“I Wasn’t Sure What It Meant to Be Honest”—Formative Research Towards a Physical Literacy Intervention for Preschoolers
Abstract
:1. Introduction
2. Materials and Methods
2.1. Study Design
2.2. Participants
2.3. Data Collection and Analysis
2.3.1. Phase One: Interviews
2.3.2. Phase Two: Focus Groups
3. Results
3.1. Understanding of Physical Literacy
3.1.1. Expert Perspectives
3.1.2. Practitioner Perspectives
3.2. Policy and Environmental Strategies to Support Physical Literacy
3.2.1. Expert Perspectives
3.2.2. Practitioner Perspectives
3.3. Programme Design & Implementation
3.3.1. Expert Perspectives
3.3.2. Practitioner Perspectives
3.4. Training for Practitioners
3.4.1. Expert Perspectives
3.4.2. Practitioner Perspectives
4. Discussion
4.1. Understanding Physical Literacy
4.2. Barriers to Physical Literacy
4.3. Strategies to Support Physical Literacy
4.4. Training for Children’s Centre Staff
4.5. Programme Design
4.6. Methodological Considerations
5. Conclusions
- The initial goal of a PL intervention should be to educate children’s centre staff about the concept of PL through onsite training prior to the start of the intervention, ensuring staff fully understand the concept, particularly elements relating to motivation, confidence, knowledge, and understanding. In turn, children’s centre staff will be able to cascade this concept to children’s centre staff and parents/carers through a train-the-trainer model and engagement in experiential learning.
- An intervention should be designed in collaboration between researchers, children’s centre staff, and other relevant stakeholders who have the skills/knowledge to aid in the effective design and delivery of the programme.
- There should be flexibility in the intervention design to allow for variation between settings, e.g., the physical space available, storage, or differing targets/priorities between centres.
- Physical resources should be made available for the duration of the intervention and beyond for children’s centre staff, providing them with reference materials and ideas for activities that they can implement within their centre, e.g., session plans and activity cards.
- The intervention should be aligned to current policy/centre targets in order to ensure that it will be feasible for centres to allocate time and resources, i.e., funding for the delivery of the intervention and aid in its continuation and sustainability over the long-term.
Author Contributions
Funding
Acknowledgments
Conflicts of Interest
References
- International Physical Literacy Association. Definitions. Available online: https://www.physical-literacy.org.uk (accessed on 22 April 2020).
- Giblin, S.; Collins, D.; Button, C. Physical literacy: Importance, assessment and future directions. Sports Med. 2014, 44, 1177–1184. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed] [Green Version]
- Longmuir, P.E.; Tremblay, M.S. Top 10 research questions related to physical literacy. Res. Q. Exerc. Sport 2016, 87, 28–35. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Whitehead, M. Physical Literacy: Throughout the Lifecourse; Whitehead, M., Ed.; Routledge: Abingdon, UK, 2010. [Google Scholar]
- Edwards, L.C.; Bryant, A.S.; Keegan, R.J.; Morgan, K.; Jones, A.M. Definitions, foundations and associations of physical literacy: A systematic review. Sports Med. 2017, 47, 113–126. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed] [Green Version]
- Shearer, C.; Goss, H.R.; Edwards, L.C.; Keegan, R.J.; Knowles, Z.R.; Boddy, L.M.; Durden-Myers, E.J.; Foweather, L. How is physical literacy defined? A contemporary update. J. Teach. Phys. Educ. 2018, 37, 237–245. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Bellew, B.; Bauman, A.; Brown, W. Evidence-based policy and practice of physical activity in Australia: Awareness and attitudes of attendees at a national physical activity conference (the PAPPA study). Health Promot. J. Aust. 2010, 21, 222–228. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Jones, R.A.; Hinkley, T.; Okely, A.D.; Salmon, J. Tracking physical activity and sedentary behavior in childhood: A systematic review. Am. J. Prev. Med. 2013, 44, 651–658. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- Taylor, R.W.; Williams, S.M.; Farmer, V.L.; Taylor, B.J. Changes in physical activity over time in young children: A longitudinal study using accelerometers. PLoS ONE 2013, 8, e81567. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed] [Green Version]
- Jago, R.; Solomon-Moore, E.; Macdonald-Wallis, C.; Sebire, S.J.; Thompson, J.L.; Lawlor, D.A. Change in children’s physical activity and sedentary time between Year 1 and Year 4 of primary school in the B-PROACT1V cohort. Int. J. Behav. Nutr. Phys. Act. 2017, 14, 33. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [Green Version]
- Department for Education (Ed.) Early Years Entitlements: Operational Guidance for Local Authorities and Providers; Department for Education: London, UK, 2018.
- Standards & Testing Agency. Early Years Foundation Stage Profile 2018 Handbook; Department for Education, Ed.; Department for Education: London, UK, 2017.
- Brofenbrenner, U. The Ecology of Human Development: Experiments by Nature and Design; Harvard University Press: Cambridge, MA, USA, 1979. [Google Scholar]
- Brofenbrenner, U.; Morris, P. The Ecology of Developmental Processes. In Handbook of Child Psychology, 5th ed.; Vol. 1: Theoretical Models of Human Development; John Wiley and Sons Inc: New York, NY, USA, 1998. [Google Scholar]
- Brofenbrenner, U.; Morris, P. The Bioecological Model of Human Development. In Handbook of Child Psychology, 6th ed.; Theoretical Models of Human Development; John Wiley: New York, NY, USA, 2006; Volume 1. [Google Scholar]
- Copeland, K.A.; Kendeigh, C.A.; Saelens, B.E.; Kalkwarf, H.J.; Sherman, S.N. Physical activity in child-care centers: Do teachers hold the key to the playground? Health Educ. Res. 2012, 27, 81–100. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [Green Version]
- Roscoe, C.M.P.; James, R.S.; Duncan, M.J. Preschool staff and parents’ perceptions of preschool children’s physical activity and fundamental movement skills from an area of high deprivation: A qualitative study. Qual. Res. Sport Exerc. Health 2017, 9, 619–635. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Tonge, K.L.; Jones, R.A.; Okely, A.D. Correlates of children’s objectively measured physical activity and sedentary behavior in early childhood education and care services: A systematic review. Prev. Med. 2016, 89, 129–139. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed] [Green Version]
- Roth, K.; Kriemler, S.; Lehmacher, W.; Ruf, K.C.; Graf, C.; Hebestreit, H. Effects of a Physical activity intervention in preschool children. Med. Sci. Sports Exerc. 2015, 47, 2542–2551. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [Green Version]
- De Bock, F.; Genser, B.; Raat, H.; Fischer, J.E.; Renz-Polster, H. A participatory physical activity intervention in preschools: A cluster randomized controlled trial. Am. J. Prev. Med. 2013, 45, 64–74. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- Gehris, J.S.; Gooze, R.A.; Whitaker, R.C. Teachers’ perceptions about children’s movement and learning in early childhood education programmes. Child Care Health Dev. 2015, 41, 122–131. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Tucker, P.; van Zandvoort, M.M.; Burke, S.M.; Irwin, J.D. Physical activity at daycare: Childcare providers’ perspectives for improvements. J. Early Child. Res. 2011, 9, 207–219. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Marshall, C.; Rossman, G.B. Designing Qualitative Research, 6th ed.; SAGE: Thousand Oaks, CA, USA, 2016. [Google Scholar]
- Roller, M.R.; Lavrakas, P.J. Applied Qualitative Research Design: A Total Quality Framework Approach; The Guilford Press: New York, NY, USA, 2015. [Google Scholar]
- Sim, J. Collecting and analyzing qualitative data: Issues raised by the focus group. J. Adv. Nurs. 2001, 28, 345–352. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- Braun, V.; Clarke, V. Using thematic analysis in psychology. Qual. Res. Psychol. 2006, 3, 77–101. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [Green Version]
- Braun, V.; Clarke, V. Successful Qualitative Research: A Practical Guide for Beginners; Sage: London, UK, 2013. [Google Scholar]
- Smith, B.; Caddick, N. Qualitative methods in sport: A concise overview for guiding social scientific sport research. Asia Pac. J. Sport Soc. Sci. 2012, 1, 60–73. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Ivanoff, S.D.; Hultberg, J. Understanding the multiple realities of everyday life: Basic assumptions in focus-group methodology. Scand. J. Occup. Ther. 2006, 13, 125–132. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Kitzinger, J. The methodology of Focus Groups: The importance of interaction between research participants. Sociol. Health Illn. 1994, 16, 103–121. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Department for Education (Ed.) Statutory Framework for The Early Years Foundation Stage; Department for Education: London, UK, 2014.
- Sport Wales. Physical Literacy a Journey Through Life. Available online: http://physicalliteracy.sportwales.org.uk/en/ (accessed on 26 November 2018).
- Physical Literacy. What is Physical Literacy. Available online: http://physicalliteracy.ca/physical-literacy/ (accessed on 23 April 2020).
- Sport Australia. Physcial Literacy. Available online: https://www.sportaus.gov.au/physical_literacy (accessed on 19 June 2020).
- The Centre for Sport Physical Education & Activity Research. Evaluation of the Physical Literacy Programme for Schools & Physical Literacy Framework. Available online: https://www.canterbury.ac.uk/social-and-applied-sciences/spear/research-projects/physical-literacy-for-schools.aspx (accessed on 23 April 2020).
- Cools, W.; De Martelaer, K.; Samaey, C.; Andries, C. Fundamental movement skill performance of preschool children in relation to family context. J. Sports Sci. 2011, 29, 649–660. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- Yao, C.A.; Rhodes, R.E. Parental correlates in child and adolescent physical activity: A meta-analysis. Int. J. Behav. Nutr. Phys. Act. 2015, 12, 10. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed] [Green Version]
- Barnett, L.M.; Hinkley, T.; Okely, A.D.; Salmon, J. Child, family and environmental correlates of children’s motor skill proficiency. J. Sci. Med. Sport 2013, 16, 332–336. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed] [Green Version]
- Tsangaridou, N. Early childhood teachers’ views about teaching physical education: Challenges and recommendations. Phys. Educ. Sport Pedagog. 2016, 22, 283–300. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Physical & Health Education Canada. Physical Literacy. Available online: https://phecanada.ca/activate/physical-literacy (accessed on 23 April 2020).
- 4Children. Sure Start Children’s Centres Census 2012; 4Children: Watford, London, UK, 2012. [Google Scholar]
- Department of Health & Social Care (Ed.) UK Chief Medical Officers’ Physical Activity Guidelines; Department of Health & Social Care: London, UK, 2019.
- University of Bristol. UK Physical Activity Guidelines Review. Available online: http://www.bristol.ac.uk/sps/research/projects/physical-activity/ (accessed on 23 April 2020).
- Department of Health & Social Care (Ed.) Childhood Obesity: A Plan for Action; Department of Health: London, UK, 2018; Chapter 2.
- Tremblay, M.S.; Chaput, J.P.; Adamo, K.B.; Aubert, S.; Barnes, J.D.; Choquette, L.; Duggan, M.; Faulkner, G.; Goldfield, G.S.; Gray, C.E.; et al. Canadian 24 h movement guidelines for the early years (0–4 years): An Integration of physical activity, sedentary behaviour, and sleep. BMC Public Health 2017, 17, 874. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- Okely, A.D.; Ghersi, D.; Hesketh, K.D.; Santos, R.; Loughran, S.P.; Cliff, D.P.; Shilton, T.; Grant, D.; Jones, R.A.; Stanley, R.M.; et al. A collaborative approach to adopting/adapting guidelines—The Australian 24-Hour Movement Guidelines for the early years (Birth to 5 years): An integration of physical activity, sedentary behavior, and sleep. BMC Public Health 2017, 17, 869. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Carver, A.; Timperio, A.; Hesketh, K.; Crawford, D. Are children and adolescents less active if parents restrict their physical activity and active transport due to perceived risk? Soc. Sci. Med. 2010, 70, 1799–1805. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- Schoeppe, S.; Duncan, M.J.; Badland, H.; Oliver, M.; Curtis, C. Associations of children’s independent mobility and active travel with physical activity, sedentary behaviour and weight status: A systematic review. J. Sci. Med. Sport 2013, 16, 312–319. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Brown, W.H.; Pfeiffer, K.A.; McIver, K.L.; Dowda, M.; Addy, C.L.; Pate, R.R. Social and environmental factors associated with preschoolers’ nonsedentary physical activity. Child Dev. 2009, 80, 45–58. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [Green Version]
- Trapasso, E.; Knowles, Z.; Boddy, L.; Newson, L.; Sayers, J.; Austin, C. Exploring gender differences within forest schools as a physical activity intervention. Children 2018, 5, 138. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [Green Version]
- Tandon, P.S.; Zhou, C.; Sallis, J.F.; Cain, K.L.; Frank, L.D.; Saelens, B.E. Home environment relationships with children’s physical activity, sedentary time, and screen time by socioeconomic status. Int. J. Behav. Nutr. Phys. Act. 2012, 9, 88. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed] [Green Version]
- Kaushal, N.; Rhodes, R.E. The home physical environment and its relationship with physical activity and sedentary behavior: A systematic review. Prev. Med. 2014, 67, 221–237. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Ross, S.M. Pre-K physical education: Universal initiatives and teacher preparation recommendations. Quest 2013, 65, 1–13. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Nicolopoulou, A. The alarming disappearance of play from early childhood education. Hum. Dev. 2010, 53, 1–4. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Wainwright, N.; Goodway, J.; Whitehed, M.; Williams, A.; Kirk, D. The foundation phase in Wales—A play-based curriculum that supports the development of physical literacy. Education 3–13 2016, 44, 513–524. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Lopes, L.; Santos, R.; Pereira, B.; Lopes, V.P. Associations between sedentary behavior and motor coordination in children. Am. J. Hum. Biol. 2012, 24, 746–752. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [Green Version]
- Chase, M.A. Children’s self-efficacy, motivational intentions, and attributions in physical education and sport. Res. Q. Exerc. Sport 2001, 72, 47–54. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Bryan, C.L.; Solmon, M.A. Student Motivation in physical education and engagement in physical activity. J. Sport Behav. 2012, 35, 267–285. [Google Scholar]
- Ames, C. Classrooms: Goals, structures and student motivation. J. Educ. Psychol. 1992, 84, 261–271. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Casbergue, R.M.; Bedford, A.W.; Burstein, K. CLASS reliability training as professional development for preschool teachers. J. Res. Child. Educ. 2014, 28, 426–440. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Han, H.S. Professional development that works: Shifting preschool teachers’ beliefs and use of instructional strategies to promote children’s peer social competence. J. Early Child. Teach. Educ. 2012, 33, 251–268. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Lonigan, C.J.; Farver, J.M.; Phillips, B.M.; Clancy-Menchetti, J. Promoting the development of preschool children’s emergent literacy skills: A randomized evaluation of a literacy-focused curriculum and two professional development models. Read. Writ. 2011, 24, 305–337. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Yamauchi, L.A.; Im, S.; Mark, L. The influence of professional development on educators’ instructional conversations in preschool classrooms. J. Early Child. Teach. Educ. 2013, 34, 140–153. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Fabiano, G.A.; Vujnovic, R.K.; Waschbusch, D.A.; Yu, J.; Mashtare, T.; Pariseau, M.E.; Pelham, W.E.; Parham, B.R.; Smalls, K.J. A comparison of workshop training versus intensive, experiential training for improving behavior support skills in early educators. Early Child. Res. Q. 2013, 28, 450–460. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Coulter, M.; Woods, C.B. Primary teachers’ experience of a physical education professional development programme. Ir. Educ. Stud. 2012, 31, 329–343. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [Green Version]
- Murphy, F.; O’Leary, M. Supporting primary teachers to teach physical education: Continuing the journey. Ir. Educ. Stud. 2012, 31, 297–310. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [Green Version]
- Petrie, K. Creating confident, motivated teachers of physical education in primary schools. Eur. Phys. Educ. Rev. 2010, 16, 47–64. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Jagosh, J.; Macaulay, A.C.; Pluye, P.; Salsberg, J.O.N.; Bush, P.L.; Henderson, J.I.M.; Sirett, E.; Wong, G.; Cargo, M.; Herbert, C.P.; et al. Uncovering the benefits of participatory research: Implications of a realist review for health research and practice. Milbank Q. 2012, 90, 311–346. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [Green Version]
- Hickey, G.; Brearley, S.; Coldham, T.; Denegri, S.; Green, G.; Staniszewska, S.; Tembo, D.; Torok, K.; Turner, K. Guidance on Co-Producing a Research Project; INVOLVE: Southampton, UK, 2018. [Google Scholar]
- Mitchell, J.; Skouteris, H.; McCabe, M.; Ricciardelli, L.A.; Milgrom, J.; Baur, L.A.; Fuller-Tyszkiewicz, M.; Dwyer, G. Physical activity in young children: A systematic review of parental influences. Early Child Dev. Care 2012, 182, 1411–1437. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [Green Version]
- Beets, M.W.; Cardinal, B.J.; Alderman, B.L. Parental social support and the physical activity—Related behaviors of youth: A review. Health Educ. Behav. 2010, 37, 621–644. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Gordon, E.S.; Tucker, P.; Burke, S.M.; Carron, A.V. Effectiveness of physical activity interventions for preschoolers: A meta-analysis. Res. Q. Exerc. Sport 2013, 84, 287–294. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- Morgan, P.J.; Barnett, L.M.; Cliff, D.P.; Okely, A.D.; Scott, H.A.; Cohen, K.E.; Lubans, D.R. Fundamental movement skill interventions in youth: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Pediatrics 2013. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed] [Green Version]
Higher Order Theme | Frequency (% Total) | Sub-Theme | Example Quote |
---|---|---|---|
Understanding of physical literacy | 15.7 | Lack of consensus/awareness | “My concern, is the message isn’t clear… what PL is, is not clear at all to schools that we work with and to pre-school settings.” (Expert_C) |
Importance of physical literacy for children | “I think of physical literacy as the foundation, or the core, or the building blocks to lifelong physical activity.” (Expert_B) | ||
Physical Competency | “Most of them [children] are below where they should be in terms of developmental milestones.” (Expert_C) | ||
Assessment of physical literacy | “I spent a couple of years trying to get people [researchers] to talk about measurement and how we would measure it [physical literacy], it was one of the most challenging things in my life.” (Expert_B) | ||
Policy and environmental strategies to support physical literacy | 24.6 | Barriers to implementation | “Fragmentation, that it’s really difficult, everybody’s [children’s centres] kind of doing their own thing, and wanting to do their own thing, and it’s quite difficult to try to roll out something [intervention/programme].” (Expert_A) |
Barriers within preschool environment | “I think there’s quite a lot of differences [between centres], depending on the physical facilities where the nurseries are based, but also depending on what policies and what the sort of the thinking and the culture, I suppose, that’s cultured by the nursery teachers and the leads.” (Expert_A) | ||
Changes in national policy | “Ensure that it’s mandated through policy and curriculum documents that children need to be exposed to educative movement context and learning experience to develop their physical literacy.” (Expert_E) | ||
Changes to preschool environment | “Playground opportunities, high quality playground programmes or outdoor spaces for individuals would be great, in terms of environmental changes.” (Expert_I) | ||
Greater child focused learning through play | “I would get them [setting staff] to really understand and be confident in that active play is not frivolous, it is learning.” (Expert_B) | ||
Limited seating time for children | “The small things teachers can do, taking ten minutes out of your day… do some type of movement and physical activity break, or taking ten minutes after lunch, and ten minutes when they wake up from a nap. That’s thirty minutes right there [of physical activity].” (Expert_I) | ||
Mandatory outdoor play | “I think most daycares or pre-schools take their kids outside at some point, but I would highly suggest they do it more, and longer… but just go outside for an extra thirty minutes, an extra hour, every day.” (Expert_B) | ||
Mobile play equipment | “Kids are more active when there’s mobile play equipment for them… if there’s a tricycle, they’re more likely to use the trike, or balls or hoops or whatever the equipment is, if it can move, they’re likely to move it, or move with it.” (Expert_H) | ||
Programme design and implementation | 33.2 | Collaboration between experts and practitioners | “I’d be sceptical of an academic designing an intervention that didn’t have the real-world experience, but still I’d be sceptical of an intervention designed purely for the real world that didn’t have the evidence base, so it has to be a combination.” (Expert_E) |
Buy in from centre staff | “It’s about getting buy-in…that’s the biggest issue at the moment. I’m looking at trying to elevate the value of physical literacy at the moment, so that people within school actually start to gain buy-in.” (Expert_D) | ||
Primary goal(s) for intervention | “Actual engagement in activity, both within the care setting, but also possibly at home.” (Expert_B) | ||
Intervention delivery | “I guess you can imagine a world in which we can just hire a bunch of specialists to go out and do this, but I just think the resources to do that are enormous, and I won’t speak for anywhere other than the US, but I just think that that’s not likely to be a successful approach.” (Expert_H) “Oh, it definitely has to be the settings staff [delivering an intervention], yes. It has to be the preschool educators.” (Expert_F) | ||
Duration and dosage of intervention | “I think for something to become embedded in a service, you probably need to have a longer period of time…. I think between twelve and eighteen months at least.” (Expert_F) | ||
Activities and experiences | “A graded variety of tasks that have different levels of challenge are really important, because kids, particularly young kids, will lose motivation and become easily and quickly frustrated if it’s too hard or they can’t do it.” (Expert_E) | ||
Targeting boys and girls separately | “No, I would support keeping them [both genders] together, or structuring the activity and the environment so that it isn’t perceived as a competitive activity, and that they can learn together and learn from each other.” (Expert_A) | ||
Outside of the preschool | “We can’t underestimate the impact that the family have on the children within the preschool setting. So we need to address that as well as preschool setting.” (Expert_C) | ||
Unlimited budget | “I would put an expert in every pre-school. I would put a full-time expert in every pre-school in the country, whose primary job was to get these kids active, playing games, moving proficiently.” (Expert_B) | ||
Training for practitioners | 26.4 | Early years teacher training | “There’s a massive lack of impetus with physical literacy on initial teacher training and on childcare course…. I think people are coming away from their training as postgrads and achieving their certificates of childcare without a firm grasp of what physical activity and physical literacy really means.” (Expert_C) |
Understanding of physical literacy | “In terms of the knowledge and understanding that they [preschool staff] need, I think they need a basic understanding of what the concept [physical literacy] is initially.” (Expert_D) | ||
Understanding of physical activity | “The need to understand the importance of PL and of physical activity for our nation as a whole, and how it impacts on children’s lives.” (Expert_C) | ||
Child development and motor skill competence | “They [children’s centre staff] definitely need to have a basic component or basic understanding of child development, and I guess, motor skill competency.” (Expert_I) | ||
Expertise of external trainer | “I would have to say I would favour someone with a physical education background, or a kinesiology background for that matter, at the very least, but again, that also depends on the person.” (Expert_B) | ||
Training delivery | “I think that when you’re working with practitioners, they need to see the importance of what you’re [external practitioner] trying to do.” (Expert_F) |
Higher Order Theme | Sub-Theme | Example Quote |
---|---|---|
Understanding of physical literacy | Lack of consensus/awareness | “It’s not something I’ve come across. Physical development, you hear constantly, but physical literacy, I’ve not really heard.” (Particpant1_CentreA) |
Importance of physical literacy for children | “You need all of those things [outlined in definition of physical literacy]. You need to be motivated, don’t you, and be confident, and actually competent as well [to be physically active].” (Particpant2_CentreA) | |
Physical competency | “There is a delay in gross motor skills in our children in this area.” (Partcipant1_CentreB) | |
Assessment of physical literacy | “We don’t, do we?” (Particpant1_CentreA) “I think we’re not great at measuring things, and we need to get better at that, and that’s something we’re working on at the moment.” (Participant2_CentreB) | |
Preschool environment and environmental changes | Barriers to implementation | “[A lack of] accessibility, and space, and resources, and money.” (Participant1_CentreD) |
Barriers within preschool environment | “We’ve only got a very small outdoor space in the children’s centre. It’s like a postage stamp. So there’s not much you can do.” (Participant2_CentreD) | |
Changes in national policy | “Because with the pressures of the National Curriculum, and the testing children, this has put pressures on schoolteachers to reduce the number of hours that children are spending in physical activity, and I don’t necessarily agree with it, but I think that the more physical activity children have, then the better able they are to be able to do the academic side of their schooling.” (Participant1_CentreC) | |
Changes to preschool environment | “We’d like a big outside area, and we’d like a big room. A hall would be nice.” (Participant2_CentreD) “[We’d like] a nice big outdoor space.” (Particpant1_CentreB) | |
Greater child focused learning through play | “That’s their [children’s] way of learning anyway, especially in the early years.” (Partcipant4_CentreC) | |
Limited seating time for children | “That should be mandatory.” (Participant3_Centre D) “I’d say no more than fifteen [minutes of sitting]. After twenty minutes, you can see the agitation generally, yes.” (Participant2_CentreC) | |
Mandatory outdoor play | “Yes, but I do think that the message needs to go across that while the children are doing outdoor play, there is actually something intellectual going on, because otherwise people won’t buy it. Schools wouldn’t buy it, and parents wouldn’t buy it.” (Particpant1_CentreA) “They [parents] don’t take to it [bad weather] very well at all.” (Participant3_CentreA) | |
Mobile play equipment | “So I think when they can move things around and make stuff out of it, the concentration and the confidence is there, isn’t it, and they’ll stay for longer, and they’ll work co-operatively as well.” (Particpant2_CentreA) | |
Programme design and implementation | Collaboration between experts and practitioners | “I mean, you couldn’t just have academics... I mean, that just doesn’t work, so you’d have to have people who were trying to design a programme going and watching groups as well initially, and then discussing and talking, and discussing what would work, saying what your aims and objectives are, and how to reach them, yes.” (Participant3_CentreC) |
Buy in from centre staff | “Staff need to be confident, and believe in what they are delivering, because if you go to a group, and the teacher or whoever it is, is sort of half-hearted and doesn’t believe it themselves, then it’s not going to be successful. So you need to be sort of confident, and believe in what you’re doing as well.” (Participant1_CentreD) | |
Primary goal(s) for intervention | “I think a primary goal would be as well, making the parents and the kids, making them educated, making parents the educators. They’re ultimately responsible for their children’s physical development.” (Participant2_CentreD) | |
Intervention delivery | “Centre staff, I think are going to be capable of doing it [delivering an intervention], as long as they’ve had the training and everything behind it, yes. I think staff’d be more confident to do it if they’ve got the training and the package and everything behind it.” (Particpant1_CentreA) “I would like it to be so many weeks of say, ourselves doing it, and then a guest coming in to do it, you know, somebody come in.” (Particpant3_CentreA) | |
Duration and dosage of intervention | “I think it should just be ongoing.” (Participant4_CentreD) | |
Activities and experiences | “Maybe making games and stuff out of everyday materials, or something like that, so it’s affordable for parents as well.” (Participant4_CentreC) | |
Outside of the preschool | “And they [children] learn through parents as role models as well, so it’s actually engaging. There’s no point doing loads of activities just for children, if the parents aren’t actually doing the activity as well, and the children don’t follow.” (Particpant3_CentreA) | |
Unlimited budget | “If we had an unlimited budget, well, we’d have a fabulous outdoor play area.” (Particpant2_CentreA) | |
Training for practitioners | Early Years Teacher Training | “It all comes down to training and education, because if you’ve got staff who don’t realise, if they’ve never had the early education, the pre-school learning, then they’ll go, ‘Oh yes, just give them a ball’, and that’s it.” (Participant1_CentreD) |
Understanding of physical literacy | “If we’re professionals, and we don’t understand [physical literacy], and if a parent said, ‘Oh, I don’t know what that is.’ Well, neither do we, sorry. We’ve had no training on it.” (Particpant2_CentreB) “I think there’d have to be a really big push on it [physical literacy], because, I mean, wording’s so important, and language is so important.” (Particpant1_CentreB) | |
Understanding of physical activity | “Because it’s always numeracy, and whenever we go on courses, the first thing is communication and language, and maths, or literacy. It never is about being physical.” (Particpant3_CentreA) | |
Child development and motor skill competence | “Because people have expectations that are unrealistic of some children, and if the children are, the difference between a child who’s maybe just two, and a child who’s nearly three, in that same room, it’s massive. So they need to be aware of child development, which a lot of them are.” (Particpant2_CentreA) “I think it’d be a good idea, but I think you’d need to look at what the skilled staff already have. We would have a good knowledge as nursery nurses, of a lot of that.” (Participant2_CentreB)“Maybe educate them [centre staff] also about certain kind of activities, what it does to children, what it does to them, because every activity’s different again, and there’s so many.” (Participant4_CentreC) “Yes. Well, you need to know what a child should be doing at a certain age. That’s it, isn’t it? You need to know where they should be.” (Participant5_CentreC) | |
Training delivery | “I think you need a variety of approaches. Sometimes it’s good to have in-house training, but it’s also good to go out and see what happens in other areas, and other settings, and pick your best. Teachers are very good at that, taking all the good ideas from other places.” (Participant2_CentreC) |
© 2020 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
Share and Cite
Foulkes, J.D.; Foweather, L.; Fairclough, S.J.; Knowles, Z. “I Wasn’t Sure What It Meant to Be Honest”—Formative Research Towards a Physical Literacy Intervention for Preschoolers. Children 2020, 7, 76. https://doi.org/10.3390/children7070076
Foulkes JD, Foweather L, Fairclough SJ, Knowles Z. “I Wasn’t Sure What It Meant to Be Honest”—Formative Research Towards a Physical Literacy Intervention for Preschoolers. Children. 2020; 7(7):76. https://doi.org/10.3390/children7070076
Chicago/Turabian StyleFoulkes, Jonathan D., Lawrence Foweather, Stuart J. Fairclough, and Zoe Knowles. 2020. "“I Wasn’t Sure What It Meant to Be Honest”—Formative Research Towards a Physical Literacy Intervention for Preschoolers" Children 7, no. 7: 76. https://doi.org/10.3390/children7070076