Chief State School Officers rank barriers to implementing comprehensive school health education

Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) members were surveyed to determine their perception of barriers to implementing comprehensive school health education. CCSSO members were asked to prioritize the barriers and offer recommendations to overcome the barriers. A structured response, paired-comparison survey instrument was developed and mailed to 56 of 57 CCSSO members. Eighty-two percent of the members responded. CCSSO members perceived lack of administrative commitment as the number one barrier. Lack of adequately prepared teachers and insufficient time in the school day ranked second and third, respectively. While CCSSO members offered no recommendations for overcoming the number one barrier, recommendations to overcome other barriers included high-quality and more available preservice and inservice programs for teachers.