Active Smarter Teachers: Primary School Teachers' Perceptions and Maintenance of a School-Based Physical Activity Intervention

The Active Smarter Kids (ASK) study evaluated the effect of a 7-month curriculum-prescribed physical activity intervention on academic performance in fifth-grade Norwegian students. However, there is also a need to examine teachers' perception and maintenance of the ASK intervention. We conducted a prospective, mixed methods descriptive study across 1 yr of the ASK intervention. Data were collected via a self-report questionnaire, administered online, at two time points, immediately after the ASK intervention and 1 yr postintervention. The first questionnaire comprised open-ended questions about the teacher's experience with the ASK intervention. The second questionnaire determined teachers' maintenance of the ASK intervention. All teachers (N = 59) from the 28 intervention schools were eligible to participate. To prevent workload burden, teachers from the same school were offered the option to respond as a group to a single questionnaire. Thirty-one teachers from 22 schools completed the first questionnaire, and 26 teachers from 25 schools completed the second questionnaire. An analysis of the openended responses in the first questionnaire identified themes centering on the teachers perception of the ASK intervention, including benefits on student's social engagement, professional competence, and interpersonal processes. Eighty-one percent reported that they maintained the use of physically active learning and physical activity breaks as part of their weekly pedagogical practice 1 yr postintervention. Only 18% reported maintained use of physical activity homework. A novel finding was a recognition that the interaction in physically active learning opportunities was especially beneficial for low academic achievement students. Furthermore, the findings indicate that it is important to collaborate with teachers to codesign interventions. This seems to be critical in order for teachers to achieve agency and empower teachers to integrate physical activity into their school day.