Classroom Teachers’ Intentions To Provide Physical Activity Opportunities To Students: An Analysis Using Self-Determination Theory

Abstract

PURPOSE: Providing opportunities for elementary school-aged children to be physically active during the school day is important for obesity prevention and overall health. Classroom physical activity (CPA) has been shown to be effective for increasing student PA, but is not widely practiced among teachers. This study examined teachers’ perspectives on CPA, and intention to provide CPA, using a survey designed to measure constructs within the self-determination theory. METHODS: The constructs of Competence, Autonomy, Relatedness, and intention regarding CPA use were assessed using a survey of 173 elementary school teachers across 10 schools. The constructs were represented using the following subscales (each used a 6-point Likert-type scale from strongly disagree to strongly agree): Competence included three survey items (alpha = .94), such as “I am capable of using activity breaks in my classroom;” Autonomy included three items (alpha = .83), such as “I have a say in choosing whether to use activity breaks;” Relatedness included 4 items (alpha = .78), such as “providing opportunities for children to be physically active in my classroom is consistent with my priorities as a teacher;” and intention to implement CPA included 2 items (alpha = .77): “I definitely plan to try using activity breaks in my classroom,” and “I expect I will be able to use activity breaks regularly.” Multiple linear regression was used to examine how the constructs of Competence, Autonomy, and Relatedness predicted intention to provide CPA to students. RESULTS: Regression results indicated that the three predictors explained 44.1% of the variance (R2=.44, F(3,173) = 44.74, p<.001) in teacher intent to provide CPA. Competence (B = .31, t(173) = 4.92 p <.001) Autonomy (B = .19, t(173) = 3.15, p=.002) and Relatedness (B = .18, t(173)=3.40, p = .001) each significantly predicted intention. CONCLUSION: Competence was the strongest predictor of teachers’ intent to provide CPA. However, feeling autonomous to implement CPA and viewing CPA as compatible with their teaching philosophy also predicted teachers’ intention to provide CPA opportunities. Increasing teacher competence to provide CPA through professional development could be one effective method for increasing this practice. Supported by the Institute of Education Sciences grant R305A150277