Health Education.

This article discusses health education in U.S. public schools. American health education aims to promote social, physical, intellectual, spiritual, environmental, and emotional wellness in its students. However, health education has increasingly become the responsibility of physical education teachers, either as a singular course (secondary education) or integrated into the elementary physical education curriculum. The coordinated school health programs model integrates the health education concepts into all aspects of a student's education. Not all teachers work in a school or district that utilizes the coordinated health program model and this presents challenges to teachers in how to integrate a health education curriculum that meets the National Standards for Health Education into the physical education curriculum without compromising a teacher who is aiming to meet the National Standards for Physical Education in his/her curriculum. It is suggested that teachers attend professional development opportunities to broaden their knowledge and develop ideas to creatively and effectively meeting these goals.