A Playground Training to Improve Children's Health After-school and During Recess: The PLAYground Project
Condition: Physical Inactivity; Social Skills; Behavior, Child
Study type: Interventional

Summary: 
      Schools are critical settings to foster children's health. The purpose of this two-year
      cluster-randomized trial is to enhance both the after-school and recess settings to provide
      children with knowledge and skills to facilitate active and inclusive play. The primary aim
      of the project is to assess the impact of a playground curriculum intervention on children's
      physical, social, emotional, and behavioral health. The secondary aim of the project to
      understand the appropriateness, feasibility, fidelity, and sustainability of implementing a
      playground curriculum in after-school and recess settings.
    

Detailed description: 
      Physical, social, and emotional health are critical for children and predict good health
      later in life. Schools are essential settings to foster children's health as they provide
      access to the majority of children during crucial stages of development. In particular,
      recess and before/after school programming are critical sources of children's health and
      well-being, and core components of a whole school approach to health and wellness. The
      purpose of this two-year cluster-randomized trial is to enhance the quality of these existing
      settings through the integration of a playground curriculum designed to promote active and
      inclusive play.

      Based on Social Cognitive Theory aligned with the Theory of Expanded, Extended, and Enhanced
      Opportunities, it is hypothesized that active and inclusive play through a playground
      curriculum intervention will improve enjoyment, knowledge, and self-efficacy (personal
      conditions), social and emotional learning (behavioral conditions), and the development of
      peer relationships (environmental conditions) among children, leading to increased physical
      activity and reduced behavioral incidents. The implementation (appropriateness, feasibility,
      fidelity, and sustainability) of the playground curriculum intervention to improve children's
      health will be assessed as a secondary outcome.

      Participants will be recruited from elementary schools in Mesa Public Schools (Arizona) that
      offer after-school programming (N=14). The intervention includes the delivery of a curriculum
      aimed at providing students with knowledge and skills to initiate activities using playground
      structures. Trainings will be delivered to staff (after-school staff, recess aides, and
      Physical Education teachers) and students in the after-school setting. Students attending the
      after-school program will become Play Leaders to transfer the knowledge and skills they learn
      from PlayOn! to the recess setting.

      The impact of the playground curriculum intervention on children's physical, social,
      emotional, and behavioral health after school and during recess will be measured using
      surveys, observations, interviews, physical activity devices, and de-identified school
      behavioral information. Data will be collected at all 14 school sites each fall and spring
      semester. In year one, seven schools will receive the intervention. Schools will be
      stratified to either the intervention or control group by Title 1 status - an indicator of
      school-level income. In year two, the seven control schools will receive the intervention to
      allow all schools the opportunity to benefit from the project.
    

Intervention name(s): PlayOn! playground curriculum
Intervention type(s): Behavioral
Intervention description(s): A staff and student training to implement a playground curriculum in after-school and recess settings
Allocation: Randomized
Intervention model: Crossover Assignment
Masking: Single (Outcomes Assessor)
Primary purpose: Treatment
Keywords: Physical Activity; Schools