Health literacy strategies improve outcomes for students and staff in educational institutions
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Key Takeaway
Consider integrating health literacy strategies to promote equity in educational institutions.
This scoping review evaluates 37 interventions designed to enhance health literacy within educational institutions. The interventions included curriculum-based, digital, peer-led, whole-organization strategies, staff development, and whole-school practices. The population encompassed elementary to secondary school students, teachers, counselors, school personnel, and university students.
All studies reported improved health literacy-related outcomes. Secondary outcomes included mental health literacy, oral health, infectious disease, pain, emergency preparedness, and WaSH literacy. The review did not report specific effect sizes, absolute numbers, p-values, or confidence intervals for these improvements.
The authors suggest that integrating these approaches into policies and practice may promote equity and improve student and staff outcomes. This positions schools and universities as important settings for health promotion and future intervention research. No adverse events or discontinuations were reported.
The review acknowledges that follow-up duration was not reported. Funding or conflicts of interest were not reported. The authors emphasize that these strategies may serve as a foundation for future research in health promotion within educational settings.
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BackgroundDisparities in health outcomes have been associated with inequitable access to health literacy and services. Additionally, reduced health literacy may lead to an unhealthy lifestyle, causing a decrease in quality of life and social inequities. Advancing health literacy is vital in educational organizations to curb gaps in social inequities. Adapting strategies to promote health literacy is essential for advancing equitable and effective educational organizations. Therefore, policies and interventions should aim to address any barriers that threaten inequities in the educational organization.ObjectiveThis scoping review aims to explore how advancing health literacy strategies within the school organization can promote health equity.MethodsA scoping review of current literature was conducted using Arksey and O′Malley’s framework and reported using the PRISMA-ScR (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews). Articles were identified using ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), PUBMED (Medical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System Online), EMBASE (Excerpta Medica Database), CINAHL Plus (Cumulative Index of Nursing and Allied Health Literature), and ProQuest Education Database. Included articles were restricted to the English language and the last twelve years to capture the most recent literature.ResultsThirty-seven interventions to advance health literacy in educational settings were identified, with most published between 2020 and 2025 (28/37). Twenty-nine targeted elementary to secondary school students, while fewer focused on teachers, counselors, school personnel, or university students. Most were individual-level interventions aimed at improving student health literacy, while organizational approaches emphasized staff development and whole-school practices. Strategies included peer-led programs, curriculum-embedded teacher-led interventions, digital tools, staff-focused training, and whole-school models. Mental health literacy predominated, though oral health, infectious disease, pain, emergency preparedness, and WaSH literacy were also addressed. All studies reported improved health literacy-related outcomes.ConclusionEvidence indicates that educational institutions may advance health literacy through curriculum-based, digital, peer-led, and whole-organization strategies. Integrating these approaches into policies and practice may promote equity, improve student and staff outcomes, and position schools and universities as important settings for health promotion and future intervention research.
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