HealthLit4Kids: teacher experiences of health literacy professional development in an Australian primary school setting

Abstract

Summary Health literacy (HL) is a critical asset for 21st century learners to possess given its positive impact on health outcomes and educational attainment. Concerningly, HL is an area that primary school teachers report having a lack of understanding, confidence, and ability to teach. The HealthLit4Kids initiative aimed to address this issue through a series of teacher professional development (PD) workshops. To evaluate how teachers experienced the PD, teacher evaluations collected at the completion of each of the workshops were analysed using a mixed methods approach. According to the teachers, the PD had improved their understanding of HL, including how to implement it into their practice. The study also found that the teachers perceived that collaborative practice was a key strength of the programme, and that at the end of the PD, teachers described valuing HL more in their practice. Teachers reported time as a major barrier to them implementing the professional learning and suggested further resources could help to mitigate this barrier. Additional research is required to help substantiate the claims made in this research. This study also highlights the critical need for additional HL resources for primary school teachers.

The imperative to develop health literacy: An ethical evaluation of HealthLit4Kids

“…Integrated teaching models have been recognised as key strategies in facilitating meaningful and contextually relevant learning experiences (Minić and Jovanović, 2020). Teachers have also confirmed that supporting an integrated approach to learning is a strength of the HealthLit4Kids program (Otten et al, 2022).…”

“…Despite HL being a key component of many primary school curricula internationally, evidence suggests that HL is undertaught (Broder and Carvalho, 2019; Nash et al, 2021a). This may be due to several factors, including lack of teacher preparedness and perceived lack of time (Otten et al, 2022). Thus, to help overcome these barriers, strategies such as teacher professional development are required.…”

An International Review to Characterize the Role, Responsibilities, and Optimal Setting for Health Literacy Mediators

“…37 In a formal educational setting, the HL of the teacher is an important factor in their ability to teach HL. A recent review by Otten et al 72 summarizes the experience of teachers’ professional development and self-confidence in HL education. The review, along with other literature, emphasized that to increase self-efficacy and positively impact the rate at which teachers implement health concepts in classrooms, teachers’ confidence in being able to teach health needs to be improved and supported.…”

Research on the relationship between the construction of school teachers’ team literacy and the educational environment

“…Since the beginning of the 21st century, a new round of artificial intelligence and industrial revolution has emerged, and the drive towards this has been facing huge challenges. The state attaches great importance to the development of the combination of artificial intelligence and education, and has launched a series of strategic plans to cultivate the innovation revolution of artificial intelligence [1]. In education and teaching activities, personalised learning will gradually become the main theme.…”