Education Program

Education Program

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Table of Contents

Introduction. 3

Title of the Project. 3

Context and Environment. 3

Aims and Objectives. 4

Background and Rationale. 4

Methodology of Initiative. 5

Possible Evaluation Methods. 6

Strengths and Limitations. 7

Conclusion. 7

References. 8

 

Introduction

Main purpose of this assessment is to develop an education initiative to address the topic of childhood obesity. In this context, the developed program would seek to include components of health literacy and empowerment and would use the health promotion models as a guide for its development. Proceeding towards fulfilment of these objectives, the assessment first describes the context and environment of the proposed program. As a next step, aims and objectives of the program have been defined along with its background and implementation rationale. This is followed by a description of the actual initiative which has been developed and a discussion of possible evaluation methods for the program. Strengths and limitations of the program have also been discussed.

Title of the Project

Since the project seeks to address the topic of childhood obesity, it would be titled as ‘Kidz Health’.

Context and Environment

‘Kidz Health’ would be a health education program targeted at all school going children. This program would help children in making healthy changes in their diet, affect, communication skills and exercise routines. Further, the program would seek to decrease obesity, improve the level of physical and cardiovascular fitness and increase knowledge about nutrition in school aged children.

This program is being developed in order to tackle the issue of childhood obesity. According to literature, childhood obesity is defined as a condition where a child’s wellbeing or mental health is negatively affected by his or her excess body weight. Also according to research, obesity of one or both parents has been classified as the biggest risk factor for childhood obesity followed by metabolic disorders. Childhood obesity might also be the resultant of unhealthy dietary and lifestyle choices in children. Obese children run more than double the risk of being obese as adults and develop obesity related problems such as type 2 diabetes, stroke, heart diseases and osteoarthritis etc. Obesity related risks might also serve to reduce the lifespan of obese children (Franks et al, 2010).

In accordance with increasing competition, peer pressure and urban lifestyle of children, the problem of childhood obesity has been recognised as a major issue in the Australian community. Further, social networking, satellite television have served to make the world an increasingly connected and smaller place where everything can be accessed from the comfort of an individual’s home. Development of fast food and its growing popularity has also been recognised to play a major role in childhood obesity in Unites States, Europe and Australia (Biro & Wien, 2010).

Aims and Objectives

Main aim of the program would be to decrease childhood obesity in all school going children in Australia, improve the level of their physical fitness and empower them to make healthier food choices.

Following objectives would be addressed by the program:

·         To see a significant weight reduction in participating children over a period of 10 weeks

·         To see a significant improvement in BMI of all participating children over a period of 10 weeks

·         To see a significant improvement in knowledge about nutrition management in all participating children over a period of 10 weeks

Background and Rationale

According to statistics obtained from the Australian Bureau of Statistics, approximately one-quarter of all children between the ages of 5 and 17 years in Australia (which is around 60,000) were either overweight or obese in 2010. This was a four percentage point increase over statistics taken in the year 2008. Looking into age and gender based statistics, it could be determined that this increase was majorly seen in boys between the ages of 5 and 12 years. The obesity rate for boys in this age group went up from 5% in the year 2008 to 10% in the year 2010. No major increase was registered in the obesity rate for girls in the same age group. Obesity rate for boys in the age group of 13-17 years went up from 6% in the year 2008 to 13% in the year 2010. Obesity rate for girls in the age group 13-17 years went up from 12% in 2008 to 20% in 2010 (ABS, 2010).

As mentioned earlier, levels of childhood obesity have been increasing around the world owing to a number of factors including a sedentary lifestyle, fast food choices and genetic factors. Obesity has been recognised as one of the greatest contributors to global burden of disability and chronic diseases. The condition not only has been associated with significant social and health impacts but also with major economic impacts. Total annual estimated cost of obesity in Australia in the year 2010 was approximately $ 58 billion. This included costs of carers, productivity and the healthcare system as a whole. In this context, it is necessary that programs which seek to reduce this health, social and economic burden on the country are introduced and implemented (Byrne et al, 2011).

The proposed program fits in with broader health promotion initiative in Australia as the government in the year 2007 announced guidelines for promotion of physical activity and health eating habits in children between the age group of 5-17 years. The government also sanctioned a budget of $ 2.3 billion to be used in promotional activities over the next 5 years (Olds et al, 2009).

Methodology of Initiative

Kidz Health would be delivered over a period of 10 consecutive weeks and during these weeks a comprehensive workbook would serve as a guideline for making and implementing dietary and lifestyle changes. The workbook would also serve to increase knowledge related to nutrition, managing calories and checking labels of their merchandise. A workbook would be assigned to each participant of the program and they would be encouraged to complete weekly homework assignments either individually or in groups.

Classroom instruction would be provided 5 days a week for 10 consecutive weeks within a classroom setting. 1 hour instruction session would include nutritional information, obesity statistics, negative consequences, healthy lifestyle choices and healthy dietary choices. Instruction sessions would be followed by encouraging participating children to participate in activities such as role playing and practicing problem solving techniques. Children would also be effectively instructed on learning to express their feelings in a more effective manner and handle teasing. Hands on materials and game like approaches would be utilised to teach the difference between low and high fat foods. Each classroom session would be 2 hours in duration.

All participants would be encouraged to participate in 30 minutes exercise routine for 5 days a week for 10 consecutive weeks (unless they have a medical reason for not being able to do so or they do not provide their consent for the same). Exercise routine would comprise of a variety of physical activities designed in accordance with age and body mass index of participants.

This program is supported by the cognitive-affective processing system which argues that behaviour of an individual is not the resultant of global personality traits but is the direct resultant of the individual’s perceptions in a particular situation. In accordance with this system, the program tries to simulate real life situations such as teasing, bullying etc in order to inculcate positive behavioural changes that are sustainable in nature (Morf & Mischel, 2011).

The program is also supported by Model of Health Promotion as provided by Downie et al 1990. The model seeks to suggest that health education, disease prevention and health protection occur in three mutually overlapping domains which are inseparable and aid each other. In accordance with this model, the proposed program inculcated health education, disease prevention and health protection as three major components of the program (Dustin et al, 2009).

Possible Evaluation Methods

Every implemented program needs to be evaluated in order to determine if the program has been successful in achieving the desired results or not. Evaluation also helps in determining if path of progression of the implemented program is in accordance with the pre-decided costs and implementation schedule. Lastly, but importantly, evaluation plays an important role in providing a benchmark for comparison as results pre and post program implementation can be compared to draw meaningful results (Kuhar et al, 2012). Three major kinds of evaluation techniques namely process evaluation; impact evaluation and outcome evaluation have been listed in literature. Process evaluation aims to evaluate the actual development and implementation of a program in terms of achievement of quantifiable targets and strategies (Flowers, 2010). Outcome evaluation of the other hand aims to measure specific changes which have occurred as a direct result of program implementation. Lastly, impact evaluation aims to suggest impact of the implemented program on a broader scale (Durlak et al, 2011).

A quasi pre test post test experimental setup would be utilised in order to evaluate results of this program. Parameters like weight in kilograms, body mass index and skin folds on triceps would be collected pre and post the 10 week program duration. Nutritional knowledge would be assessed with the help of questionnaires pre and post the 10 week program duration (Durlak et al, 2011).

Strengths and Limitations

Following are the strengths of the program:

·         An active initiative to improve the level of physical fitness and knowledge in children

·         Scope for national implementation on being successful

·         Guided lesson plans and activities in consultation with nutritionists and fitness experts

·         Government support

Following are the limitations of the program

·         10 week time frame might not be sufficient to see significant results

·         Lack of participation

·         Educators might not be able to deliver the program efficiently

Conclusion

Kidz Health is a comprehensive education program which is aimed at improving the level of physical fitness, decreasing obesity and improving knowledge about nutrition management in all school going children in Australia. The program would comprise of classroom instruction followed by in class activities and a 30 minute exercise routine. Duration of implementation would be 10 weeks and a pre test post test quasi experimental design would be utilised in order to evaluate success of the program.

References

Australian Bureau of Statistics. (2010). Feature Article 1: Children who are Overweight or Obese, viewed 02 October 2013 [ONLINE] <http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/Lookup/1301.0Chapter11062009%E2%80%9310>

Biro, F. M., & Wien, M. (2010). Childhood obesity and adult morbidities. The American journal of clinical nutrition, 91(5), 1499S-1505S

Byrne, L. K., Cook, K. E., Skouteris, H., & Do, M. (2011). Parental status and childhood obesity in Australia. International journal of pediatric obesity, 6(5‐6), 415-418

Durlak, J. A., Weissberg, R. P., & Pachan, M. (2010). A meta-analysis of after-school programs that seek to promote personal and social skills in children and adolescents. American journal of community psychology, 45(3-4), 294-309

Dustin, D. L., Bricker, K. S., & Schwab, K. A. (2009). People and nature: Toward an ecological model of health promotion. Leisure Sciences, 32(1), 3-14

Flowers, A. B. (2010). Blazing an evaluation pathway: Lessons learned from applying utilization-focused evaluation to a conservation education program. Evaluation and program planning, 33(2), 165-171

Franks, P. W., Hanson, R. L., Knowler, W. C., Sievers, M. L., Bennett, P. H., & Looker, H. C. (2010). Childhood obesity, other cardiovascular risk factors, and premature death. New England Journal of Medicine, 362(6), 485-493

Kuhar, C. W., Bettinger, T. L., Lehnhardt, K., Cartwright, B., & Cress, D. (2012). Education program evaluation at multiple primate sanctuaries in Equatorial Africa. International Journal of Primatology, 33(1), 208-217

Morf, C. C., & Mischel, W. (2011). The Self as a Psycho-Social Dynamic Processing System. Handbook of Self and Identity, 19

Olds, T. S., Tomkinson, G. R., Ferrar, K. E., & Maher, C. A. (2009). Trends in the prevalence of childhood overweight and obesity in Australia between 1985 and 2008. International Journal of Obesity, 34(1), 57-66