My heart and I – together healthy

The topic health and health promotion for teenagers is very significant not only for academic but also for scientific reason. From the point of view of health-care policy and sociopolitical the theme is highly relevant and it can cause a rethinking of adolescence in health relevant issues.

Targets of the present two-year project were the promotion of health and health awareness of upper school students and the creation of an easy access to the topics health promotion and social sciences. The main task of the project was that students develop academic measures with scientific support of representatives from the University of Applied Sciences Burgenland. Concerning the core issue of the project, cardiovascular health, gender-equitable health knowledge should be easily accessible.

From September 2010 to August 2012 the qualitative process evaluation for the settings “school” and “community” for the pilot project “Together healthy in the district Oberwart” was arranged in cooperation with the partner school ECOLE HBLW Güssing. The students were practicing empirical social research techniques independently. As a result they should first gain scientific qualification and second they should be motivated to attend a tertiary education. The didactical aspect was to use new methods of project related studies. In the context of the peer-group-approach the adolescence were seen as partners. The didactical method peer-group-teaching should lead the students to carry out projects by their own and to assume personal responsibility because of the results of the evaluation.

In the second project phase the students designed project theses and implement them in their own school - the ECOLE-HBLW Güssing. The reports were based upon the experience of the pilot project. The project team supports the students with knowledge in health promotion, cardiovascular health and empirical social research. In addition they offer help in consulting topics and answer questions of the content. After the project cooperation between ECOLE HBLW Güssing and University of Applied Sciences Burgenland is aspired.