Science Education in Health Ed Class: Tobacco and Addiction

与其他发达国家相比，美国青少年的科学素养水平较低， 国家教育统计中心（National Center for Education Statistics）这一缺陷的后果是， 学生没有工具就涉及其健康的问题作出知情的决定。一个领域 学生可能缺乏科学工具来做出健康的选择，这就是烟草产品的使用。在 特别是烟草业可能会利用我们学生缺乏科学素养， 特别是他们所谓的创意营销 更安全 烟草制品（即，轻型/超轻型香烟， 减少接触的产品， 自然 香烟和无烟烟草）。研究表明 不吸烟的青少年可能会被引诱使用这些产品， 更安全 暗示或 他们可能会延迟戒烟，认为稍后会有更安全的替代品。 目前，教授学生有关烟草、吸烟和成瘾的主要论坛是高 学校健康教育课程。然而，健康教育课程通常不提供科学的水平， 对这些重要问题的理解。此外，这些课程的教师通常都是体力劳动者。 教育教师，他们没有教授烟草和尼古丁科学的背景 成瘾因此，我们建议大学科学家和高中教师建立伙伴关系， 教师将科学纳入健康教育课程。该项目的总体目标是：1）增加 青少年关于烟草使用和尼古丁成瘾问题的科学素养，2）为学生提供 工具来抵制替代烟草产品的创造性营销，以及3）帮助学生做出适当的 关于（不）吸烟或使用其他烟草产品的决定，这些烟草产品隐含声称 更安全 比普通香烟。为了实现这些目标，我们有5个具体目标：1）发展科学教育- 在高中健康教育课程中使用基于烟草产品和尼古丁成瘾的模块; 2） 为健康教育教师提供专业发展，帮助他们成为 科学教育模块; 3）在高中健康课程中实地测试科学教育模块 使用随机对照设计; 4）对科学的影响进行多模式评估 关于若干成果的教育模块，包括关于成瘾和癌症的科学内容知识， 学生对成瘾和癌症的风险认知，抵抗市场营销的能力， 更安全 烟草制品， 对吸烟/使用烟草制品的敏感性，以及自我报告的使用情况; 5）在全国范围内传播该方案。 我们建议，我们的方法可以作为一个模式，使用科学教育，以防止青少年对 关于导致疾病的法律的和非法物质的持续信息，包括 成瘾这对于高中健康教育课程尤其适用。项目叙述： 该项目将科学教育纳入高中健康教育课程。我们建议， 这种方法可以作为一种模式，利用科学教育来帮助青少年对抗不断的炮火 关于导致疾病（包括成瘾）的法律的和非法物质的信息。

Science literacy in the US adolescent population ranks low compared to other developed nations and is declining (National Center for Education Statistics). A consequence of this deficiency has been that students do not have the tools to make informed decisions about issues concerning their health. One area in which students may lack the scientific tools to make healthy choices is in the use of tobacco products. In particular, the tobacco industry may be able to take advantage of our students' lack of scientific literacy, especially with their creative marketing of so-called safer tobacco products (i.e., light/ultralight cigarettes, reduced-exposure products, natural cigarettes, and smokeless tobacco). Research suggests that adolescents who don't smoke may be lured into using these products because of the safer implication, or they may delay quitting smoking thinking a safer alternative will be available later on. Currently, the main forum for teaching students about tobacco, smoking, and addiction is the high school health education course. Yet, health education courses do not typically provide a level of scientific understanding of these important topics. Moreover, teachers of these courses are usually physical education teachers, who do not have the background to teach the science about tobacco and nicotine addiction. Thus, we propose a partnership between university scientists and high school teachers to help teachers bring science into their health education course. Our overall goals of the project are to 1) increase science literacy of adolescents on the topic of tobacco use and nicotine addiction, 2) provide students with tools to resist the creative marketing of alternative tobacco products, and 3) help students make appropriate decisions about (not) smoking or using other tobacco products that carry implied claims of being safer than regular cigarettes. To achieve these goals, we have 5 specific aims: 1) Develop a science education- based module on tobacco products and nicotine addiction for the high school health education course; 2) Provide professional development to health education teachers to help them serve as learning facilitators of the science education module; 3) Field-test the science education module in high school health courses using a randomized, controlled design; 4) Perform a multi-modal evaluation of the effect of the science education module on several outcomes including, science content knowledge about addiction and cancer, students' risk perception of addiction and cancer, ability to resist marketing of safer tobacco products, susceptibility to smoke/use tobacco products, and self-reported use; 5) Disseminate the program nationally. We propose that our approach may serve as a model for using science education to inoculate teens against the constant barrage of information about legal and illegal substances that cause disease, including addiction. This is especially appropriate for the high school health education course. Project Narrative: This project brings science education to the Health Education class in high schools. We propose that our approach may serve as a model for using science education to inoculate teens against the constant barrage of information about legal and illegal substances that cause disease, including addiction.