Healthy schools and colleges: what works, what is needed, and why? Part III

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this editorial is to provide an overview and brief summary of the present contributions to this third volume of recent Health Education Special Issue submissions on Healthy Schools and Colleges, commissioned early in 2010.

Design/methodology/approach

Authors working in the health education arena in either the school or college venues were invited to submit papers concerning current research‐related findings that addressed the topic of “what works, what is needed, and why?” as regards school‐based health education and health promotion efforts. After undergoing traditional peer review, five submissions fulfilling the basic criteria relevant to this volume were selected.

Findings

As in earlier volumes, the five papers reported here are reasonably diverse, and cover both the nature of common health problems and/or their solutions in schools, as well as college venues. In line with the first and second volumes of the 2010 series, all authors concur that multiple, rather than single, strategies are needed to support school‐based health programmes and health‐promoting behaviors. They also highlight the fact that health in schools is determined by both individual and collective health behaviors, and multiple rather than single stakeholders are needed to promote the implementation of efficacious programs and their sustainability.

Originality/value

While more research is needed, the ideas embedded in this special issue can assist stakeholders to develop or improve the efficacy and sustainability of school‐ and college‐based health promotion programs. The data specifically provide some direction about what is needed collectively to foster the health of the young people in the context of the health promoting school or college.

Citation

Marks, R. (2011), "Healthy schools and colleges: what works, what is needed, and why? Part III", Health Education, Vol. 111 No. 5, pp. 340-346. https://doi.org/10.1108/09654281111161194