Attitude of 5-8th Form Pupils of Implementation of the Healthy Lifestyle Education Cover Image

Sveikos gyvensenos ugdymo įgyvendinimas 5–8 klasių mokinių požiūriu
Attitude of 5-8th Form Pupils of Implementation of the Healthy Lifestyle Education

Author(s): Vida Gudžinskienė
Subject(s): Social Sciences
Published by: Mykolas Romeris University
Keywords: healthy lifestyle; education; 5-8th form pupils

Summary/Abstract: Pupils’ behavior and their attitude towards healthy lifestyle frequently determine the quality of adult life; therefore, it is important to pay particular attention to attitude formation and development of healthy lifestyle. The aim of the current article is to disclose pupils’ attitude to healthy lifestyle and its development. The aim of the research is concretized by the following objectives: to define the conception of healthy lifestyle and its determinant factors; to reveal pupils’ attitude towards the formative factors of healthy lifestyle and compare the opinions of boys and girls; to explore how pupils evaluate integration of the topics on healthy lifestyle into the subjects of general education. The article raises the following problem-based questions: what forms pupils’ attitude towards healthy lifestyle? What is pupils’ opinion on the development of healthy lifestyle in a comprehensive school? Pursuing to answer the aforesaid questions, analysis of scientific literature and empirical research, which included anonymous questionnaires for 5-8th formers of comprehensive schools (N = 817), have been conducted. Scientific research on healthy lifestyle revealed that the lifestyle of a part of pupils is not beneficial to their health and does not always comply with the principles of healthy lifestyle. Pupils’ behaviour and their attitude towards healthy lifestyle often determine the quality of their adult life; therefore, it is important to pay particular attention to the development of healthy lifestyle as early as possible. The results of the empirical research of pupils’ attitude towards healthy lifestyle and its development showed that despite the fact that teaching of healthy lifestyle occurs mostly during classes rather than other educational activity, almost half of the respondents claimed that the process of education (lessons, sport circles, etc.) produces only a medium impact on the formation of their attitude towards healthy lifestyle. More than a half of the respondents pointed out that topics related to healthy lifestyle are frequently integrated only into the curriculum and teaching process of natural sciences, physical education and technologies. Nearly half of the respondents maintained that different topics of healthy lifestyle are only occasionally integrated into the subjects of general education. In this regard, the following topics can be distinguished: healthy eating, personal hygiene, environment and health, physical activity and prevention of accidents. According to nearly half of the respondents, the least frequently integrated topics on healthy lifestyle include mental health and stress, rational organization of leisure and recreation, as well as skin and hair care.

  • Issue Year: 12/2013
  • Issue No: 2
  • Page Range: 319-329
  • Page Count: 11
  • Language: Lithuanian