Best educational practices in the Republic of Croatia

It is well known today the level of physical activity has significantly decreased for children of all ages and the number of the overweight children is constantly growing. Regular PE class time, with the modest schedule is not sufficient for solving this global problem and is not sufficient as its prevention either. The vision of the Croatian government is to contribute to the increase in the students’ level of physical activity, and accordingly to their health, through various extracurricular programs. The primary purposes of these programs are to include a great number of students in certain physical activities and to create the habit of everyday physical exercise. In September 2007, and for the purpose of improving the standard of the pupils in elementary schools, the City Office for Education, Culture, and Sports of the City of Zagreb commenced with the implementation of the program of out-of-school sports activities under the title Weekends in Sports Gyms. Through the opening of the school sports gyms, conditions have been created for a large number of students to take up sports activities. During 2007, the Croatian School Sports Federation initiated the national program the Universal Sports School, which is intended for children aged 6 to 10, that is, for pupils from first to fourth grades of the elementary school. The objective of the Universal Sports School is to include the maximum number of the youngest pupils into organized physical activities, or sports activities, contributing to the creation of the habit of everyday physical exercise. During the past several years, school sports systems in Croatia have been experiencing numerous changes. These changes primarily reflect the efforts to include the maximum number of children and youth in the school sports system, that is, to ensure they are physically active. Health Education in Elementary and Secondary Schools is the topic which is integrated into current school subjects from 2013. Health education is held as a part of the following school subjects: nature and society, biology, physical education, and psychology.