Examining the Impact of After School Health Education Programming Designed by Undergraduates for Elementary-Age Children

Abstract

Innovative health education enrichment programs may help establish lifelong healthy behaviors. This study examined the effects of a six-week, elementary-level afterschool health education program which was planned and implemented by undergraduate students. A needs assessment was first conducted with school personnel to determine health content needs. Next, 3 to 5th grade students were nominated by teachers for participation (n=19) and parental consent was obtained. Undergraduates led hygiene, nutrition, and fitness education sessions which included skill building, healthy food taste tests, fitness activities, and incentives. Anthropometric measures were taken and pre/post surveys were administered to determine changes in knowledge, attitudes, and social norms. Pre/post results revealed the children showed increased knowledge of fruit and vegetable health benefits (p<.05), increased self-efficacy when asking parents to purchase fruits and vegetables (p<.05), and reports of increased hand washing prior to meals (p<.05). Qualitative follow-up with undergraduate leaders revealed increased understanding of the intricacies of planning health programs, the difficulties involved in changing health behavior, and the impact of socio-economic and cultural backgrounds in implementing behavioral change. This program provides a model others may adopt to involve elementary and college age students in active, hands-on learning in health education.