TEACHERS' KNOWLEDGE ABOUT THE HEALTH AT SCHOOL PROGRAM IN A DISTRICT IN THE INTERIOR OF BAHIA

Abstract

The school environment is a privileged locus for health promotion, characterized as a space of intense social interaction and development of critical thinking. The implementation of the School Health Program (PSE), an intersectoral policy instituted in 2007, faces significant challenges in rural contexts, where the understanding of educational actors about its operational principles and guidelines can influence its effectiveness. Thus, the present study sought to analyze the knowledge of teachers from the municipal education network of the district of Pilar, municipality of Jaguarari-BA, about the program, identifying potentialities and weaknesses in its implementation. The study was characterized as exploratory-descriptive with a qualitative approach, carried out with 21 teachers from the three municipal schools in the district of Pilar. Data collection took place between February and May 2024, through semi-structured interviews. The data were submitted to Content Analysis according to Bardin, emerging four analytical categories: conceptual perception of the PSE, validity attributed to the program, understanding of intersectoriality and self-perception of the teaching role in the promotion of school health. It was evident that most teachers had superficial knowledge about the guidelines and components of the PSE, associated with the absence of specific continuing education. Despite this, the professors recognize the relevance of the intersectoral articulation between health and education, as well as the need for systematic and structured implementation of the program. The main obstacles were identified: insufficient material resources, discontinuity of actions, fragility in technical support and limitations in the effective integration between the sectors involved. The findings point to the need to strengthen the formative dimension of teachers regarding the theoretical-methodological foundations of the PSE, as well as to improve the mechanisms of intersectoral articulation in a rural context