Activating schoolyards: study design of a quasi-experimental schoolyard intervention study

BMC Public Health

Study Protocol

Mette Toftager¹  Hanne Bebendorf Scheller²  Jens Troelsen³  Jasper Schipperijn³  Charlotte Skau Pawlowski³  Henriette Bondo Andersen³ 

[1] Centre for Intervention Research in Health Promotion and Disease Prevention, National Institute of Public Health, University of Southern Denmark, Øster Farimagsgade 5a, 1353, Copenhagen K, Denmark;National Institute of Public Health, University of Southern Denmark, Øster Farimagsgade 5a, 1353, Copenhagen K, Denmark;Danish Cancer Society, Department of Prevention and Information, 2100, Strandboulevarden 49, Copenhagen Ø, Denmark;Research unit for Active Living, Department of Sports Science and Clinical Biomechanics, University of Southern Denmark, Campusvej 55, 5230, Odense M, Denmark;Centre for Intervention Research in Health Promotion and Disease Prevention, National Institute of Public Health, University of Southern Denmark, Øster Farimagsgade 5a, 1353, Copenhagen K, Denmark;

关键词: Study design;    Participatory intervention development;    Mixed method;    Schoolyards;    Physical activity;    GPS;    Accelerometer;    Observations;    Go-along interview;    Process;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s12889-015-1828-9

 received in 2014-11-21, accepted in 2015-05-12,  发布年份 2015

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundThe aim of the Activating Schoolyards Study is to develop, implement, document and assess a comprehensive schoolyard intervention to promote physical activity (PA) during school recess for primary school children (grade 4-8). The intervention is designed to implement organizational and structural changes in the physical environment.MethodThe study builds on a quasi-experimental study design using a mixed method approach including: 1) an exploratory study aimed at providing input for the developing process; 2) an evaluation of the effect of the interventions using a combination of accelerometer, GPS and GIS; 3) a process evaluation facilitating the intervention development process and identifying barriers and facilitators in the implementation process; 4) a post-intervention end-user evaluation aimed at exploring who uses the schoolyards and how the schoolyards are used. The seven project schools (cases) were selected by means of an open competition and the interventions were developed using a participatory bottom-up approach.DiscussionThe participatory approach and case selection strategy make the study design novel. The use of a mixed methods design including qualitative as well as quantitative methods can be seen as a strength, as the different types of data complement each other and results of one part of the study informed the following parts. A unique aspect of our study is the use of accelerometers in combination with GPS and GIS in the effect evaluation to objectively determine where and how active the students are in the schoolyard, before and after the intervention. This provides a type of data that, to our knowledge, has not been used before in schoolyard interventions. Exploring the change in behavior in relation to specific intervention elements in the schoolyard will lead to recommendations for schools undergoing schoolyard renovations at some point in the future.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© Andersen et al.; licensee BioMed Central. 2015