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Schools, health literacy and public health: possibilities and challenges

St Leger, Lawrence 2001, Schools, health literacy and public health: possibilities and challenges, Health promotion international, vol. 16, no. 2, pp. 197-205.

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Title Schools, health literacy and public health: possibilities and challenges
Author(s) St Leger, Lawrence
Journal name Health promotion international
Volume number 16
Issue number 2
Start page 197
End page 205
Publisher Oxford University Press
Place of publication Oxford, England
Publication date 2001-06
ISSN 0957-4824
Keyword(s) health literacy
health promoting schools
school health
Summary Health literacy is a concept that can be widely embraced by schools. Schools throughout the world contribute to the achievement of public health goals in conjunction with their educational commitments. In this paper, the interface between a school's core business of education and public health goals is identified, and examples provided in the area of nutrition demonstrating how these links can operate at school level. The structure and function of the health promoting school is described and the author proposes that there is a very close connection between the health promoting school and the enabling factors necessary in achieving health literacy. Major findings in the literature that provide evidence of good practices in school health education and promotion initiatives are described. Also, those factors that make schools effective and which facilitate learning for students are identified. There is a substantial overlap between the successful components of a health promoting school and effective schools. This enables schools to potentially achieve all three levels of health literacy, including level 3—critical health literacy. However, there are three challenges that must be addressed to enable schools to achieve this level: the traditional structure and function of schools, teachers practices and skills, and time and resources. Strategies are proposed to address all three areas and to reduce the impediments to achieving the goals of health literacy and public health using the school as a setting.
Language eng
Field of Research 111712 Health Promotion
HERDC Research category C1 Refereed article in a scholarly journal
Copyright notice ©2001, Oxford University Press
Persistent URL http://hdl.handle.net/10536/DRO/DU:30001092

Document type: Journal Article
Collection: School of Health Sciences
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