Abstract
In 2005, the Ontario Ministry of Education implemented the Daily Physical Activity (DPA) Policy to provide every elementary student with at least 20 minutes of sustained moderate to vigorous intensity physical activity each day. This exploratory research sought to understand the factors shaping DPA implementation in schools and classrooms, from the perspective of elementary school teachers and principals. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with Ontario grade 1-8 teachers (n=14) and elementary school principals (n=5) regarding DPA implementation, facilitators, barriers, perceived outcomes, and suggestions for change. The majority of participants stated that students were not meeting the requirements daily. However, participants shared activities and techniques for incorporating physical activity into instructional time. Facilitators and barriers to implementation were organized using the Analysis Grid for Environments Linked to Obesity (ANGELO) framework in order to identify factors acting at four environmental levels. The facilitators and barriers identified indicate that staff and resources within individual schools strongly influence implementation. Although many positive outcomes for students were identified, increased fitness was not mentioned, highlighting additional benefits above physical health. The findings suggest DPA is not being implemented as intended, as school staff are finding it difficult to meet the time and intensity requirements. Policy makers must consider the local school environment and the roles of school staff when designing school-based health policies.
Highlights
Increasing rates of childhood obesity have become a global public health concern [1]
The results are organized around five key themes: Daily Physical Activity (DPA) implementation strategies, perceived facilitators and barriers to implementation, perceived outcomes of DPA, and suggestions for change
While the policy states DPA must occur within instructional time, it does not recognize the difficulties of reaching sustained moderate to vigorous intensity physical activity (MVPA) in the small space of a classroom
Summary
Increasing rates of childhood obesity have become a global public health concern [1]. Childhood obesity increases risk for a range of chronic diseases including cardiovascular disease and diabetes and has been linked to negative psychosocial impacts due to bullying [2,3,4]. Children’s physical activity (PA) levels are alarmingly low [5,6]; this is concerning because it has been estimated that more than 5.3 million deaths in 2008 were attributed to physical inactivity [7]. The World Health Organization (WHO) has established a new target to lower global physical inactivity levels by 10% by 2025 [8]. Due to the links between physical inactivity and chronic disease in adulthood [9], increasing PA levels in children is likely to have preventative effects in adult life
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