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Ten Key Points Common to All School-Community Strategies
A wide-ranging review of the research, reports and other sources has identified Ten Key Points that are common to school-based and school-linked strategies to promote all aspects of human development, including health, social development, safety, economic development, human rights and environmental sustainability.
These ten points are used within this wiki to act as an organizer for the many concepts and good/better practices that are linked to that point. However, we recognize that there may be other key points, that there are many other key concepts than those identified in this draft and that we need to summarize and illustrate other good/promising practices. Further, we recognize that the points, concepts and practices are inter-related and therefore could becategorized differently. Indeed, if it were possible, we would present this wiki as a multi-dimensional mind-map with cross-over linkages and different vanatgae points.
However, we are still stuck with two dimensions, even here on the web, so we offer these ten key points as the initial organizer of this wiki. (Note: Unlike other pages, we have initially made this page unchangeable so that we don't end up having many people re-organizing the basic structure of the wiki at the outset. So, if you have comments or suggestions about these ten points, please use the "Threaded" commentary tool found at the bottom of this page.)
1. Address the needs of the whole child in a positive, principled approach over the life course. It is fitting that our first point comes from the education sector where research on brain development led to movements for more holistic approaches to learning. Too often the health, welfare and law enforcement sectors have been focused on short term results on one or a few problems without looking for clusters of problems, conditions and strengths among children, schools or communities. As well, the first European descriptions of health promoting schools identified the need for programs to be based on values and principles rather than simple production/medical models.
2. Serve all children, especially vulnerable children, families and communities. Although all sectors identify the need to serve the disadvantaged, there is rarely a program or service or school-based approach that truly places the needs of the poor above the needs of the mainstream. This idea emerged first in the health sector with the adoption of the Ottawa Charter.
3. Understand the context. Ecological approaches have identified the need to identify issues and subsequently plan programs that suit specific contexts and communities. Instead, local context is seen only as a factor in the delivery of a good program rather than the starting and end point of our endeavours.
4. Strive towards a comprehensive approach The need to identify and work with synergistic combinations of programs, programs that address more than one program, and linkages across sectors and among different levels in the same system emerged in Canada and the United States. Although we often use the term “whole school strategies”, we should really mean more comprehensive strategies that engage entire systems (not only the front line) as well as the community, agencies, professionals and families working closely with the school.
5. Use evidence-based programs. The consistent use of research-based programs still remains an elusive goal, as nations and states have only recently begun to invest more in intervention research, knowledge translation, knowledge exchange and work force development.
6. Use evidence-based implementation strategies and identify the local mechanisms/drivers of change, implementation and sustainability. New methods in health promotion research and practice have identified the need to examine the factors within communities, organizations and schools that will help or hinder the sustainability of programs.
7. Coordinate multiple programs, services and policies. The coordination of multiple programs has been proven to be more effective than single interventions in the prevention of a variety of health and social problems. This program coordination goal was first described by SH proponent s in the United States as an extension of their earlier work on curriculum-based strategies. A variety of eight part, three part and other models has been presented around the world.
8. Seek congruence with educational mandate and constraints of schools. Work in Australia and other parts of the western Pacific region has emphasized the need to work closely and in a practical way with educators and their goals, methods and constraints.
9. Build different types of capacities within systems, agencies, schools and communities. The need to build capacity has been recognized in education and public health sectors. These capacities include leadership, policy coordination, workforce development, monitoring and reporting, coordination and cooperation and strategic planning.
10. Use a strategic approach to system characteristics and organizational cultures. Open, loosely-coupled and bureaucratic systems have boundaries, middle managers and other traits that need to be addressed.
These ten points are used within this wiki to act as an organizer for the many concepts and good/better practices that are linked to that point. However, we recognize that there may be other key points, that there are many other key concepts than those identified in this draft and that we need to summarize and illustrate other good/promising practices. Further, we recognize that the points, concepts and practices are inter-related and therefore could becategorized differently. Indeed, if it were possible, we would present this wiki as a multi-dimensional mind-map with cross-over linkages and different vanatgae points.
However, we are still stuck with two dimensions, even here on the web, so we offer these ten key points as the initial organizer of this wiki. (Note: Unlike other pages, we have initially made this page unchangeable so that we don't end up having many people re-organizing the basic structure of the wiki at the outset. So, if you have comments or suggestions about these ten points, please use the "Threaded" commentary tool found at the bottom of this page.)
Ten Key Points about School-based Health Promotion, Social Development, Human Rights, Safety, Environmental Sustainability & Learning
This summary outline is based on the accumulation of research evidence and experience about school programs that promote health, social development and learning. We have organized the many concepts and theories (shown in the middle column beginning on the next page) as well as links to several key better practice guidelines to correlate with ten important points about school health promotion. These ten points are an attempt to collate and synthesize the wisdom from education, health and development sectors on several different continents and countries. A word of explanation about these ten points is offered here to introduce the reader to our global understanding of school-based and school-linked programs. 1. Address the needs of the whole child in a positive, principled approach over the life course. It is fitting that our first point comes from the education sector where research on brain development led to movements for more holistic approaches to learning. Too often the health, welfare and law enforcement sectors have been focused on short term results on one or a few problems without looking for clusters of problems, conditions and strengths among children, schools or communities. As well, the first European descriptions of health promoting schools identified the need for programs to be based on values and principles rather than simple production/medical models.
2. Serve all children, especially vulnerable children, families and communities. Although all sectors identify the need to serve the disadvantaged, there is rarely a program or service or school-based approach that truly places the needs of the poor above the needs of the mainstream. This idea emerged first in the health sector with the adoption of the Ottawa Charter.
3. Understand the context. Ecological approaches have identified the need to identify issues and subsequently plan programs that suit specific contexts and communities. Instead, local context is seen only as a factor in the delivery of a good program rather than the starting and end point of our endeavours.
4. Strive towards a comprehensive approach The need to identify and work with synergistic combinations of programs, programs that address more than one program, and linkages across sectors and among different levels in the same system emerged in Canada and the United States. Although we often use the term “whole school strategies”, we should really mean more comprehensive strategies that engage entire systems (not only the front line) as well as the community, agencies, professionals and families working closely with the school.
5. Use evidence-based programs. The consistent use of research-based programs still remains an elusive goal, as nations and states have only recently begun to invest more in intervention research, knowledge translation, knowledge exchange and work force development.
6. Use evidence-based implementation strategies and identify the local mechanisms/drivers of change, implementation and sustainability. New methods in health promotion research and practice have identified the need to examine the factors within communities, organizations and schools that will help or hinder the sustainability of programs.
7. Coordinate multiple programs, services and policies. The coordination of multiple programs has been proven to be more effective than single interventions in the prevention of a variety of health and social problems. This program coordination goal was first described by SH proponent s in the United States as an extension of their earlier work on curriculum-based strategies. A variety of eight part, three part and other models has been presented around the world.
8. Seek congruence with educational mandate and constraints of schools. Work in Australia and other parts of the western Pacific region has emphasized the need to work closely and in a practical way with educators and their goals, methods and constraints.
9. Build different types of capacities within systems, agencies, schools and communities. The need to build capacity has been recognized in education and public health sectors. These capacities include leadership, policy coordination, workforce development, monitoring and reporting, coordination and cooperation and strategic planning.
10. Use a strategic approach to system characteristics and organizational cultures. Open, loosely-coupled and bureaucratic systems have boundaries, middle managers and other traits that need to be addressed.
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Latest page update: made by dmccall
, Apr 7 2008, 7:25 PM EDT
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