Introduction

Characteristics of school health:
How are they learned and taught?

life, and eventually have a family. A healthy man and healthy woman produce healthy sperm and healthy
eggs in their respective reproductive organs, and pass on the life information in their DNA to the next
generation. Life repeats this cycle.
When people reach maturity and healthy adulthood, they undergo the aging process according to thelaws of human life. They age healthily towards the end of their lives. They live healthily in their own
unique way in their last days, and finally die with human dignity. The afterlife is an unknown world.

Learning objectives

There is a sacred world that differs with each religion. Some may not believe in the existence of such a

You will be able to gain proper understanding and explain:world.

- What it means for people to live healthy lives, in terms of their life cycle.
- The characteristics and importance of school health as a school subject.

2. Significance of learning and teaching school health- Health as a personal matter.
- The link between the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and school health.
- Why it is significant for students aspiring to be teachers to study school health and teach it toIf people could live in perfect “health,” as shown in this diagram, it would be a miracle and this ischildren, and increase students’ interest in the contents of this textbook including 16 chapters.

practically impossible. The pursuit of perfect health without considering the limitations of human beingsand society leads to the concept of eugenics, which may result in the social exclusion of all but those

Targeting students in the teacher training course who use this textbook to study school health and will

who can be considered “healthy.” Since there is no such thing as a perfect human being, we must not fallteach it to children in the future, this book discusses the characteristics of the subject of school health,

into the trap of healthism (the pursuit of health as the most valuable attribute).

how to study and teach it, and the points that should be understood.

At some point in the life cycle, everybody experiences situations, environments, and conditions thatadversely affect their health, as well as suffers health challenges such as illness, injury, disability, and

1. What does it mean for people to live a lifetime in good
health?

ill-health to some extent. No matter how early or late, there is no escaping the fate of being human, or
death. In other words, while the timing of death may be unequal, we are all equal in the sense that noneof us can escape death.
However, most people want to live as long as possible in good health, and lead as abundant andWhat does it mean for a person to live a lifetime in good health? A healthy human life begins when ahappy a life as possible. What can education and schools do to achieve this? School health is an initiative

healthy sperm meets a healthy egg, resulting in healthy fertilization (Figure 0.1). The healthy fertilizedthat brings together teachers and staff, families and relatives, and community members to work together

egg divides and eventually forms a fetus, which grows and develops healthily in the healthy womb of

to realize the wish to live a healthy life, by focusing on the health of school-aged children. The role ofthe healthy mother and is born healthy through a healthy delivery upon reaching full term. The healthy“perfect health” as defined by WHO (see Chapter 1) can be seen as a guide to how we should survive

baby grows and develops healthily and eventually matures sexually. A healthy adult will work, enjoy

and lead our daily lives, just as the ancients sailed across the sea at night toward their destination byfollowing the North Star and the Southern Cross. The destination may be a feasible “better health” that

Healthy egg

Healthyfertilization

Healthy sperm

Grows anddevelops
healthily inthe womb

Borns healthy(Healthy delivery)

Continuity/transmissibility between generations

Grows and develops
healthily andeventually maturessexually

Works healthily andmatures into adulttakes into account the limitations of human beings and society.
Given the diversities of the physical body, development, sexuality, and socioculture, it isimportant to note that “health” is not a single event, but a spectrum that comprises various degrees ofhealth, and a concept with diverse dimensions of value. Depending on the culture, history, religion,
ethnicity, gender, etc., of a country, society, and region, various views of health can exist.
In today’s society, it is necessary to teach health based on the knowledge that has accumulated
through scientific methods, and simultaneously consider these diversified ways of thinking about health.
Accordingly, to live a healthy life means to combine rich wisdom about health rooted in our experiences

Unknown(religious
sacred world)

Dies withhuman dignity

Lives in his/her own
unique way towards
the end of his/her live

Figure 0.1 Human life cycle and health

16

Ages healthily

and daily life (for examples, self-care, self-medication, self-protection, and herbal medicine) withaccurate scientific knowledge about health, and to practice and confirm it in our daily lives, and to
improve our lives and ways of life by ourselves. At times, it is necessary to seek assistance from thecommunity and others in order to live a healthy life.
Introduction

Characteristics of school health: How are they learned and taught?

17

Nevertheless, the scope of what humans know about the mysteries surrounding health is limited.

pupils. Since scientific health knowledge is universal, it may not necessarily correspond to each person’s

Therefore, the attitude of being conscious of our ignorance and modestly putting into practice theindividual health, lifestyle, or environment (for example, consider traditional food cultures and how

wisdom and knowledge of health in our daily lives is the mindset that allows us to think of health asingredients are procured in a region). This is why the wisdom of health that exists in our daily lives is so

our own, and is the stance required of those who study and teach school health.

valuable. It may actually serve practical purposes because it is an accumulation of experiences that areThis textbook discusses the contents of the newly introduced elementary school health course.

appropriate to each person’s physical and personality characteristics, local lifestyle, and living

Specifically, it comprises 16 chapters that university students should study to become teachers qualified

environment. Of course, there are some practices that need to be changed from the SDGs perspective,

to learn and teach school health. These 16 chapters contain the essence of school health, which will notincluding Cambodia’s traditional sexual norms and childbirth culture, as well as child marriage andonly be useful for you when you become a teacher, but will also help you to understand your own health,female genital mutilation seen around the world (see Chapter 11).

the health of your family and friends, and the health of the people of Cambodia. It is important that you

Therefore, health education requires you to well understand and respect the traditions, customs,

approach the contents of each chapter as your own experience and something to reflect on, and study

wisdom, and ideas of the local communities, as well as to communicate by translating scientificthem as a personal matter, not that of others. You can work on the EXERCISE at the end of each chapter

knowledge in a way that is easy to understand and practice in daily lives. This may involve using

and discuss it in class to deepen your learning.

scientific, technical terms, or translating technical terms into the language used in daily life, requiring
flexibility to accommodate the circumstances.

Column: Diseases, disabilities, and the concept of eugenics

The health education in Cambodia should be aimed at exploring a healthy way of life that benefits
from the health and welfare systems and services that will be domestically developed in the future, andEugenics is a field of academic study that believes that there are two types of human beings: thosefrom a body of scientific knowledge of health and medicine emerging around the world, while preserving

with good biological characteristics and those without. It seeks to improve the quality of humanas much as possible the culture and ecology of living in the regions where economic development will

beings by retaining those with superior genetic characteristics and eliminating those with inferior

take place.

genetic factors. Against the background of this discipline, the concept of eugenics is the belief thatIn this way, health education in school seeks to cultivate the ability of students and children to live

there are people with qualities worthy of living and those without. It assigns superiority and inferiority

healthily, as well as to create a society and environment in which everyone in the community can live

to human lives. The most significant criteria used to determine superiority and inferiority, in the past

healthier life.

and present, are disabilities, diseases, race/ethnicity, and age.

3. Characteristics of health as a school subject
To teach and learn health in schools, one should comprehensively understand human health in relation
to the body, psychology, behavior, social environment, and natural environment, and apply what has
been learned to daily lives. In particular, teaching and learning about health in schools means conveying
scientific knowledge about health and right living skills to students to help them practice healthy living.
The key to achieving this is communication between those who teach and those who learn (including

Academic world where teachers exist(world of specialists)
World of professional and scientificknowledge (educational andscientific knowledge)

Teach scientificknowledge and life skills

Learn wisdom of health andinventive ideas from everyday
health practices

Everyday world where students/
pupils exist (world of general public)
World where people live based on
general health-related knowledge
such as common sense andtraditional wisdom

Figure 0.2 Two-way health education communication in school healthteaching methods, i.e., how to teach health). In fact, there are two worlds: the one where teachers belong
and the other where students, children, and the general public live. The knowledge and common sense
about health differ between these two worlds. The languages being used are also different.
The two worlds of life, of course, overlap. Teachers are familiar with both worlds: the one using

4. Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and school
healthprofessional and scientific knowledge and the other one depending on everyday common and traditional18

wisdom. They play a vital role in bridging the two (Figure 0.2). This role, in other words, is that of a

The final topic is the connection between SDGs and school health. SDGs are the successor to thehealth education-communicator.

Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), set out at the United Nation (UN) Summit in 2015, as goals

In health education, it is essential to convey specialized knowledge to students, children, and theor challenges to achieve a sustainable and better world by 2030. In essence, the SDGs are a set of goals

general public in an easy-to-understand manner that can help them change their behavior and thinking.

that the entire world should work towards, regardless of economic or development level, in order for

However, this by itself will only result in teachers unilaterally imposing their knowledge on students andhumanity to survive and prosper sustainably on this planet. Of course, Cambodia is also trying to address
Introduction

Characteristics of school health: How are they learned and taught?

19the SDGs.

Chapter 1

1

The SDGs consist of 17 goals and 169 targets under these goals. The 17 goals are as follows:
Goal 1: End poverty in all its forms everywhere
Goal 2: End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable

Healthagriculture
Goal 3: Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages
Goal 4: Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning
opportunities for all

Learning objectives
You will be able to gain proper understanding and explain:

Goal 5: Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls- The deﬁnition and aspects of health.

Goal 6: Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all- The importance and beneﬁts of health education programs in schools.

Goal 7: Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable, and modern energy for all- The signiﬁcance of implementing school health activities.

Goal 8: Promote sustained, inclusive, and sustainable economic growth, full and productive- School health policies and initiatives adopted in Cambodia.

employment, and decent work for all
Goal 9: Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization, andfoster innovation

This chapter provides basic knowledge necessary to understand human health and school healthinitiatives. First, we introduce basic health concepts and a few new ideas, and underscore that health isGoal 10: Reduce inequality within and among countries

a basic human right. Next, we explain the concept of child health based on the characteristics of child

Goal 11: Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient, and sustainable

development. We also outline the global trend towards health promotion and building healthy societies,

Goal 12: Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns

and describe the importance of school health initiatives, their four pillars, and school health policy in

Goal 13: Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts

Cambodia.

Goal 14: Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas, and marine resources for sustainable
development
Goal 15: Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage

1. Aspects of healthforests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt
biodiversity loss
Goal 16: Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access tojustice for all, and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels
Goal 17: Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the global partnership forsustainable development“Health” is a term that encompasses the physical, mental, psychological, and social state of humanbeings in a single word.
The constitution of the World Health Organization (WHO), signed by representatives of 61 nationsin 1946, describes the most desirable and ideal conditions for health with the following statement:“Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of

The terms in bold in the list of 17 goals are those that are discussed in this textbook in relation todisease or inﬁrmity.”1 The WHO Constitution also declares that “enjoyment of the highest attainable

health and well-being, safety, and hygiene. They show that school health is not just about health education

standard of health is one of the fundamental rights of every human being.”1 This right must be guaranteedin schools, but that it plays a vital role in working towards the SDGs and can make a significant

regardless of race, ethnicity, religion, political belief, or socioeconomic status.1

contribution to Cambodian society. Furthermore, as stated in the Cambodian School Health Policy
2,3

The WHO Constitution warns that inequalities exist in the areas of health promotion and infectious(2016, 2019) , university students, pupils, and teachers who have studied school health are expected todisease control, depending on respective levels of socioeconomic development among nations. Suchbecome human resources who can contribute to a Cambodian society that grows sustainably and isconditions are described as a threat shared worldwide, not just among developing nations.1

peaceful and healthy.

More recently, global climate change as well as the spread of lifestyle-related diseases accompanying
changes in people’s ways of life and the rise in average human life expectancy have had a conspicuous
impact, prompting new ideas about health. One such example is to seek lifestyles that are in harmony

References

20

1

Cambodia Sustainable Development Goals. https://www.csdgs.org/km/

2

Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport. SCHOOL HEALTH POLICY. 2006.

3

Royal Government of Cambodia. National Policy on School Health. 2019.

with the environment and ecosystem. For instance, the Ecohealth concept is rooted in awareness thathuman beings are also part of the ecosystem (Figure 1.1). This approach to human health stresses theimportance of maintaining a balance among the environment, the ecosystem, socioeconomic development,
peoples’ livelihoods, production activities, and lifestyles.2
Chapter 1
Health21