The instructional time allocated for physical education during the school day does not provide sufficient opportunities for children to engage in recommended levels of physical activity.
To address this, NASPE’s Comprehensive School Physical Activity Program has been developed to promote physical activity (PA) throughout the school environment that supplements quality physical education programs. School physical activity clubs (PACs) are one opportunity for students to participate in PA in the school setting. There is limited research, however, regarding the challenges to implementing PACs. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine teachers’ perceptions of facilitators and barriers to implementing PACs.
Method:
Ten physical education teachers ranging in experience from three to 34 years from schools that did not have PACs participated in semi-structured interviews. Interview topics included potential club structure and curriculum, existing and needed resources, and barriers to starting a club. All interviews were recorded and transcribed verbatim.
Analysis/Results:
Modified grounded theory method was used to analyze the data. Data were coded line by line to derive categoriesthat were structured into higher order themes. Member checks of interview transcripts and peer debriefing of categories and themes were used to establish data trustworthiness. Participantsindicated they were interested in creating PACs and many had tried or were trying to implement programs. None of them had, however, been successful. Four higher-order themes emerged: academic pressure; district and school policies and infrastructure; supervision and support; and soliciting parent and student involvement.Teachers described the increased academic pressure associated with high stakes academic testing and new state teacher evaluation procedures that resulted in less time and resources for activities such as PACs. District and school policies and infrastructure such as transportation (busses), school routines (schedules), and financial support (lack of funds for equipment or stipends) were barriers to the implementation of PACs. Obstacles to providing supervision and support included the unspoken assumption that PA promotion is the solely the responsibility of physical education PE teachers, time conflicts resulting from coaching and personal obligations, and lack of volunteers. Finally, teachers identified soliciting parent and student involvement as a challenge to the successful implementation of a PAC.
Conclusions:
This study provides new insights into the barriers faced by teachers when attempting to implement PACs and can inform teachers, schools, and policy makers regarding structural changes that might be needed to facilitate increased PA opportunities in schools.