Health promoting schools: integrated practices to develop critical thinking and healthy lifestyles through farming, growing and healthy eating

This paper reports on two case study examples of schools identified from Gloucestershire primary schools as showing particularly good practice in developing the concept of a Health Promoting School. The schools were selected from research projects linked to the Growing Schools programme for promoting children's understanding of food production and consumption, and the Gloucestershire Food Strategy for promoting healthy eating patterns in school children. Examples of curriculum development and associated pedagogy, school organization for democratic involvement of all its participants, and practical changes in the provision of eating choices are presented. These illustrate how integration of critical thinking and changes to the schools' provision of choices for healthy eating patterns can influence children's understanding and behaviour towards diet and health. The key factors that influenced such changes in the schools are identified as: clear leadership with vision from the head teacher, community involvement, ownership of processes of change by all participants, critical thinking as a focus for processes of learning; integrated practice to link experience and understanding, and the school acting as a model for good practice in health and environmental matters. The essential feature of the educational environment of the case study schools as models of Health Promoting Schools is integrated practice. Such integrated practice connects vision and planning to activity, integrates attitudes and experiences to understanding, and connects actions to their consequences for health and environmental impact. For learning to be effective, especially in bringing about a behavioural or cognitive change, there is a need to engage experience with personal significance. Both case studies highlight the success of such practice in an educational setting. Whether selecting vegetables ready for cooking or making more general decisions relating to global and national issues, the pupils based their response on sound, clearly justified reasoning and explanation. Through this approach to learning, connections are made between scientific concepts and implications for understanding the consequences of various courses of action. In particular, understanding of biological principles, such as growth and cycles, health and the body, and environmental issues is reinforced through curriculum activities in classrooms, while growing, harvesting, preparation and consumption of food provide practical experiences to illustrate the concepts. Such integration of affective and cognitive domains supports meaningful learning leading to informed action to promote positive values towards health and the environment.