The rate of child obesity is increasing in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) (
According to the WHO, one of the recommendations for child health is to achieve at least one hour of active physical activity per day (
The intent of this study is to explore PE teachers’ perceptions of the factors preventing successful implementation of physical activity at school to prevent childhood obesity.
How do teachers perceive the challenges of implementing the physical activity curriculum designed for the prevention of obesity in schools?
Children and youth spend a quarter of their daily time at school, another quarter sleeping, and the remaining quarter is insufficient for homework, social life, or hobbies. According to the
In fact, since 2010, the UAE ministry of education has integrated physical education lessons from kindergarten to secondary school; it has become mandatory in all school types. However, each emirate has mandated a slightly different number of lessons per week, ranging from 120 to 150 minutes per week (
The
The theory that fosters this study is Albert Bandura’s social learning theory, which posits that children learn from their environment through active observational learning and will imitate the behaviors of people they observe around them, so it’s important to provide good role models to show how to behave in a variety of situations. PE teachers, who serve as positive role models, must demonstrate physical activity concepts, allocate time for them, provide appropriate content for children, emphasize its importance for maintaining wellbeing, and devise strategies to consistently engage students to understand the concept of obesity, physical activity, and the relation between a healthy lifestyle and wellbeing, as well as the challenges to solving its problem. That theory can be effective in practice because it focuses on influencing learning through rewards and learning from the consequences of their behavior. Encourage positive behavior right away and focus solely on good behavior (
Additionally, there are many different models for implementing a curriculum based on the
We picked Social Learning Theory (SLT) and the Organizational Readiness for Change (ORC) model together because they work well together to explain how people and organizations operate in ways that are important for putting the physical exercise curriculum into action.
SLT focuses on learning by watching others, setting an example, rewarding positive behavior, and having faith in oneself. This topic fits with figuring out how teachers and kids do (or don’t do) physical activity in school.
ORC shows how willing and able an organization is to accept new ideas. The study was important because the way schools are set up, the resources they have, and the readiness of their leaders determine how well the curriculum is put into action.
Through the lens of SLT and ORC, the study questions were able to look at both micro-level (teacher/student/parent relationships) and macro-level (institutional preparation, policies, and resources) issues because of these frameworks.
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While the above researcher studied only the PE teacher’s perceptions, this study by
Summary
The literature focuses on the concern about childhood obesity and the role of the PE curriculum in solving such health problems. There are various plans to improve PA’s usefulness. According to their perceptions and thoughts, the PE teachers encountered obstacles that hindered them from going through it effectively. Internal and external factors were the most important barriers highlighted in the previous section. Internal factors, such as the PE teacher’s self-perception and confidence in knowledge and skills, could play a role. External factors, such as the facility preparation for the gym or the PA demonstration place, cause the time limitation because it’s dedicated to other scientists, and to increase the frequency of PE during the week, it will lead to cost savings by hiring extra teachers. It also highlighted the role of parents in supporting the PE program at school. Therefore, those reasons address the need for policy and intervention updates.
After reviewing the existing literature on this topic, I discovered that there are few studies examining the factors that hinder the successful implementation of the PE curriculum in alignment with the UAE national plan to combat obesity among schoolchildren. There is also a lack of qualitative studies to explore PE teachers’ perceptions of the obstacles to effective implementation of the PE class and derive from them solutions for future research.
A case study design, aimed to explore the factors preventing the effective implementation of PE classes in a private school in Abu Dhabi through an analysis of PE teacher’s perceptions. Utilizing a qualitative research approach the research questions necessitated an interview-based method for gathering information on potentially sensitive topics concerning attitudes, beliefs, and social norms. Placing data in a cultural context and generating additional hypotheses are essential for guiding further research. A semi-structured interview was essential to gain a better understanding of how and why this phenomenon exists
It is a suitable data collection method for assessing hypotheses or opinions, measuring respondents’ knowledge, preferences, attitudes, beliefs, and opinions, and testing hypotheses or identifying relationships. This method allows the investigator to control the conversation, but its limitation comes from the bias in the responses due to the researcher’s presentation
It’s conducted separately and face to face with the participants with a list of unstructured open end questions in Appendix A, to extract the participant’s opinion toward the PE constrain implementation factors.
With asking the questions the investigator takes hand writing notes of answers only there was no voice recording as requested from the participants. There was a space of time to allow the investigator down writing the collected data. Each participant takes 30 to 45 minute’s time.
The validity of the data is tested by allowing the participant to review a part of the analyzed themes and provide feedback.
After getting the permission of the research ethics committee at Buid University, the principal of a private school in Abu Dhabi verbally agreed to meet with two PE teachers for a female section of students aged 8 to 14. Two physical education teachers from one school were chosen for their direct participation in student physical activity and unique insight into childhood obesity. The tiny, context-specific sample limits transferability, but detailed descriptions of the school and individuals let readers assess applicability to other settings.
The study was conducted at a co-educational institution in Abu Dhabi that was enrolling approximately 1500 students. Physical education classes are held three times a week, and the school has an outdoor field that measures approximately 24 meters in length and 13 meters in width, but it does not have a gymnasium. This context assists in locating the reported barriers within the school’s available time and facility resources. In addition, the school’s central location in Abu Dhabi and high rank in the MOE evaluation led to its selection.
The participant also asked for permission to take notes during the interview. They have more than five years of teaching experience, hold a bachelor degree in PE education, and have trainer certificates for different sports. We assure the confidentiality of the information and will use the gathered data solely for research purposes without mentioning their names in any research phase.
We used a rigorous thematic coding technique to look at the qualitative data. First, open coding was used to identify basic ideas and assign codes to parts of text that were important. Next, axial coding was used to look for connections and trends in the data and organize related codes into groups. Finally, selective coding was utilized to improve these categories and bring them together into larger themes that fit with the research goals. To enhance the reliability of the analysis, intercoder checks were performed: a second researcher separately examined a portion of the transcripts, and any inconsistencies were deliberated until an agreement was achieved. This practice of going through the results several times made them more reliable and believable
The analyzed and collected data findings of the PE teachers are providing valuable data, as illustrated below:
* Do you respect and appreciate your work? If not, why?
The two participants reflect unsatisfaction and unmotivated compared with their job-beginning feelings. There are no regrets, but sometimes they feel fed up. Certainly, working in the private sector indicates low income, a lack of life access, and a need for cover, further indicating the sub-estimation of their specialty compared to other subjects. However, this decision will negatively affect future PE teachers.
* Rarely do PE teachers get invited to attend meetings to discuss curriculum topics. Other teacher subjects, such as English or math, may use the PE class time, particularly at the end of the semester, to focus more on those subjects than on PE. But if they face a problem with the curriculum, the door is wide open to discussing it with the supervisor.
* The school playing area is an important part of effectively practicing physical activity. How does it prevent you from leading the course?
Both participants agreed that the school indoor playing area and the availability of instruments for exercise practice were important, and their suffering was prolonged because the school building is old and the construction has enlarged the classroom rooms, reducing the available space for the playing area. The school’s purchase of instruments requires a large budget.
* During class, did all of the students demonstrate the planned games mentioned in the PE book?
Some students are careless and prefer working independently rather than collaborating with the curriculum, which often leaves both teachers dissatisfied. It is important to consider the impact of the student’s beliefs and social backgrounds. Positive rewards are also missing after the competition.
* Is the school manager arranging a meeting? Does the principal ensure proper implementation of the PE curriculum during scheduled visits?
They mentioned that the school director’s intention was to track the implementation of the curriculum, similar to other subject schedules. There are no other issues to discuss with the managers.
* Are the parents interacting with you and showing their interest in following their children’s physical activity, emphasizing its importance for overweight and obesity treatment? Are they seeking your evaluation?
Both interviewees strongly agreed on the lack of awareness about the importance of physical activity during school time in preserving child wellbeing and preventing obesity. Furthermore, one of them added that some children lack motivation from their parents to participate in low-intensity exercise, despite frequent contact regarding childhood obesity. Although government stakeholders are making a big splash around that and illustrating that in different international health development plans for children, obesity is certainly a topic.
* List the challenges for the PE curriculum implementation and obstacles to meeting the goals of schoolchild health and obesity prevention. Any solutions to start with?
Fix the PE curriculum implementation time in the weekly lesson plan, ensuring it takes 45 to 60 minutes at least 4 to 5 times per week. Moreover, we need the school principal to consider it as another important subject in the evaluation process that reflects the student’s inertia and weight improvement, not only as an assistant grade to the year-end certificate.
An application of educational psychology involves creating a schematic design or conceptual model to simplify concepts that are conceptually independent of one another and refer to phenomena at the same level of discourse. Proposing innovative questions and assisting in resolving real-world educational challenges
The notes were reviewed, the recoding step started, and the information was categorized in Appendix B.
Results
Overall, the qualitative data present some of the important factors that prevent teachers from implementing the PA curriculum, as addressed by the MOE and DOH for the vision of improving children’s growth and development and preventing obesity and overweight. And these factors are explained in three categories:
The emotional factor: arises from the teacher’s sense of being undervalued by the management office and the perception that the PA subject is not held in the same regard as other scientific or educational subjects.
The mental factor-1: The low intention of parents or child caregivers towards physical activity, coupled with the lack of support for their children due to perceptions and attitudes towards physical activity, impacts the child’s mindset about engaging in it, warranting further investigation in the future.
The mental factor-2: affecting the class is the lack of motivation among students for their achievements and positive deeds, as well as the teacher’s lack of motivation to perform at their best during physical education class.
The physical factor: That hinders effective fulfillment of the PE curriculum is the inadequate exercise facilities and competition among students. And lack of time allocated to the PE class.
Emphasized the importance of integrating policies and programs into school interventions and communities to empower the PE at school and students practices to maintain health and fitness, utilizing the support of the socio-ecological model SEM. The intrapersonal level reveals that age- and gender-specific strategies are significant in children and adolescents, certainly improving students’ self-concepts. Effectively introducing programs and policies has a more lasting impact than raising awareness among communities through community education, which typically yields only short-term results
Obesity pervades the UAE population, affecting both adults and children, with a high and increasing prevalence over the years
As we are discussing the school and curriculum factors, it’s indicated to study the out-of-school factors, including sociocultural and economic factors, further in another study.
Ggeneral lack of previous research in this specific field, which makes it challenging to find relevant contextual literature sources. Moreover, the limited research time constrains the researcher from investigating more school PE teachers in other government and private schools. However, the limited interview time due to the MOE audit at the school did not affect the interview achievement.
