Nature Play and Fundamental Movement Skills Training Programs Improve Childcare Educator Supportive Physical Activity Behavior

Effect of capacity building interventions on classroom teacher and early childhood educator perceived capabilities, knowledge, and attitudes relating to physical activity and fundamental movement skills: a systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND

Capacity building may play an important role in improving classroom teachers' and early childhood educators' (ECE) capacity to implement physical activity and FMS interventions. Capacity building is the development of knowledge, skills, and structures to improve the capability of individuals and organisations to achieve effective health promotion. This review aimed to determine the efficacy of capacity building interventions on teachers' and ECEs' perceived capabilities, knowledge, and attitudes relating to physical activity and fundamental movement skills.

METHODS

An exhaustive literature search of six electronic databases was conducted. Controlled, single-group pre-post studies were included if they measured the effect of a capacity building intervention on in-service or pre-service classroom teachers' (primary or secondary) or ECEs' physical activity or fundamental skills related perceived capabilities, knowledge, or attitudes. The effects of interventions were synthesised using random effects meta-analysis. Subgroup analysis and meta-regression was conducted to determine if the effects differed based on study design, type of teacher (ECE vs. primary school), or teacher level (pre-service vs. in-service).

RESULTS

A total of 22 studies reporting on 25 unique samples were included in the meta-analyses. Only studies reporting on ECEs and primary school teachers were identified. Interventions most commonly included training/professional development, resources and toolkits, communities of practice, mentorships, and ongoing support. Results showed that capacity building interventions significantly improved teachers' and ECEs' perceived capabilities (g = 0.614, 95% CI = 0.442, 0.786), knowledge (g = 0.792 95% CI = 0.459, 1.125), and attitudes (g = 0.376 95% CI = 0.181, 0.571). The effects did not differ significantly as a function of any of the moderators examined.

CONCLUSION

Findings from this review provide strong support that capacity building interventions are efficacious at improving teachers' and ECEs' perceived capabilities, knowledge, and attitudes related to promoting physical activity and teaching fundamental movement skills. Pre-service teachers and ECEs should be provided training in physical activity and fundamental movement skills as part of their degrees, and continual professional development and capacity building should be offered to in-service teachers and ECEs to promote physical activity and fundamental movement skills in children.

Physical Activity-Related Practices and Psychosocial Factors of Childcare Educators: A Latent Profile Analysis

Limited research investigates early childhood education and care (ECEC) educators' involvement in promoting physical activity. The aim was to identify distinct profiles based on physical activity-related practices and psychosocial factors in ECEC educators and examine how they relate to the amount of time allocated to children's physical activity. A secondary analysis of educator-reported survey data from the Play Active study was undertaken. Educators (n = 532) reported on four practices and four psychosocial subscales adapted from the Environment and Policy Evaluation and Observation relating to the provision of physical activity in childcare. Latent profile analysis was used to identify distinct groups of educators based on their practices and psychosocial factors. Logistic regression analysed associations between latent profiles and educator-reported time provided for children's physical activity. Five profiles of educators' physical activity-related practices and psychosocial factors were identified. Profiles with higher practice scores also had higher psychosocial scores. Educators in profiles characterised by higher scores had greater odds of meeting the best practice guidelines for daily time allocated to children for total physical activity and energetic play. This study highlights interventions which address multiple educator behaviour change determinants to improve children's physical activity in childcare.

Early childhood educator outcomes from online professional development for physical literacy: A randomised controlled trial

INTRODUCTION

Early childhood is recognised as a critical window of opportunity for physical literacy development, however early childhood educators typically lack the training required to effectively provide appropriate physical literacy opportunities for children. We examined the effects of an online physical literacy professional development program-relative to continuing with 'standard' practice-on early childhood educators' physical literacy knowledge and application.

METHODS

We conducted a parallel two-arm randomised controlled trial, in which 88 early childhood educators were randomly assigned to an online professional development program designed to support educators' physical literacy instructional skills (intervention arm; n = 37), or a 'standard practice' control condition (n = 51). Data were collected prior to and after the four-week intervention period. We measured educators' physical literacy knowledge and application (our primary outcome) through independent coding of open-ended survey responses, and educators' self-reported perceptions of values, confidence, behaviours, and barriers (secondary outcomes). Between-group differences were assessed through analysis of covariance.

RESULTS

One intervention arm participant withdrew from the study, resulting in 87 participants included in analysis. Educators in the intervention arm scored significantly higher on post-intervention physical literacy knowledge (d = 0.62) and application (d = 0.33) than those in the control arm. Educators in the intervention arm also scored significantly higher than controls on confidence in teaching physical activity (d = 0.42) and significantly lower than controls on perceived personal barriers to physical activity (d = 0.53). Thirteen participants in the intervention arm (36%) did not begin the online professional development program.

CONCLUSION

Improvements in physical literacy instructional outcomes indicate the potential for further investigation into broader implementation of online professional development programs of this nature in the future.

Direct Parent Engagement to Improve Fundamental Movement Skills in Children: A Systematic Review

Fundamental movement skills (FMS) are basic movements in children that represent the building blocks for more complex motor skill development and act as a prerequisite for enduring sport and physical activity (PA) engagement and positive health-related behaviours. The FMS proficiency is currently inadequate worldwide, and consequently there are alarming levels of inactivity and childhood obesity. However, parents are role models to their children and possess the power to influence their PA behaviour. This review investigated if parent-focused interventions could improve FMS in 2-7-year-old children and evaluated which setting and method of parent engagement was most impactful. Keyword searches were conducted via Scopus, Web of Science, SPORTDiscus, PubMed, Science Direct, and Google Scholar. Only nine articles met the inclusion criteria. No research originated from the United Kingdom, highlighting the urgent need for further FMS interventions involving parents. The FMS improved in all nine studies, with significant changes in seven of the articles (p < 0.05). Parent-child co-activity, the education and empowerment of parents, and the provision of clear FMS guidance, messaging, and structure can positively influence children's FMS. Recently, smartphone apps have increased the feasibility and accessibility of FMS practice at home and may be integral to future interventions. Further research with direct parental involvement is clearly warranted.

Play Active physical activity policy intervention and implementation support in early childhood education and care: results from a pragmatic cluster randomised trial

BACKGROUND

Policy interventions to increase physical activity in early childhood education and care (ECEC) services are effective in increasing physical activity among young children. However, a large proportion of ECEC services do not have nor implement a physical activity policy. Play Active is an evidence-informed physical activity policy intervention with implementation support strategies to enable ECEC services to successfully implement their policy. This study examined the effectiveness, implementation, and process outcomes of Play Active.

METHODS

A pragmatic cluster randomised trial in 81 ECEC services in Perth, Western Australia was conducted in 2021. Services implemented their physical activity policy over a minimum of three months. The effectiveness outcomes were changes in educator practices related to daily time provided for total physical activity and energetic play. Implementation outcomes included changes in director- and educator-reported uptake of policy practices and director-reported uptake of high impact and low effort policy practices. Process evaluation outcomes included awareness, fidelity, reach, and acceptability of the intervention and implementation strategies. Analysis involved descriptive statistics and generalised linear mixed effects models.

RESULTS

There was a significant increase in the uptake of director-reported policy practices (p = 0.034), but no change in the uptake of the subset of high impact and low effort policy practices. Intervention group educators reported high awareness of the Play Active policy recommendations (90%). Play Active acceptability was high among educators (83%) and directors (78%). Fidelity and reach were high for most implementation support strategies (> 75%). There were no significant changes in the amount of physical activity or energetic play educators provided to children or in the proportion of educators providing the policy recommended ≥ 180 min of physical activity/day or ≥ 30 min of energetic play/day for intervention compared to wait-listed comparison services.

CONCLUSIONS

Play Active resulted in significantly higher uptake of physical activity practices. However, there was no change in the amount of physical activity provided to children, which may be explained by the relatively short policy implementation period. Importantly, Play Active had high awareness, fidelity, reach, and acceptability. Future research should investigate the effectiveness of Play Active over longer implementation periods and its scalability potential.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry (reference number 12620001206910, registered 13/11/2020, https://www.anzctr.org.au/Trial/Registration/TrialReview.aspx?id=378304&isReview=true ).

Maternal socioeconomic and lifestyle factors and life dissatisfaction associated with a small for gestational age infant. The Survey of Neonates in Pomerania (SNiP)

PURPOSE

The aim is to investigate the associations of the mother's socioeconomic and lifestyle factors and life satisfaction with the delivery of a small for gestational age (SGA) infant.

METHODS

Data from 4598 participants of the population-based birth cohort study Survey of Neonates in Pomerania (SniP) including comprehensive information on pregnancies, mothers, and their offspring in Western Pomerania, Germany were used in this study. The associations were analyzed using linear and logistic regression models.

RESULTS

After logistic regression analysis adjusted for height of the mother, women who delivered SGA infants, had lower education (p < 0.01) and smoked more frequently during pregnancy (p < 0.01) compared with mothers of adequate for gestational age (AGA) neonates. A mother with less than 10 years of education and one who continued smoking during pregnancy had an odds ratio (OR) of 2.23 [95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.44 to 3.46] and 2.68 (95% CI = 2.06-3.49) of having an SGA infant, respectively. There was no association between the employment of the mother (p = 0.28), the monthly income (p = 0.09), the family status (p = 0.80), the number of friendships outside the household that the mother would not wish to relinquish (p = 0.47), the number of people that she could rely on in case of an emergency (p = 0.75), or alcohol consumption prior to (p = 0.14) or during the pregnancy (p = 0.99) with SGA. Finally, women who delivered SGA infants were more frequently dissatisfied with their employment (p = 0.03) and financial status (p < 0.01).

CONCLUSIONS

Women who delivered SGA infants had more associated socioeconomic and lifestyle risk factors and were more frequently dissatisfied with their life conditions than mothers of AGA neonates.

Training Pre-Service Early Childhood Educators in Physical Activity (TEACH): Protocol for a Quasi-Experimental Study

Background: Early childhood educators (ECEs) influence young children’s early uptake of positive health behaviours in childcare settings and serve as important daytime role models. As such, it is imperative that post-secondary early childhood education programs provide students with the foundational knowledge and professional training required to confidently facilitate quality active play opportunities for young children. The primary objective of the Training pre-service EArly CHildhood educators in physical activity (TEACH) study is to develop and implement an e-Learning course in physical activity and sedentary behaviour to facilitate improvements in: pre-service ECEs’ self-efficacy and knowledge to lead physical activity and outdoor play opportunities and minimize sedentary behaviours in childcare. This study will also explore pre-service ECEs’ behavioural intention and perceived control to promote physical activity and outdoor play, and minimize sedentary behaviour in childcare, and the implementation of the e-Learning course. Methods/Design: A mixed-methods quasi-experimental design with three data collection time points (baseline, post-course completion, 3-month follow-up) will be employed to test the e-Learning course in early childhood education programs (n = 18; 9 experimental, 9 comparison) across Canada. Pre-service ECEs enrolled in colleges/universities assigned to the experimental group will be required to complete a 4-module e-Learning course, while programs in the comparison group will maintain their typical curriculum. Pre-service ECEs’ self-efficacy, knowledge, as well as behavioural intention and perceived behavioural control will be assessed via online surveys and module completion rates will be documented using website metrics. Group differences across timepoints will be assessed using linear mixed effects modelling and common themes will be identified through thematic analysis. Discussion: The TEACH study represents a novel, evidence-informed approach to address the existing gap in physical activity and sedentary behaviour-related education in Canadian post-secondary early childhood education programs. Moreover, e-Learning platforms, can be employed as an innovative, standardized, and scalable way to provide ECEs with consistent training across jurisdictions.

Are Physically Active Breaks in School-Aged Children Performed Outdoors? A Systematic Review

(1) Background: Children spend an ever-increasing amount of time performing sedentary behaviors, and an important part of their daily life is at school. Learning in an outdoor environment improves children’s physical activity levels, and their cognitive and social spheres. Furthermore, physically active breaks are a solution to reduce sedentary behaviors and improve well-being and academic performance. The study evaluated the published literature on physically active breaks during school hours and explored (a) if the interventions were proposed in an outdoor context and (b) the outcomes of these interventions. (2) Methods: This review collected 31,559 articles from different electronic databases. After the screening, the results were analyzed narratively. (3) Results: 41 studies have been included in the analysis. As reported by the results, most of the interventions took place in the classroom, and only three studies were performed outside. A common aspect of all studies is the feasibility of active breaks, assessing positive outcomes. (4) Conclusions: Physically active outdoor breaks are poorly adopted, highlighting the necessity for deeper study on this topic. Although the protocols considered present differences, generally breaks increase physical activity levels, present positive learning outcomes, and improve social well-being. Furthermore, they are sustainable in terms of time, cost, and effort of the teacher.

Evaluating the effectiveness of the Play Active policy intervention and implementation support in early childhood education and care: a pragmatic cluster randomised trial protocol

BACKGROUND

Daily physical activity is critical during the early years of life for facilitating children's health and development. A large proportion of preschool children do not achieve the recommended 3 h of daily physical activity. Early childhood education and care (ECEC) services are a key setting to intervene to increase physical activity. There is a significant need for ECEC specific physical activity policy, including clearer guidelines on the amount of physical activity children should do during care, and strategies for implementation of these guidelines.

METHODS

This study is a pragmatic cluster randomised trial to evaluate the effectiveness of the Play Active physical activity policy intervention to improve early childhood education and care educator's physical activity-related practices. The central component of Play Active is an evidence-informed physical activity policy template which includes 25 practices to support nine age-specific recommendations on the amount of physical activity and sedentary time, including screen time, young children should do while in care. There are six implementation support strategies to facilitate physical activity policy implementation: (i) personalise policy (services select at least five of the 25 practices to focus on initially); (ii) policy review and approval; (iii) a resource guide; (iv) a brief assessment tool for monitoring children's energetic play; (v) professional development; and (vi) Project Officer implementation support (phone calls). A total of 60 early childhood education and care services will be recruited from metropolitan Perth, Western Australia. After baseline assessment, services will be randomly allocated to either intervention or wait-listed comparison conditions. Primary (educator-reported frequency and amount of daily time provided for children's physical activity, sedentary and screen time) and secondary (educator physical activity-related practices, self-efficacy, motivation, attitudes and beliefs, social support, and supportive physical environment) outcomes will be assessed at baseline and post-intervention, after intervention services have had a minimum 3 months of policy implementation within their service.

DISCUSSION

The Play Active trial will rigorously evaluate a novel physical activity policy intervention with implementation support that promotes positive physical activity behaviours in educators and children attending ECEC. If effective, the program could be adapted, scaled-up and delivered in ECEC services nationally.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry ACTRN12620001206910 (date of registration 13/11/2020).

Change in pre- and in-service early childhood educators’ knowledge, self-efficacy, and intentions following an e-learning course in physical activity and sedentary behaviour: a pilot study

Background

Early childhood educators (ECEs) are the primary daytime role models for many young children, and are responsible for facilitating physical activity (PA) opportunities and minimizing sedentary behaviour (SB) in childcare. However, they have reportedly received little related education in their pre-service training. The purpose of the Training pre-service EArly CHildhood educators in physical activity (TEACH) pilot study was to explore changes in pre- and in-service ECEs’ knowledge, self-efficacy, behavioural intention, and perceived behavioural control following the TEACH e-Learning course in PA and SB.

Methods

Pre-service ECEs were purposefully recruited from three Canadian colleges, while in-service ECEs were recruited via social media. A pre-post study design was used. ECEs completed two online surveys; one prior to, and one immediately following the completion of the TEACH e-Learning course (~ 5 h). Descriptive statistics were reported, and McNemar Chi-Square tests and paired samples t-tests were used to examine changes in ECEs’ question-specific, and total knowledge scores, respectively. Wilcoxon Signed Ranks tests were employed to examine changes in self-efficacy, behavioural intention, and perceived behavioural control.

Results

Both pre- (n = 32) and in-service (n = 121) ECEs significantly increased their total knowledge scores from pre- to post-course completion (p < .05*). Significant positive changes in self-efficacy (p < .025*), behavioural intention (p < .007*), and perceived behavioural control (p < .007*) were demonstrated by in-service ECEs following course completion, while only select composite scores within these tools were significant among pre-service ECEs.

Conclusions

These findings provide preliminary evidence of the potential efficacy of the e-Learning course at improving ECEs’ knowledge, self-efficacy, behavioural intention, and perceived behavioural control to support PA and minimize SB in childcare. Following the success of the pilot study, testing the effectiveness of the TEACH e-Learning course on a larger scale, with a comparison group, is warranted prior to recommending broader dissemination of the training in pre-service ECE programs and for in-service ECE professional learning.

Does Learning Through Movement Improve Academic Performance in Primary Schoolchildren? A Systematic Review

Physically active children have greater motor competence and a faster maturation compared with their sedentary peers. Recent research also suggests that physical activity during childhood may also promote cognitive development and therefore improve academic performance. The aim of this study was to understand if physically active academic lessons may improve academic achievement in primary schoolchildren. A systematic review following the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) guidelines was conducted. The search was performed on the following database: PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, Education Resources Information Center (ERIC), and PsycINFO (APA). Studies evaluating schoolchildren aged between 3 and 11 years taking part in educational contexts that include physical activity and natural environments evaluating physical fitness and/or educational outcomes were included. A total of 54 studies (for a total sample of 29,460 schoolchildren) were considered eligible and included in the qualitative synthesis. The Effective Public Health Practice Project risk-of-bias assessment revealed a moderate quality of the included studies with only two considered weeks. Despite differences in the retrieved protocols, physically active academic lessons improve the total time engaged in physical activity, motor skills, and/or academic performance. The results of this review suggest that learning through movement is an effective, low-cost, and enjoyable strategy for elementary schoolchildren.

Measuring Early Childhood Educators' Physical Activity and Sedentary Behavior-Related Self-Efficacy: A Systematic Review of Tools

Early childhood educators’ (ECEs) self-efficacy is often predictive of their ability and likelihood of promoting healthy activity behaviors in childcare settings. To date, ECEs’ physical activity and sedentary behavior–related self-efficacy has been measured in a variety of ways in childcare-based research, creating difficulty when comparing across studies. To identify the different approaches ECEs’ self-efficacy is assessed, the current study aimed to compare all existing tools that quantitatively measure physical activity and sedentary behavior–related self-efficacy of pre- and in-service ECEs. Seven online databases were searched for original, peer-reviewed, English-written journal articles. Articles were deemed eligible if they employed a tool which measured physical activity and/or sedentary behavior–related self-efficacy of pre- or in-service ECEs. A total of 16 studies were included in this review, and 13 unique tools were identified. All tools measured task self-efficacy (n = 13), while only 1 tool measured barrier self-efficacy, and approximately half of the tools (n = 7; 54%) reported on the validity and reliability. Great variability existed among the self-efficacy items included in the tools; however, common constructs included: teaching/leading physical activity, fundamental movement skill development, and physical activity programming. Very few tools mentioned sedentary behavior (n = 2) and outdoor/risky play (n = 2). Given the low number of studies that tested validity and reliability of their self-efficacy tools, the lack of consideration for barrier self-efficacy, and the paucity of tools that fully encompassed physical activity, sedentary behavior, and outdoor play considerations for ECEs, future research is needed to validate a new, reliable tool.

Finnish Pre-Service Teachers' Perceptions of Perceived Competence in Early Childhood Physical Education

Early childhood education and care (ECEC) teachers have a central role in supporting young children's physical activity (PA) and overall development in the early years. However, the value of early childhood education teacher training (ECETT) programmes is not widely understood. This study aimed to investigate pre-service teachers' perceptions of perceived competence when (1) supporting a child's PA, (2) teaching PE, and (3) observing and assessing a child's motor skills and PA. These self-evaluations were compared with a range of individual, educational, and behavioural characteristics. Final-year Bachelor degree pre-service teachers (n = 274; 54%) from seven universities in Finland participated in the self-report questionnaire. The results of the linear regression models showed that the relevant PE studies and previous experiences of pre-service teachers predicted higher perceived competence of supporting a child's PA, teaching PE, and observing and assessing a child's motor skills and PA. Thus, the study findings demonstrated how teacher training could positively influence perceptions and attitudes to increase a person's perceived competence when implementing PE in the early years. Overall, results reinforce the importance of PE in ECETT, and the time devoted to this syllabus area should be maintained or increased.

The Influence of the Early Childhood Education and Care Environment on Young Children's Physical Activity: Development and Reliability of the PLAYCE Study Environmental Audit and Educator Survey

(1) Background: Participation in physical activity is crucial for the healthy growth and development of young children. More robust measurement of environmental influences on children’s physical activity in early childhood education and care (ECEC) settings may help resolve inconsistencies in the literature. This study evaluated the reliability of an environmental audit and educator practice survey for assessing ECEC physical, policy, and social environments related to young children’s physical activity. (2) Methods: A convenience sample of 20 ECEC centres participated in this PLAYCE (Play Spaces and Environments for Children’s Physical Activity) sub-study. Trained auditors conducted audits and educators completed surveys, two weeks apart. Test-retest reliability of the survey (n = 32), inter-rater (n = 20 pairs) and intra-rater reliability (n = 38) of the audit was assessed using intra-class correlation coefficients (ICCs), Kappa statistics and percent agreement. (3) Results: Intra-rater and inter-rater reliability ICCs for outdoor equipment, spaces and features were good to excellent (ICC = 0.70–0.94), while ratings for indoor equipment, media and spaces varied from fair to excellent (ICC = 0.46–0.78). The majority of items were rated by Kappa as moderate or above for intra-rater, inter-rater and survey test-retest reliability. (4) Conclusions: The PLAYCE Study instruments provide reliable measures of ECEC physical activity environments which can help to better understand influences on young children’s physical activity.