreviews.org/doi/pdf/10.1146/annurev-publhealth-040218-043727
Reference
Kolbe L.J. School Health as a strategy to improve both Public Health and Education. Annual review of Public health, 2019: 40; 443-463