Health

Learn more about how the physical well-being of students and staff impact schools
Tight cropped illustration of a nurse or doctor in blue scrubs and wearing a stethoscope around their neck. In the upper right corner of the image there is a Caucasian hand being held by a Black nurse's hand. The nurse is wearing a light blue medical glove.
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Student Well-Being & Movement The Health Trends Schools Should Be Watching This Year
Poor health leads students to miss school. But there are strategies schools can adopt to keep kids healthy.
Arianna Prothero, August 12, 2025
2 min read
Chanel Ferran Gutierrez, a 10th grade student at Newcomer Academy, prepares to be vaccinated during a pop-up immunization clinic in the school's library in Louisville, Ky., on Aug. 8, 2024.
Chanel Ferran Gutierrez, a 10th grade student at Newcomer Academy, prepares to be vaccinated during a pop-up immunization clinic in the school's library in Louisville, Ky., on Aug. 8, 2024. Sagging student vaccination rates and the highest volume of measles cases in years have prompted fears of outbreaks once students are back in school.
Mary Conlon/AP
Student Well-Being & Movement Childhood Vaccinations Are Down. Schools Are Bracing for Outbreaks
But local efforts can put communities in a stronger position to respond to them, a school health expert says.
Caitlynn Peetz Stephens, August 11, 2025
4 min read
Third graders Elizabeth Porter, left, and Tilia Thomsen take turns counting sit up reps during P.E. class at Vergennes Union Elementary School in Vergennes, Vt., on Nov. 18, 2024.
Third graders Elizabeth Porter, left, and Tilia Thomsen take turns counting sit up reps during P.E. class at Vergennes Union Elementary School in Vergennes, Vt., on Nov. 18, 2024.
Jaclyn Borowski/Education Week
Student Well-Being & Movement Trauma or Motivation? Educators Reflect on the Presidential Fitness Test's Return
The return of the Presidential Fitness Test sparks memories of shame, fun, and the thrill of victory for educators who did it as children.
Evie Blad, August 7, 2025
2 min read
President Donald Trump hands a pen to professional golfer Bryson DeChambeau after Trump signed an executive order restarting the Presidential Fitness Test in public schools as Secretary of Education Linda McMahon, from left, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Vice President JD Vance watch, July 31, 2025, in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington.
President Donald Trump hands a pen to professional golfer Bryson DeChambeau after Trump signed an executive order restarting the Presidential Fitness Test in public schools as Secretary of Education Linda McMahon, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, and Vice President JD Vance watch on July 31, 2025, in the Roosevelt Room of the White House.
Jacquelyn Martin/AP
Federal Trump Revives the Presidential Fitness Test. Will It Look the Same?
A new generation of students could be tested on how fast they run the mile and how many pushups they can do.
Brooke Schultz, August 7, 2025
6 min read
Angela Hayes, a nurse practitioner with Jefferson County Public Schools, prepares vaccines for students at Newcomer Academy in Louisville, Ky., on Aug. 8, 2024.
Angela Hayes, a nurse practitioner with the Jefferson County public schools, prepares vaccines for students at Newcomer Academy in Louisville, Ky., on Aug. 8, 2024.
Mary Conlon/AP
Student Well-Being & Movement Why RFK Jr.'s Vaccine Views Matter for Schools
This year could bring significant changes to how school-age kids are protected from many viruses.
Arianna Prothero, July 15, 2025
7 min read
Photo of teen girl using cellphone.
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Student Well-Being & Movement The Online Behaviors Most Harmful to Kids’ Mental Health, According to a New Survey
A new survey asked 11- to 13-year-olds how they felt when they engaged in certain behaviors online.
5 min read
President Donald Trump signs his signature bill of tax breaks and spending cuts at the White House on July 4, 2025, in Washington.
President Donald Trump signs his signature bill of tax breaks and spending cuts at the White House on July 4, 2025, in Washington. The bill cuts federal spending for Medicaid and food stamps—cuts that stand to affect students and trickle down to schools.
Evan Vucci/AP
Federal How Medicaid, SNAP Changes in Trump's Big Budget Bill Could Affect Schools
The bill will stress a major funding stream schools rely on, leading to ripple effects that make it harder for schools to offer free meals.
Brooke Schultz, July 9, 2025
6 min read
Academic boost sleep circadian start time 1705611814 01
Yutthana Gaetgeaw/iStock/Getty
School & District Management Explainer School Start Times and Student Sleep, Explained
Pediatricians want school to start later so older students can get more sleep. Districts say that's easier said than done.
Evie Blad, June 23, 2025
5 min read
Elsa Estrada, 6, smiles at her mother as pharmacist Sylvia Uong applies an alcohol swab to her arm before administering the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine at a pediatric vaccine clinic for children ages 5 to 11 set up at Willard Intermediate School in Santa Ana, Calif., Nov. 9, 2021.
Elsa Estrada, 6, smiles at her mother as pharmacist Sylvia Uong applies an alcohol swab to her arm before administering the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine at a pediatric vaccine clinic in Santa Ana, Calif., on Nov. 9, 2021. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has announced that the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is no longer recommending annual COVID shots for healthy children.
Jae C. Hong/AP
Student Well-Being & Movement What RFK Jr.'s New COVID Shot Recommendations Could Mean for Students
The health and human services secretary said that annual COVID shots are no longer recommended for healthy children.
5 min read
Student Carrera Crittenden participates in an activity during a theatre class at Weber High School, taught by Mark Daniels, on January 13, 2025 in Pleasant View, Utah. Daniels incorporates a lot of movement in the students during all of his classes.
Student Carrera Crittenden participates in an activity during a theatre class at Weber High School, taught by Mark Daniels, on January 13, 2025 in Pleasant View, Utah. Daniels incorporates a lot of movement in the students during all of his classes.
Kim Raff for Education Week
School & District Management Active Kids Are Better Learners. Here's How Principals Can Get Them Moving
In an era of waning recess, here are a few tips to make learning more than just a "sit-and-get" lesson.
Olina Banerji, May 20, 2025
4 min read
Teaching Profession Video In This School, Teachers Dance Their Stress Away
This New York charter school offers teachers a Friday afternoon dance class to decompress from the week and connect with each other.
2:22
Vivien Henshall, a long-term substitute special education teacher, works with Scarlett Rasmussen separately as other classmates listen to instructions from their teacher at Parkside Elementary School on May 17, 2023, in Grants Pass, Ore.
Vivien Henshall, a long-term substitute special education teacher, works with Scarlett Rasmussen as other classmates listen to instructions from their teacher at Parkside Elementary School on May 17, 2023, in Grants Pass, Ore. Proposals to change Medicaid spending could impact the classroom, where special education services are often covered by the federal health insurance program.
Lindsey Wasson/AP
Student Well-Being & Movement How Medicaid Spending Cuts Could Harm Schools
Districts use Medicaid to cover costs of special education, student services. Cuts to the program would hurt, superintendents said.
Evie Blad, April 18, 2025
4 min read
Vials of the MMR measles mums and rubella virus vaccine are displayed Tuesday, Feb. 25, 2025, in Lubbock, Texas.
Vials of the MMR measles mums and rubella virus vaccine are displayed Tuesday, Feb. 25, 2025, in Lubbock, Texas. As the West Texas measles outbreak grew, a school nurse in Columbus, Ohio, persuaded parents of unvaccinated children at her school to get immunized.
Julio Cortez/AP
Student Well-Being & Movement How a School Nurse Convinced Parents to Vaccinate Their Kids Against Measles
“We know that parents trust not only nurses, but especially school nurses," said Kate King, a school nurse in Columbus, Ohio.
Caitlynn Peetz Stephens, April 16, 2025
6 min read
Closeup photo of a white adolescent exhaling smoke from an e-cigarette
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Student Well-Being & Movement Federal Efforts Have Curbed Teen Vaping. Will the Recent Cuts Change That?
Efforts to curtail youth vaping may be in peril after dramatic federal staffing cuts.
Evie Blad & Mark Walsh, April 2, 2025
6 min read