title: Teachers' perceptions of health education practice in Northern Ireland: reported differences between policy and non-policy holding schools.
abstract: It is generally accepted that schools should devote resources to developing and disseminating a health education policy, yet there is little empirical evidence to establish the value of policy in this context. This study examined teachers' perceptions of health education practice in policy and non-policy holding schools. A questionnaire measuring aspects of health education practice was issued to a random sample of schools. This consisted of 276 primary and 119 post-primary schools. In this cross-sectional study, significant differences in teachers' evaluations were found between policy and non-policy holding schools. It was evident that the presence of a health education policy was associated with higher ratings of health education practice. This evidence suggests that policy has intrinsic value in terms of health education practice. The development and dissemination of policy documents were also examined to assess the workload involved.
authors.affiliation: School of Psychology, University of Ulster, Northland Road, Londonderry County Londonderry Northern, Ireland, BT48 7JL. G.Adamson@ulster.ac.uk.
authors.forename: Gary
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Adamson
authors.forename: Gerry
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: McAleavy
authors.forename: Tony
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Donegan
authors.forename: Mark
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Shevlin
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006266:Health Education; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009660:Northern Ireland; D016134:Organizational Policy; D012574:Schools; D012938:Social Perception; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013663:Teaching