In light of expert opinion that health education should be integrated into the school curriculum, rather than taught only as a separate unit, it is desirable that all teachers have adequate knowledge and understanding of the subject. The present research investigated attitudes of a representative sample of Greek Cypriot serving teachers towards health education, together with their views on related matters such as the value of contributions from outside bodies and the availability of finance and resources. Results suggest that teachers are generally very positive towards health education, but regard initial and in‐service training provision as inadequate and causing manifest confusion in their understanding of many key issues. Implications emerge for future teacher training programmes.

No abstract

Objective The paper aims to survey the perceptions and attitudes of a representative sample of Cyprus teachers on the importance of areas deemed suitable for inclusion in the health education curriculum and to offer suggestions for the development of a health education curriculum for Cyprus schools. Design Twenty-eight areas that included both those identified by a panel of experts as relevant to health education and also those obtained from the literature were included in a questionnaire. This was developed and designed to sample teacher views on the school curriculum areas into which health education can be integrated. Setting Greek speaking schools in all levels of Cyprus education (teachers of pre-primary, primary, secondary and special education). Method After piloting,1000 questionnaires were distributed to random samples from each of the four teacher populations (pre-primary, primary, secondary and special education). Importance ratings for each of the 28 areas were obtained from a representative sample of 648 (65 per cent) Greek Cypriot teachers (seven per cent of the teacher population), and the areas ranked in importance in accordance with these ratings. Results Significant response differences emerged between sub-samples categorised by type of school, subject specialisation, sex and years of service. Multivariate analysis of the ratings yielded eight factors indicative at UNIV OF WINNIPEG on August 13, 2015 hej.sagepub.com Downloaded from 174 of major health education domains. Factor analysis (varimax rotation) of the data on the overt curriculum revealed eight factors of potential relevance to curriculum development. Conclusion The paper concludes by drawing from the data a number of suggestions for future progress. The findings have implications for training Cyprus teachers in health education, and for health education curricula in general.

For health education in schools to be effective, it is desirable that teachers set examples of good health lifestyles. Objective The present research aimed at gathering data on lifestyles among Cyprus teachers, investigating the effect of these lifestyles on their perceptions and attitudes towards health education and examining these lifestyles in relation to their role as health educators. Design The study uses a questionnaire developed with the help of experts and designed to sample teachers' lifestyles. It contains 38 statements relating to four health lifestyle variables (smoking, sleep habits, alcohol consumption and exercise), together with questions on attitudes to health matters. Setting Greek-speaking schools at all levels of Cyprus education (pre- primary, primary, secondary and special). Method After piloting, the 38 lifestyle statements were circulated to a representative sample of 1000 teachers in pre-primary, primary, secondary and special education Greek-speaking schools, with a response rate of 65 per cent. Results A sex-related imbalance in the sample reflected the pre ponderance of women teachers at all levels of Cyprus schooling. Significant sex differences emerged, with women proportionately more represented in the 'good' lifestyle group than men. Analysis of variance and Scheffé post hoc analysis revealed that teachers with good health lifestyles were significantly much more positive both about the desirable effects of health education on children's lifestyles and about their own desire to teach the subject. A factor analysis of attitudes to health matters revealed five factors describing important health lifestyle dimensions. Several implications for teacher education emerged. Conclusion Teachers with 'good' lifestyles proved more positive towards health education and more prepared to teach the subject. The paper Concludes by drawing from the data a number of suggestions for teacher training.