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By John Henry Ledwith  | March 9, 2016
Senior Sales Manager, ETR

I am a lucky man. I get to work with school health educators all over this fine country. That means I get to see some of the most inspired, inventive, dedicated work being done anywhere in the world. It’s work that has the potential to make a huge difference in the lives of kids and across communities.

Almost every day, I engage with people looking at how we can build communities that offer support to guide adolescents toward healthy choices. I often think about the force of peer groups as a social determinant of health. I’m fascinated by the power of peers to influence one another’s health, safety and future. Like most of my colleagues, I’m always asking how health educators can most effectively shape positive peer group values and norms.

And, like most of my colleagues, I also have concerns about the ways peer norms and values sometimes have negative effects.

By Elizabeth McDade-Montez, PhD | March 7, 2015
Senior Research Associate, ETR

We come across lots of health-related research findings reported in the news these days. Frankly, some of it is perplexing.

You may have heard the CDC’s recent recommendations that any young woman not on birth control should refrain from consuming alcohol. Perhaps you also saw some of the outraged reactions from social commentators.

Maybe you read about the classic psychology studies that weren’t replicated in recent research. Or the range of rumors flying around about Zika virus. And are you still hearing rumors online or from peers suggesting childhood vaccinations aren’t safe?

How does an informed reader sift through this constant stream of health information? When we are puzzled ourselves, how can health providers and educators support patients and clients trying to make sense of conflicting or suspect reports? What references can we trust when we endeavor to inform ourselves or support and guide others? 

By Marcia Quackenbush, MS, MFT, MCHES | October 22, 2015
Senior Editor, ETR

Here’s a shout out to SOPHE—the Society for Public Health Education. They’re the hosts of National Health Education Week, which we are thoroughly enjoying. (Check the hashtag #NHEW2015 on Twitter for some fine content.)

They started the week by asking us to reflect on our health education heroes. This theme has started some great conversations here at ETR. I asked a few of my colleagues who their heroes are and why. Here’s what they said.

By Susan Telljohann, HSD, CHES | August 18, 2015
Professor Emeritus, Department of Health Education, The University of Toledo

Something quite remarkable has occurred over the past two decades in the field of school health education. We’ve gotten evidence!

We’ve explored, examined, tested and refined everything we know about how to provide meaningful, effective health education in school settings. We know enough now to design and deliver programs that have a true impact.How do schools committed to program success choose the program that’s going to work best in their setting?

By Pamela Anderson, PhD | May 4, 2015
Senior Research Associate, ETR

I think most of us can remember the first time we had a crush on someone. I do. It was Axl Rose, lead singer for the band Guns N’ Roses. Much to my family’s chagrin, I had his pictures splashed across my bedroom walls. I played his music virtually nonstop for months, while imagining what it would be like to be his girlfriend.

By John Henry Ledwith | April 9, 2015
National Sales Manager, ETR

I never cease to be amazed at the skill and art of fine teaching. Here’s a story I heard last week from a high school teacher I know.

Students were coming into her classroom at the beginning of the period. Two young men started talking about a fight that occurred the night before between a couple of their peers. They took different sides on the fight.

Their talk was assertive, then challenging, then trash. Racial epithets were tossed back and forth. Other students started joining in and the entire situation was escalating.

By Jessica Lawrence, MS | March 9, 2015
Director, Cairn Guidance

“Young lady, let me tell you something. There are people who take life by the reins and forge full speed ahead, and people who sit back and wait for things to happen to them. I think I know which category you fit into.”

—Citizen in Dayville, OR, June 2013

Two years ago this month I prepared for a goal I had daydreamed about since I was a teen. I completed a bicycle ride across the United States, cycling 4,197 miles solo from the Oregon coast to the Rhode Island shore.

My goal wasn’t only to make it safely to the east coast. I was raising funds for the Alliance for a Healthier Generation and I intended to enjoy the ride. I also wanted to model that balance of work and play we all strive for on a daily basis. I scrambled to leave town while sustaining school health contracts, hoping to maintain communication with my clients while on the journey.

And did it work? Yes! This was the most amazing adventure of my life so far.

By Karin Coyle, PhD | March 3, 2015
Senior Research Scientist, ETR

Most evidence-based sexual health programs include skill development as a core element. This underscores the value of optimizing instruction for skills. Education literature provides guidance on the optimal instructional sequence for teaching behavioral skills. There are a number of other important considerations for skill instruction that compliment this type of instructional sequence, and some common pitfalls to avoid.