Curriculum Documents

Curriculum documents developed and provided by Saskatchewan Education to support Middle Level Health Education include:

• Health Education: A Curriculum Guide for the Middle Level (Grades 6-9) (one per teacher)
• Health Education: A Bibliography for the Middle Level (one per school)
• Supporting Health Education Renewal at the Middle Level: An Information Bulletin (one per school).

Resource Selection

The bibliography provided for the Health Education curriculum at the Middle Level is intended to assist teachers and school divisions with their purchasing decisions. In the Health Education curriculum, the learning objectives provide the framework for all activities and, therefore, the student resources should be selected to support achievement of the objectives and to address students' interests, needs, and experiences.

Videos, posters, novels, reference materials, commercially designed manuals, community-designed programs, and resource personnel are all examples of resources. Using a variety of them is encouraged. But, one or two favourite resources cannot replace the provincial Health Education curriculum. Different sections of a single resource might be used to support the Decision-making Process Unit, the Self-concept Unit, and the Drug Addictions and Gambling Unit in grade 6. The same resource might be used to support the Decision-making Process Unit, the Peer Pressure Unit, the Assertiveness Skills Unit, and the Alcohol and Other Drugs Unit in grade 7. Clearly, it is a valuable resource but it cannot replace the curriculum.

Resource-based learning is fundamental to Core Curriculum. Teachers are encouraged to choose a variety of resources from a variety of media. The Health Education curriculum at the Middle Level is based upon students accessing and evaluating current and accurate information, and using that knowledge as a basis for informed decision making. Therefore, the curriculum is accompanied by a bibliography that lists resources that have been evaluated by teachers and identified as suitable for students at the Middle Level.

Schools will need to review their present resources and plan carefully for the renewal of Health Education in grades 6-9. The amount of purchasing necessary will depend on the state of the school's current collection and the degree to which it has been added to and maintained throughout the last decade.

A health education liaison committee can be a beneficial support.
A materials selection policy can guide resource acquisitions

A health education liaison committee can be a beneficial support to the health education program and its teachers. The liaison committee might contribute in acquiring and selecting resources. It is recommended that instructional resources be selected by following the criteria established in the school division's materials selection policy.

Administrators, teachers, and parents sometimes ask where commercially prepared manuals and community-developed resources fit into the renewed curriculum. This question and others are answered in Appendix D.

As in all subject areas and grade levels, care is required when arranging for guest speakers and classroom presenters. Clarify, for guest speakers, the learning objectives that they are invited to address through their presentations. It remains, however, the responsibility of classroom teachers to ensure that health education objectives are achieved by students.

Curriculum Evaluation

The implementation of the Health Education curriculum for grades 7-9 was evaluated, province-wide, in 1994. The data were analyzed and the report was published in 1996. Health Education at the Middle Level has been revised based upon the findings of the curriculum evaluation projects and upon the advice of a curriculum reference committee.

Curriculum Maintenance/Renewal

Teachers, in-school administrators, and school division administrators have been involved in each phase of the curriculum development process to date (i.e., design, implementation, and evaluation). It is administrators and teachers who play key roles in the current phase of curriculum maintenance/renewal. The difference is, that in the renewal process, they are encouraged to further develop and nurture a comprehensive school health approach that exemplifies the commonly held belief that health education is a shared responsibility.

Appendix A: Professional Development Suggestions

Allow time for change to take place. Plan opportunities for it to take place.

1. Self-reflection. Encourage teachers to reflect upon the key issues in the lives of their grades 6-9 students. Suggest that they consider how many of those same issues are addressed in the Health Education curriculum. Suggest that they jot down their thoughts and reflections in a journal, log, or daybook. What benefits could the whole school enjoy if a comprehensive health education program existed in their school building?
2. A Focus for Change. Help teachers avoid the feeling of being overwhelmed because there are so many things to do or try. As a staff, decide on a focus for the year and concentrate energies and attention (e.g., connect with the health district nutritionist to support a grade 6 required unit, connect with the health district health promotion contact to support two grade 9 required units, broaden assessment techniques including use of portfolios). Make a commitment to full implementation of the chosen focus.
3. Workshops. Organize hands-on workshops for half or whole days, focusing on a health education topic or issue, planning collaborative units, sharing instructional strategies, or reviewing web sites that make suitable student resources. Special consideration could be given to workshops on the decision-making process and specific perspectives for each grade level. Provide for structured teacher reflection time after there has been an opportunity to put the idea, skill, unit, or resource into practice. Address teachers’ specific, evolving needs in follow-up workshops.
4. Teacher Networks. Most teachers do not have time during the school day to network with other teachers. Being part of a teacher network is one of the best things teachers can do to further their professional development. Identify colleagues in the school or neighbouring schools who might be interested in discussing the new curriculum, its challenges, their successes, and their concerns about instruction. Find the time for these colleagues to meet (e.g., once a month) to discuss these areas. The networking could also include teachers jointly planning new units, observing in each others’ classrooms, peer coaching, or developing action research projects. Also encourage teachers to join the Health Education Discussion Group on the Saskatchewan Education web site (www.sasked.gov.sk.ca). The discussion group can be accessed by clicking the Saskatchewan Education side of the front page, selecting Evergreen Curriculum, and then clicking on Discussion Groups.
5. Book Talks and Resource Moments. Set aside five to ten minutes of each staff meeting for a few teachers to present brief book talks about new professional or student resources. Teachers may also want to share information regarding the use of community resource personnel for supporting various aspects of health education. Encourage all teachers to present and share their finds over a series of staff meetings.
6. Lunch Hour Videos. Set aside time for teachers to view and evaluate student videos to decide which, if any, learning objectives of a specific unit are supported by a video. Viewing guides for students may be developed at the same time.
7. Unit and Idea Exchanges. Encourage teachers to share new ideas and strategies through inservice days, the Internet, and other networking opportunities. Keep the focus of the unit planning on the objectives, the decision-making process, the yearly perspective, and students’ needs, interests, and experiences.
8. Involving Students. Familiarize students with the content of Health Education at the Middle Level. Involve them in outlining the year-long program by asking which of the optional units are most meaningful to them.
9. Involving Parents. Plan an orientation session for parents. Discuss the goals and philosophy of the curriculum. Encourage them to look through some of the resources that their sons and daughters will be using.
10. Involving the Health District and Community Agencies and Organizations. Contact community organizations and the health district to share the goals and philosophy of the curriculum. Invite the health promotion contact, the nutritionist, and the public health nurse from the health district to support teachers as they plan and teach units about nutrition and body image, eating disorders, health promotion strategies, tobacco, HIV/AIDS Education, and other units. Community organizations may be willing to share their expertise in units about first aid, tragic death and suicide, chronic illnesses, and others.

Appendix B: An Observation Checklist for Middle Level Health Education within a Comprehensive School Health Framework

Appendix C: Parent Information for a Bulletin or Newsletter

Information about Health Education at the Middle Level is organized in a question and answer format. The questions are those that might be posed by parents to teachers, vice-principals, principals, guidance counsellors, or health education liaison committee members. Feel free to include the following information in a bulletin or a series of school newsletters.

Background Information

The Health Education curriculum for Middle Level students (grades 6-9) has been renewed. The renewal is based upon the provincial evaluation of the former Health Education curriculum. The evaluation was conducted in 1994. The data were analyzed and the findings released in 1996. The Middle Level Health Education Curriculum was renewed and distributed to schools in 1998.

What topics are addressed in Health Education for grades 6-9?

The renewed curriculum is organized as required units and optional units for each grade level.

Required units for grade six include: Decision-making Process Self-concept Personal Standards Body Image and Nutrition Changes of Puberty HIV/AIDS Education	The required units in grade seven are: Decision-making Process Self-concept Personal Standards Body Image and Nutrition Changes of Puberty HIV/AIDS Education
Required units for grade eight students include: Decision-making Process Family Structures, Roles, and Responsibilities Family and Community Violence HIV/AIDS Education Eating Disorders	The units required for grade nine are: Decision-making Process Dating Chronic Illness HIV/AIDS Education Tobacco Industry

Several optional units are outlined for each of grades six to nine.

How much Health Education instruction is my son or daughter to receive?

Health Education is one of the seven Required Areas of Study for students in grades 6-9. As a Core Curriculum requirement, students in grade six are to receive 80 minutes of health education instruction per week. The instructional time allotment for health education in grades 7-9 is 100 minutes per week.

How is Health Education content taught in grades 6-9?

The aim of Health Education is to increase students' health-enhancing behaviours and to decrease their health-risking behaviours. To achieve this aim, Health Education instruction is based on a decision-making model. Students extend their knowledge base about a particular topic by gathering and evaluating multiple sources of health information. They learn how to evaluate health-related information so they can base decisions upon accurate, current information rather than upon hunches or misinformation.

Health Education includes the process of considering choices or alternatives available to students. It also includes exploring the short-term and long-term consequences of each alternative. Grade six students learn to make decisions that affirm personal standards of well-being. Grade seven students practise making decisions that feature a personal commitment to health-enhancing behaviours. In grade eight, students make decisions to support a peer who is working toward health-enhancing behaviours. Grade nine students have opportunities to make decisions that promote health in their community.

In Health Education classes, student design and carry out action plans to attain their goals. Action plans in grade six feature personal standards while those of grade seven students feature personal commitment. Action plans designed and implemented by grade eight students focus on supporting peers whereas those of grade nine students feature promoting health.

How is my son or daughter's Health Education report card mark calculated?

Assessment techniques are devised to gather information related to how well students are achieving the learning objectives of the curriculum. For each unit of study, students are assessed based upon their abilities to access and evaluate information, to make an informed decision, and to design and carry out an action plan.

Data about a student's knowledge of health education content and his or her ability to access and evaluate health-related information may be collected through the use of presentations, individual or group assignments, quizzes, projects, reports, and so on. Data about a student's ability to make decisions can be collected by using case studies, scenarios, audiotapes, written assignments, or matrices. Rubrics, checklists, and rating scales are examples of ways to collect data about a student's ability to design and carry out an action plan.

What can I do, as a parent, to support Health Education in my son or daughter's classroom?

You can discuss, with your son or daughter, the topics being addressed in health education class at school. Such discussions can help students personalize health-related information and recognize the impact a person's state of well-being has on the lives of individuals and families.

You can volunteer to act as a support person when your son or daughter is carrying out his or her action plan. This means playing a supporting role in the design of the action plan as well as in its implementation and evaluation.

You can suggest and/or encourage the formation of a health education liaison committee at your neighbourhood school. The structure and mandate of a health education liaison committee varies from one area to another depending on the number of classrooms, the size of the community, health-related programming in the community, and other factors. The committee might strive to work with the school, community, and health district to establish a comprehensive school health framework that not only features instruction but also features support services, a healthy school environment, and social supports.

Demonstrating the concept of shared responsibility is one way of supporting your daughter or son, the health education teacher, and health education at your child's school. Health Education is a responsibility shared among parents, schools, churches, community organizations, and social agencies.

Appendix D: Frequently Asked Questions about the Renewed Health Education Curriculum for the Middle Level (Grades 6-9)

Is there a three-year implementation window for the renewed Middle Level Health Education Curriculum?

No. This is not an implementation. This is curriculum renewal and Health Education is the first subject area to enter this stage of the curriculum development process. Health Education for grades 7-9 was piloted in the early 1980s and was implemented in 1985-1988. It went through the provincial evaluation process in 1994. The findings were released in Curriculum Evaluation Report: Health Education 7, 8, and 9 (March 1996). Health Education: A Curriculum Guide for the Middle Level (grades 6-9) has been renewed based upon the findings of the provincial evaluation. It is a June 1998 publication and is available for schools to use in the fall of 1998. All schools must be using the renewed 1998 curriculum.

Are there units that require school division board approval?

Yes. There is one optional unit that requires school division board approval. It is called Abstinence, Sexually Transmitted Diseases, Pregnancy, and Contraception. It is designed for use with grade nine students. While it is anticipated that most school divisions will approve the offering of this unit, it is important to note that parents may withdraw their son or daughter from this particular unit. Schools are responsible for providing appropriate, alternate health education instruction.

Is the HIV/AIDS Education Unit required at each of grades 6-9?

Yes. School divisions are required to offer the HIV/AIDS Education Unit at each of grades 6-9. Parents may withdraw their daughter or son from HIV/AIDS education. Schools are responsible for providing appropriate, alternate health education instruction for students whose parents choose to have their children learn HIV/AIDS information at home rather than in the school setting.

Where do commercially prepared manuals and community-developed resources fit into the renewed curriculum?

Resource-based learning is one of the initiatives within Core Curriculum. Teachers and students are encouraged to use a variety of print and non-print resources, including resource personnel. Resources are selected or rejected based upon their ability to support achievement of the learning objectives stated in the provincial curriculum.

Having said that, a favourite resource cannot replace the provincial Health Education curriculum. For example, certain sections of a resource might be used to support the learning objectives in the following grade six units: Decision-making Process, Self-concept, Personal Standards, and Drug Addictions and Gambling. Different sections of the same resource might be used to support the following grade seven units: Decision-making Process, Assertiveness Skills, Peer Pressure, and Alcohol and Other Drugs. Clearly, the resource is a valuable support to the Middle Level Health Education curriculum but it cannot become the school's health education program.