CHENNAI: Over 30 principals and 40 lecturers from various B.Ed colleges in the city recently completed a four day-programme on `Schools Total Health'.

Inaugurated by Director of Collegiate Education S. Mani, the programme was organised to familiarise teachers with the modules devised to impart health education. "We want to train B.Ed teachers in these modules, as they are the ones who will be taking the programme to students," Mr. Mani said.

The `School Total Health Programme' is an initiative of Australia-based organisation Health Education and Promotion International Inc. Its director, Colin L. Yarham, has spent more than ten years in Chennai, travelling extensively across the State.

"It is very important to empower children. And education is one of the most powerful tools that can be used to address them," professor Yarham said.

N. Vijayan of Zion Matriculation said, "We have to look beyond mere curriculum transaction and focus on children's health."

After a good amount of research and groundwork, professor Yarham, an academician with nearly six decades' experience, designed modules with inputs from teachers, doctors and activists here.

The modules, designed for students of Classes I to XII, include information on topics such as consumer health, substance abuse, nutrition, environmental health, safety health and social health.

The School Education Department integrated these modules into the curriculum in 2005. The programme was also implemented under the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan Scheme here in 2006. Teachers were expected to dedicate two classes per week for health education.

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