How to Evaluate School Health Wellness Policies

As the epidemic of childhood obesity continues to grow, an increasingly large number of schools are adopting health and wellness programs to promote the health and well-being of their student body. It is vital that schools that feature a health and wellness program periodically take time to evaluate the program for effectiveness. By evaluating the program, schools can determine whether the goals are being accomplished and whether the health of their students is improving.

Instructions

• 1

  Collect data. Before you can determine the effectiveness of a health and wellness program, you must collect data on the program so that you have evidence of its effectiveness. Collect data on factors such as how many individuals participated, how many activities were created, and how many healthy foods were available to students in school.

• 2

  Acquire wellness data on students. Have parents complete a wellness inventory on which they list their child's height and weight and provide anecdotal information about their child's eating habits. Most schools make this type of survey optional because it is a potentially sensitive subject for some. As your wellness program continues, collect these data periodically and then determine what portion of your student body is overweight or obese. If your wellness program is successful, this number should drop.

• 3

  Administer a student opinion survey. Students are not likely to participate in something that they don't like. Gauge students' opinions of the health and wellness program by administering an anonymous opinion survey. Have students rate the activities on how enjoyable they are and on how likely they are to participate in them. If it seems that many students dislike a certain activity, consider dropping it and replacing it with a more desirable option to increase the likelihood that students will participate.

• 4

  Compare the data results with the initially established goals. Look back at the goals you set when you created the health and wellness program. Compare the results of your data with your goals and determine how far you have come toward meeting those goals. If you initially said that you wanted 75 percent of students to participate in the physical activity and you currently have 57 percent of students participating, you know that you have made strides toward reaching that goal.

• 5

  Modify the program. Based on the results of your data, make modifications to the health and wellness policy. Look for areas of weakness in the policy and address them by making changes to the program as a whole. If you use data and make informed decisions about your program, you will create a more effective and useful program.