Includes Teacher Information and Plans for Professional Development and Training That Enhance Effectiveness of Instruction and Student Learning
Description: An effective health education curriculum is implemented by teachers who have a personal interest in promoting positive health behaviors, believe in and are passionate about what they are teaching, demonstrate knowledge and comfort with curriculum content, and are skilled in implementing expected instructional strategies.
Effective health teachers attend ongoing professional development and training, which is critical for helping them implement a new curriculum or implement strategies that require new skills in teaching or assessment.1
Example 1
For this teaching example, the unit that is being taught is Sexual Health Education, and the HBOs for the unit are SH-3: Treat all people with dignity and respect with regard to their gender identity and sexual orientation, SH-8: Be sexually abstinent, and SH-10: Use appropriate health services to promote sexual and reproductive health (HECAT Appendix 3).
1. The health education teacher realizes that to address the needs of each student in the class, they must be competent and comfortable in delivering culturally relevant sexual health education. To date, the teacher has limited training on the needs of the LGBTQ+ students, and therefore, the teacher has researched credible organizations and enrolled in an online training series that is focused on comprehensive sexual health education specifically for sexual minority youth.
Example 2
For this teaching example, the unit that is being taught is Violence Prevention, and the HBOs for the unit are V-4: Avoid engaging in violence, including sexual harassment, coercion, exploitation, physical fighting, and rape, V-6: Avoid associating with others who are involved in or who encourage violence or criminal activity, and V-7: Get help to prevent or stop violence including harassment, abuse, bullying, hazing, fighting, and hate crimes (HECAT Appendix 3).
1. The state has just enacted a new mandate requiring the delivery of sexual abuse and sexual assault prevention education for all students every year in grades K–12. The principal has approached the health education teacher to implement this mandate through the health education classes in middle school. The health education teacher has never taught this subject and does not feel comfortable being the sole deliverer for this content area. Therefore, the teacher develops a team of professional experts within the school consisting of the school nurse, school social worker, school counselor, and school resource officer to co-teach this unit. The teacher identifies a professional learning series being offered by the local sexual assault prevention community organization. The teacher and team request and receive permission to attend the training, which is a research-informed and best practice curriculum designed for middle school students. The team designs a planned and ongoing approach to integrate this material into the existing health education curriculum with each professional supporting the delivery of this material.
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