Any momentum to lobby the state to make health a 1/2 year again?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:After 3 years of MS health ed plus 1/2 a year, what on earth are they discussing? Every year MS health ed is the same thing.

From what I could tell, Montgomery County health was about sex-ed, drugs, and a little bit of mental health.

When I went to school elsewhere, our health class covered sex-ed and drugs, but it also covered nutrition, body systems, diseases, and first aid (including the Heimlich and CPR certification). Admittedly, there wasn’t much focus on mental health.

If the extra semester of health means they actually learn more about health than safe sex, avoiding drugs, and mental health issues, it sounds like it would be beneficial.

So, you don't have kids in MCPS and know nothing about it but advocate for it. They did all those things in MS. Then, they do them all in the one semester of HS. Now, doing something like financial literacy makes sense. Another health education doesn't. Every semester its the same thing. Enough with the mental health non-sense. Talking about it in general terms isn't helping anyone. Parents need to step up and help and get their kids help with true mental health issues. Between student support/advisory and health ed, so much time is wasted repeating the same information vs. giving our kids a good well rounded education.

Pp you quoted
My kids are recent graduates of MCPS. One of them even took “Honors Health” as she was interested in a health career and was hoping for a more rigorous health class, which she didn’t get. You seem to be agreeing with me that the repeated semesters of health focusing on mental health is insufficient. That’s why they need a semester with useful content.

I agree that MCPS wastes a lot of time on fluffy topics when instructional time would be better served focusing on academic content and/or development of specific skills. I think instruction on financial literacy is also a good idea. It could be folded into existing math/economics classes (although with the current problems with math instruction, I hate to divert time/focus from main topics) or stand alone. Maybe we should just have a life skills class that includes financial literacy, practical health, and other miscellaneous general information that people need in life but usually just fumble through by themselves.

We had that class. It was called home economics. I don't know why we did away with it.

Home Ec is cooking and sewing. I prefer to teach my kids all this and let them take useful things.

That wasn't what my home ec class was. We had cooking, sewing, financial planning (budgeting) and some cleaning and organizing built into our curriculum.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:After 3 years of MS health ed plus 1/2 a year, what on earth are they discussing? Every year MS health ed is the same thing.

From what I could tell, Montgomery County health was about sex-ed, drugs, and a little bit of mental health.

When I went to school elsewhere, our health class covered sex-ed and drugs, but it also covered nutrition, body systems, diseases, and first aid (including the Heimlich and CPR certification). Admittedly, there wasn’t much focus on mental health.

If the extra semester of health means they actually learn more about health than safe sex, avoiding drugs, and mental health issues, it sounds like it would be beneficial.

So, you don't have kids in MCPS and know nothing about it but advocate for it. They did all those things in MS. Then, they do them all in the one semester of HS. Now, doing something like financial literacy makes sense. Another health education doesn't. Every semester its the same thing. Enough with the mental health non-sense. Talking about it in general terms isn't helping anyone. Parents need to step up and help and get their kids help with true mental health issues. Between student support/advisory and health ed, so much time is wasted repeating the same information vs. giving our kids a good well rounded education.

Pp you quoted
My kids are recent graduates of MCPS. One of them even took “Honors Health” as she was interested in a health career and was hoping for a more rigorous health class, which she didn’t get. You seem to be agreeing with me that the repeated semesters of health focusing on mental health is insufficient. That’s why they need a semester with useful content.

I agree that MCPS wastes a lot of time on fluffy topics when instructional time would be better served focusing on academic content and/or development of specific skills. I think instruction on financial literacy is also a good idea. It could be folded into existing math/economics classes (although with the current problems with math instruction, I hate to divert time/focus from main topics) or stand alone. Maybe we should just have a life skills class that includes financial literacy, practical health, and other miscellaneous general information that people need in life but usually just fumble through by themselves.

We had that class. It was called home economics. I don't know why we did away with it.

Home Ec is cooking and sewing. I prefer to teach my kids all this and let them take useful things.

Home Ec was one of the most useful classes I took in K-12. I am still doing things I learned how to do in Home Ec. (Not including frosting made from crisco, powdered sugar, and food coloring.)

As for a return to half-year health: nope, if only because it messed up everybody's schedules. Fortunately, somebody advised me about having my kids do it in summer school. Not everybody knows about that or is able to do that, though.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:After 3 years of MS health ed plus 1/2 a year, what on earth are they discussing? Every year MS health ed is the same thing.

From what I could tell, Montgomery County health was about sex-ed, drugs, and a little bit of mental health.

When I went to school elsewhere, our health class covered sex-ed and drugs, but it also covered nutrition, body systems, diseases, and first aid (including the Heimlich and CPR certification). Admittedly, there wasn’t much focus on mental health.

If the extra semester of health means they actually learn more about health than safe sex, avoiding drugs, and mental health issues, it sounds like it would be beneficial.

So, you don't have kids in MCPS and know nothing about it but advocate for it. They did all those things in MS. Then, they do them all in the one semester of HS. Now, doing something like financial literacy makes sense. Another health education doesn't. Every semester its the same thing. Enough with the mental health non-sense. Talking about it in general terms isn't helping anyone. Parents need to step up and help and get their kids help with true mental health issues. Between student support/advisory and health ed, so much time is wasted repeating the same information vs. giving our kids a good well rounded education.

Pp you quoted
My kids are recent graduates of MCPS. One of them even took “Honors Health” as she was interested in a health career and was hoping for a more rigorous health class, which she didn’t get. You seem to be agreeing with me that the repeated semesters of health focusing on mental health is insufficient. That’s why they need a semester with useful content.

I agree that MCPS wastes a lot of time on fluffy topics when instructional time would be better served focusing on academic content and/or development of specific skills. I think instruction on financial literacy is also a good idea. It could be folded into existing math/economics classes (although with the current problems with math instruction, I hate to divert time/focus from main topics) or stand alone. Maybe we should just have a life skills class that includes financial literacy, practical health, and other miscellaneous general information that people need in life but usually just fumble through by themselves.

A life skills class v. more health ed would be far more valuable. There is only so much health ed they can do before they start repeating themselves. They have repeated the same material in the 3 years of MS we've been in. So, instead of kids taking something useful they have to take another edition of health education or in the summer. Huge waste.

3 quarters, not 3 years of Health in MS

MS focus is on puberty, bullying, relationships, and first order substance abuse information. Things all very pertinent to 11-13 year olds. HS health is aimed at 15 year olds. That two years is a big difference in their developmental readiness for more in-depth conversation on certain topics. Plus they generally will have taken HS Biology and will be able to understand some topics better. I think a full year of Health is appropriate at the HS level. If you are concerned about it being duplicative, work to ensure the curriculum is worthwhile.

[Anonymous]

For those of you considering lobbying to make changes, you may want to familiarize yourself with the three rationales MSDE used in support of the extra semester of Health:

Rationale:
Recommendations for increased health education
in response to the opioid crisis have resulted in
legislation requiring drug addiction and prevention
programs at the high school level. Additional
recent legislation has also mandated programs in
sexual abuse and assault instruction. In response,
the state has increased the content of its health
standards for high school students and the Task
Force recommends expanding the health
coursework requirement accordingly. (All public
school students are already required to participate
in a comprehensive health education instructional
program that also addresses mental and emotional
health, nutrition and fitness, safety and injury
prevention, personal and consumer health, disease
prevention and control, and human life and
sexuality.)


Rationale:
The Maryland Youth Risk Behavior/Youth Tobacco
survey has shown increasing trends in high school
student engagement in risky behaviors such as
alcohol and drug use, a decline in mental health,
and decreased healthy eating and exercise
practices.


Rationale:
The Maryland State School Health Council and the
Health and Physical Education Advisory Board
documented the need for increased health
coursework to provide sufficient instruction in
sexual abuse, drug prevention, suicide prevention,
and mental health.

https://www.marylandpublicschools.org/stateboard/Documents/2020/1207/SBOE-Presentation-High-School-Graduation-Task-Force.pdf

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:After 3 years of MS health ed plus 1/2 a year, what on earth are they discussing? Every year MS health ed is the same thing.

From what I could tell, Montgomery County health was about sex-ed, drugs, and a little bit of mental health.

When I went to school elsewhere, our health class covered sex-ed and drugs, but it also covered nutrition, body systems, diseases, and first aid (including the Heimlich and CPR certification). Admittedly, there wasn’t much focus on mental health.

If the extra semester of health means they actually learn more about health than safe sex, avoiding drugs, and mental health issues, it sounds like it would be beneficial.

So, you don't have kids in MCPS and know nothing about it but advocate for it. They did all those things in MS. Then, they do them all in the one semester of HS. Now, doing something like financial literacy makes sense. Another health education doesn't. Every semester its the same thing. Enough with the mental health non-sense. Talking about it in general terms isn't helping anyone. Parents need to step up and help and get their kids help with true mental health issues. Between student support/advisory and health ed, so much time is wasted repeating the same information vs. giving our kids a good well rounded education.

Pp you quoted
My kids are recent graduates of MCPS. One of them even took “Honors Health” as she was interested in a health career and was hoping for a more rigorous health class, which she didn’t get. You seem to be agreeing with me that the repeated semesters of health focusing on mental health is insufficient. That’s why they need a semester with useful content.

I agree that MCPS wastes a lot of time on fluffy topics when instructional time would be better served focusing on academic content and/or development of specific skills. I think instruction on financial literacy is also a good idea. It could be folded into existing math/economics classes (although with the current problems with math instruction, I hate to divert time/focus from main topics) or stand alone. Maybe we should just have a life skills class that includes financial literacy, practical health, and other miscellaneous general information that people need in life but usually just fumble through by themselves.

We had that class. It was called home economics. I don't know why we did away with it.

Home Ec is cooking and sewing. I prefer to teach my kids all this and let them take useful things.

That wasn't what my home ec class was. We had cooking, sewing, financial planning (budgeting) and some cleaning and organizing built into our curriculum.

If people need a class to learn how to use a cookbook great, but please don't force the rest of us into the slow lane.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For those of you considering lobbying to make changes, you may want to familiarize yourself with the three rationales MSDE used in support of the extra semester of Health:

Rationale:
Recommendations for increased health education
in response to the opioid crisis have resulted in
legislation requiring drug addiction and prevention
programs at the high school level. Additional
recent legislation has also mandated programs in
sexual abuse and assault instruction. In response,
the state has increased the content of its health
standards for high school students and the Task
Force recommends expanding the health
coursework requirement accordingly. (All public
school students are already required to participate
in a comprehensive health education instructional
program that also addresses mental and emotional
health, nutrition and fitness, safety and injury
prevention, personal and consumer health, disease
prevention and control, and human life and
sexuality.)


Rationale:
The Maryland Youth Risk Behavior/Youth Tobacco
survey has shown increasing trends in high school
student engagement in risky behaviors such as
alcohol and drug use, a decline in mental health,
and decreased healthy eating and exercise
practices.


Rationale:
The Maryland State School Health Council and the
Health and Physical Education Advisory Board
documented the need for increased health
coursework to provide sufficient instruction in
sexual abuse, drug prevention, suicide prevention,
and mental health.

https://www.marylandpublicschools.org/stateboard/Documents/2020/1207/SBOE-Presentation-High-School-Graduation-Task-Force.pdf

So have these changes reduced the opoid crisis or was it just another bad idea that accomplished nothing?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

So have these changes reduced the opoid crisis or was it just another bad idea that accomplished nothing?

I honestly believe that if MCPS said, "Puppies and kittens are cute," there would be haters on DCUM hating on it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For those of you considering lobbying to make changes, you may want to familiarize yourself with the three rationales MSDE used in support of the extra semester of Health:

Rationale:
Recommendations for increased health education
in response to the opioid crisis have resulted in
legislation requiring drug addiction and prevention
programs at the high school level. Additional
recent legislation has also mandated programs in
sexual abuse and assault instruction. In response,
the state has increased the content of its health
standards for high school students and the Task
Force recommends expanding the health
coursework requirement accordingly. (All public
school students are already required to participate
in a comprehensive health education instructional
program that also addresses mental and emotional
health, nutrition and fitness, safety and injury
prevention, personal and consumer health, disease
prevention and control, and human life and
sexuality.)


Rationale:
The Maryland Youth Risk Behavior/Youth Tobacco
survey has shown increasing trends in high school
student engagement in risky behaviors such as
alcohol and drug use, a decline in mental health,
and decreased healthy eating and exercise
practices.


Rationale:
The Maryland State School Health Council and the
Health and Physical Education Advisory Board
documented the need for increased health
coursework to provide sufficient instruction in
sexual abuse, drug prevention, suicide prevention,
and mental health.

https://www.marylandpublicschools.org/stateboard/Documents/2020/1207/SBOE-Presentation-High-School-Graduation-Task-Force.pdf

So have these changes reduced the opoid crisis or was it just another bad idea that accomplished nothing?

No one has completed the new course yet.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

So have these changes reduced the opoid crisis or was it just another bad idea that accomplished nothing?

I honestly believe that if MCPS said, "Puppies and kittens are cute," there would be haters on DCUM hating on it.

For once it isn't an MCPS thing. This is on the state.

[Anonymous]

They just need a Wellness requirement that is worth 2 credits and is broken up as 1/2 a credit each year. It would cover PE in 9th, Psychological in 10th, Financial in 11th, Seminar Society and Culture.

This would cover all the things that students need to learn, force school to create quality 1/2 credit electives for students to explore in Junior/Senior year and likely help the stress and mental health of all students by providing them with a useful class that encourages dialogue, but that is not as intense as say AP whatever.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

So have these changes reduced the opoid crisis or was it just another bad idea that accomplished nothing?

I honestly believe that if MCPS said, "Puppies and kittens are cute," there would be haters on DCUM hating on it.

For once it isn't an MCPS thing. This is on the state.

That doesn't stop the DCUM haters from hating on MCPS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:They just need a Wellness requirement that is worth 2 credits and is broken up as 1/2 a credit each year. It would cover PE in 9th, Psychological in 10th, Financial in 11th, Seminar Society and Culture.

This would cover all the things that students need to learn, force school to create quality 1/2 credit electives for students to explore in Junior/Senior year and likely help the stress and mental health of all students by providing them with a useful class that encourages dialogue, but that is not as intense as say AP whatever.

Smart. I like this idea and approach.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:After 3 years of MS health ed plus 1/2 a year, what on earth are they discussing? Every year MS health ed is the same thing.

From what I could tell, Montgomery County health was about sex-ed, drugs, and a little bit of mental health.

When I went to school elsewhere, our health class covered sex-ed and drugs, but it also covered nutrition, body systems, diseases, and first aid (including the Heimlich and CPR certification). Admittedly, there wasn’t much focus on mental health.

If the extra semester of health means they actually learn more about health than safe sex, avoiding drugs, and mental health issues, it sounds like it would be beneficial.

So, you don't have kids in MCPS and know nothing about it but advocate for it. They did all those things in MS. Then, they do them all in the one semester of HS. Now, doing something like financial literacy makes sense. Another health education doesn't. Every semester its the same thing. Enough with the mental health non-sense. Talking about it in general terms isn't helping anyone. Parents need to step up and help and get their kids help with true mental health issues. Between student support/advisory and health ed, so much time is wasted repeating the same information vs. giving our kids a good well rounded education.

Pp you quoted
My kids are recent graduates of MCPS. One of them even took “Honors Health” as she was interested in a health career and was hoping for a more rigorous health class, which she didn’t get. You seem to be agreeing with me that the repeated semesters of health focusing on mental health is insufficient. That’s why they need a semester with useful content.

I agree that MCPS wastes a lot of time on fluffy topics when instructional time would be better served focusing on academic content and/or development of specific skills. I think instruction on financial literacy is also a good idea. It could be folded into existing math/economics classes (although with the current problems with math instruction, I hate to divert time/focus from main topics) or stand alone. Maybe we should just have a life skills class that includes financial literacy, practical health, and other miscellaneous general information that people need in life but usually just fumble through by themselves.

We had that class. It was called home economics. I don't know why we did away with it.

Home Ec is cooking and sewing. I prefer to teach my kids all this and let them take useful things.

That wasn't what my home ec class was. We had cooking, sewing, financial planning (budgeting) and some cleaning and organizing built into our curriculum.

If people need a class to learn how to use a cookbook great, but please don't force the rest of us into the slow lane.

If you think that developing great cooking skills is as simple as having access to a cookbook than I definitely don't want to eat at your house and I will skip whatever you bring to the pot luck.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:After 3 years of MS health ed plus 1/2 a year, what on earth are they discussing? Every year MS health ed is the same thing.

From what I could tell, Montgomery County health was about sex-ed, drugs, and a little bit of mental health.

When I went to school elsewhere, our health class covered sex-ed and drugs, but it also covered nutrition, body systems, diseases, and first aid (including the Heimlich and CPR certification). Admittedly, there wasn’t much focus on mental health.

If the extra semester of health means they actually learn more about health than safe sex, avoiding drugs, and mental health issues, it sounds like it would be beneficial.

So, you don't have kids in MCPS and know nothing about it but advocate for it. They did all those things in MS. Then, they do them all in the one semester of HS. Now, doing something like financial literacy makes sense. Another health education doesn't. Every semester its the same thing. Enough with the mental health non-sense. Talking about it in general terms isn't helping anyone. Parents need to step up and help and get their kids help with true mental health issues. Between student support/advisory and health ed, so much time is wasted repeating the same information vs. giving our kids a good well rounded education.

Pp you quoted
My kids are recent graduates of MCPS. One of them even took “Honors Health” as she was interested in a health career and was hoping for a more rigorous health class, which she didn’t get. You seem to be agreeing with me that the repeated semesters of health focusing on mental health is insufficient. That’s why they need a semester with useful content.

I agree that MCPS wastes a lot of time on fluffy topics when instructional time would be better served focusing on academic content and/or development of specific skills. I think instruction on financial literacy is also a good idea. It could be folded into existing math/economics classes (although with the current problems with math instruction, I hate to divert time/focus from main topics) or stand alone. Maybe we should just have a life skills class that includes financial literacy, practical health, and other miscellaneous general information that people need in life but usually just fumble through by themselves.

A life skills class v. more health ed would be far more valuable. There is only so much health ed they can do before they start repeating themselves. They have repeated the same material in the 3 years of MS we've been in. So, instead of kids taking something useful they have to take another edition of health education or in the summer. Huge waste.

3 quarters, not 3 years of Health in MS

MS focus is on puberty, bullying, relationships, and first order substance abuse information. Things all very pertinent to 11-13 year olds. HS health is aimed at 15 year olds. That two years is a big difference in their developmental readiness for more in-depth conversation on certain topics. Plus they generally will have taken HS Biology and will be able to understand some topics better. I think a full year of Health is appropriate at the HS level. If you are concerned about it being duplicative, work to ensure the curriculum is worthwhile.

At our school, they've done all the basics and sex ed, not just puberty. Completely unnecessary.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:They just need a Wellness requirement that is worth 2 credits and is broken up as 1/2 a credit each year. It would cover PE in 9th, Psychological in 10th, Financial in 11th, Seminar Society and Culture.

This would cover all the things that students need to learn, force school to create quality 1/2 credit electives for students to explore in Junior/Senior year and likely help the stress and mental health of all students by providing them with a useful class that encourages dialogue, but that is not as intense as say AP whatever.

Those may all be great, but when are they learning things like:

First Aid - the Heimlich, CPR, basic wound care, recognizing and treating frost bite and heat stroke, signs of a heart attack and stroke, what to do for someone going into shock, etc.

Nutrition - what specific vitamins and minerals do and what foods they’re found in, information on diseases caused by malnutrition, diabetes, safe food handling practices

Disease - types of diseases, how they’re transmitted, why vaccines are important, why antibiotics don’t cure everything