A Pilot Intervention Using Gamification to Enhance Student Participation in Classroom Activity Breaks.

Rebecca E Hasson,Tiwaloluwa A Ajibewa,Gabriel Dellavecchia,Lexie R Beemer

doi:10.3390/ijerph16214082

Rebecca E Hasson, Tiwaloluwa A Ajibewa + Show 2 more

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https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16214082

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Abstract

The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of adding game design elements (goal setting, feedback, and external rewards) to an evidence-based physical activity intervention to increase in-class physical activity participation (intensity of activity breaks performed). Nine third- through sixth-grade classrooms (n = 292 students) in one elementary-middle school in Detroit, Michigan (49% female, 95% nonwhite; 80% qualified for free/reduced lunch) participated in this 20-week intervention where teachers implemented 5 × 4 min moderate-to-vigorous activity breaks per day. Gamification of activity breaks occurred during weeks 13–20 of the intervention and included the use of game design elements and classroom goals for activity break intensity. Moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) during activity breaks was measured via direct observation. There was a significant effect of intervention with a 27% increase in student MVPA participation during the gamified intervention weeks compared with the standard intervention weeks (p = 0.03). Gamification of activity breaks resulted in 55% (compared with 25% during the standard intervention) of students accumulating approximately 20 min of health-enhancing physical activity per day in their classroom. These findings provide preliminary evidence that gamifying activity breaks may be an important strategy for increasing student participation in classroom activity breaks.

Highlights

Despite the numerous health benefits associated with physical activity (PA), many children do not meet the national PA guidelines
Given the lower participation in classroom activity breaks among children attending under-resourced schools, the purpose of this study was to determine the effect of adding game design elements to an evidence-based PA intervention, Interrupting Prolonged sitting with ACTivity (InPACT), to increase in-class PA participation
There was a significant effect of intervention, with a increase in student engagement in of the standard intervention, 25.3% ± 0.20% of students were engaging in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) during an activity during anwas activity break during gamified intervention weeks compared with the standard break

Summary

Introduction

Despite the numerous health benefits associated with physical activity (PA), many children do not meet the national PA guidelines. Several programs have been developed that combine moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) with teaching and academic content, while others have used MVPA as a short break from seated academic instruction to re-energize students [1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9]. While these interventions have demonstrated success in increasing in-school PA, as well as improving fitness, weight status, on-task behavior, and academic achievement in children, lower participation has been. Public Health 2019, 16, 4082; doi:10.3390/ijerph16214082 www.mdpi.com/journal/ijerph

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