The Role of the School Psychologist in Developing a Health-Promoting School

Abstract

The World Health Organisation (WHO) views health as a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not simply the absence of illness or disease. Schools are powerful sources of health promotion and, of course, health adversity. In South Africa's attempt for social and economic transformation much emphasis is being placed on education as being a primary site for achieving healthy development. Organization development (OD) is presently considered by many school development practitioners in South Africa to be a potent strategy for managing change and enhancing the school's growth towards becoming a healthy learning environment. Current policy proposals on education support and special needs in South Africa advance the idea of healthpromoting centres of learning through a holistic approach to institutional development. It is against this background that this paper, which is based on a case study research project, briefly tells the story of a historically disadvantaged South African high school and its quest to establish itself as a healthy learning environment. The school had transformed itself from an adverse learning environment typical of many South African schools (and perhaps schools elsewhere) to a safe, supportive, caring, mutually respectful and generally well organized educational context. Many of these improvements were associated with a particular school OD intervention. What can we learn from this story about the process of developing a health-promoting school? What are the practical implications for school development practitioners, especially school psychologists whose general task it is to promote the health of all learners? This paper addresses these questions and offers some propositions concerning the role of school psychologists in contributing towards the development of health-promoting schools.