Lessons Learned From the Whole Child and Coordinated School Health Approaches

Abstract

BACKGROUND The new Whole School, Whole Community, Whole Child (WSCC) model, designed to depict links between health and learning, is founded on concepts of coordinated school health (CSH) and a whole child approach to education. METHODS The existing literature, including scientific articles and key publications from national agencies and organizations, was reviewed and synthesized to describe (1) the historical context for CSH and a whole child approach, and (2) lessons learned from the implementation and evaluation of these approaches. RESULTS The literature revealed that interventions conducted in the context of CSH can improve health-related and academic outcomes, as well as policies, programs, or partnerships. Several structural elements and processes have proved useful for implementing CSH and a whole child approach in schools, including use of school health coordinators, school- and district-level councils or teams; systematic assessment and planning; strong leadership and administrative support, particularly from school principals; integration of health-related goals into school improvement plans; and strong community collaborations. CONCLUSIONS Lessons learned from years of experience with CSH and the whole child approaches have applicability for developing a better understanding of the WSCC model as well as maximizing and documenting its potential for impacting both health and education outcomes.

Support for healthy eating at schools according to the comprehensive school health framework: evaluation during the early years of the Ontario School Food and Beverage Policy implementation

“…9,19,20 Conversely, without supplementary funds, school staff have previously reported not being able to engage in CSH initiatives because they were not compensated for their time. 20,21,38,39 We found that the availability of funds from government grants, external fundraising and/or student payment made it possible for some schools to offer regular free or subsidized breakfast, lunch or snack programs. In some cases though, those who wished to have student nutrition programs were limited by a lack of funds.…”

“…18,19,[21][22][23] When stakeholders, be they teachers, school staff, food service providers, families, community partners, health promotion officials or students, are engaged in the decisionmaking process, there is an increased sense of buy-in and ownership that leads to a personal commitment to sustain CSH initiative outcomes. 19,22,23,37,38 In our study, school staff members said they were not often consulted on discussions related to healthy eating in their schools, and one may assume this disengagement may have contributed to a lack of extracurricular supports for healthy eating within the social environment pillar.…”

“…9,20,22,[31][32][33][34] Individuals with a personal passion for improving the health behaviours of students, referred to as school health champions, are key facilitators to ongoing support of CSH initiatives within and external to the classroom. 20,21,35,36 In our study, school health champions were teachers who dedicated their non-classroom time (i.e. lunch breaks, after school) to run programs and supervise students in nutrition action councils, eco clubs, or extracurricular food skills competitions.…”

“…16,17 The comprehensive school health (CSH) framework, for example, was informed by a social ecological approach, recognizing that in supporting positive student health behaviours, attention to school environments, teaching and learning and partnerships and services complements policy. [7][8][9][18][19][20][21][22][23] Such multidimensional approaches to school health, also called "health-promoting schools" and "coordinated school health" approaches, are intended to support the health and academic achievement of students. 24 The CSH framework is a model that examines the school environment using four interrelated pillars, defined in Table 1.…”

Soutien en faveur de l’alimentation saine dans les écoles conformément à l’approche globale de la santé en milieu scolaire : évaluation au cours des premières années de la mise en oeuvre de la Politique de l’Ontario concernant les aliments et les boissons dans les écoles

“…Les personnes qui ont vraiment à coeur d'améliorer les com portements sains des élèves, appelées « champions de la santé », jouent le rôle d'intermédiaires clés qui favorisent en con tinu les initiatives de santé en milieu sco laire au sein de la salle de classe et en dehors de celleci 20,21,35,36 . Dans le cadre de notre étude, les champions de la santé en milieu scolaire étaient les enseignants, qui consacraient du temps en dehors de la salle de classe (pause dîner, après l'école) à mettre en oeuvre des programmes et à superviser les élèves au sein de conseils d'action en matière de nutrition, de clubs d'écologie ou de concours extrascolaires portant sur les compétences alimentaires.…”