Improved health for Danish school children
More and more Danish children live inactive, unhealthy lives. That is why the Rockwool Foundation has taken the initiative to start SundSkoleNettet.dk (The healthy schools network). The aim is to improve the health of children, especially those who experience the biggest challenges in staying fit.
It should be fun and exciting for pupils and school staff alike to improve their health and fitness. That is the idea behind SundSkoleNettet.dk, the Rockwool Foundation’s most costly project to date. By mid-February 2009, several hundred primary/lower secondary schools in Denmark schools had signed up for the project, which gives them the opportunity to work on improving their pupils’ health in a completely new way. The key concept is regular measurement of various health-related parameters, and entry of the results online in SundSkoleNettet.dk. These measurements give schools and local authorities a platform on which they can build by launching their own health-promoting activities. In this way, schools don’t just go for a one-off, shortterm health project. Instead, they decide to make a long-term commitment to be “healthy schools”, and plan accordingly.
The network
SundSkoleNettet.dk is a nation-wide network of Danish primary/lower secondary schools. The network is based on voluntary involvement and comes with no preconceived recipe for how children’s health should be improved. It simply gives schools a means of assessing the "state of nation" and whether the actions they take have the desired effect. In addition, the network provides an opportunity to exchange information about the state of children’s health and serves as a source of inspiration for new school initiatives. It is entirely up to local authorities and individual schools to decide what schemes they themselves want to put into effect.
BMI, waist measurement, fitness test, vertical jump, step counting
When a school decides to join SundSkoleNettet.dk it makes a commitment to carry out at least one annual measurement of the health and fitness parameters of all its pupils. The measurements comprise BMI, waist measurement, a fitness test, a vertical jump test, and step counting. The Rockwool Foundation decided that it was important to select a small number of key physiological parameters that could be quickly measured to provide an instant overview of children’s physical condition. From that basic starting point, it is up to individual schools to decide how to extend the idea, for example by carrying out more frequent measurements during the school year or by including measurements such as peak flow or blood pressure, measurements which are especially relevant for older pupils. Each school that joins the network also makes a commitment to set up a permanent health committee and to nominate a person to be responsible for health, thus ensuring that a broad approach is taken to health. Schools are required to document the various initiatives taken and the health measurements made each year in a report published for the information and inspiration of all members of the network.
Support from the Rockwool Foundation
The Rockwool Foundation finances the project website, SundSkoleNettet.dk. The website is used both for the entry of measurements and to create visual displays of the results for each child, year group and school. All measurements are treated confidentially. The website also provides information about and training in implementing health initiatives recommended by the national network’s advisors. The Rockwool Foundation makes measuring equipment available to schools and provides guidelines for its use. Educational material is freely available on the website.
No wagging finger
On the SundSkoleNettet.dk website schools compete against each other through the medium of amusing animations, with absolutely no wagging finger! Sitting in front of a computer with fizzy drinks, sweets and crisps is very bad for children’s health. But using the computer as an approach to tackling the issue of health helps reach the young target group of the project.
The long road to good health
Most health-promoting initiatives are short-term projects, often set up as brief campaigns or one-off events. In contrast, SundSkoleNettet.dk follows children and young people all through their schooling. The goal is for all school pupils to have their health parameters measured and to think about their lifestyles throughout the years they spend at school. If pupils set out to improve their health and their measurement results themselves by changing their patterns of exercise and/or their eating habits, they and their parents can follow the results on SundSkoleNettet.dk. Using a set of tools provided, children can chart a new course for themselves based on their own current physical condition and capabilities. For example, one tool can automatically generate a proposed programme of jogging that is precisely matched to the individual.
Research
The plan is for the SundSkoleNettet network to continue for many years into the future. This will provide a unique opportunity to track the health of Danish pupils. The Rockwool Foundation Research Unit will therefore monitor the project, working in cooperation with external researchers. The researchers will investigate whether or not pupils participating in the project become healthier than other pupils, and whether any of the individual schools’ initiatives have particularly outstanding effects. The researchers expect to have the first measurements of the effects of the project during 2011.
