Implementation of the health education field in a practical teaching seminar for the teacher training course in health and physical education: Results of a nationwide mail survey of four-year universities

The purpose of this study was to clarify the implementation of the health education field in a practical seminar for the teaching profession, which began full-scale application in four-year universities in 2013. We carried out a nationwide mail survey of 158 departments at 152 universities offering courses leading to the junior high school and high school teaching certificate (in health and physical education). The response rate was 43.0% (68/158), and after exclusion of one blank response, 67 cases were analyzed. Among the participants, 71.6% secured time for health education in a practical seminar for the teaching profession. Contents of the class were observed for trial lesson of the health class (62.5%), reflection of the health class in teaching practice (45.8%), contents of health education (39.6%), teaching methods of health education (37.5%), design of teaching plans for health classes (33.3%), and material for health education (27.1%). Styles of the class were observed for the lesson trial (48.7%), practice (48.0%), lecture (33.7%), and others (40.2%). These results would contribute to teacher training and development through the improvement of the health education field curricula in a practical seminar for the teaching profession.