MONTREAL/March 8, 2006—
Should cash-strapped schools cut back physical education classes in order to fund other areas? According to a recent study conducted by Dr. Jennifer McGrath, researcher in the Department of Psychology at Concordia University, shortening the amount of time children spend in physical education classes at school will result in many children, especially more disadvantaged children, not meeting recommended guidelines for physical activity, and this will likely have adverse consequences on their future health.
The goal of the study was to determine whether children's physical activity and sedentary behavior differed according to their socioeconomic background. Lower socioeconomic background refers to being poorer, less educated, or even coming from more disadvantaged neighborhoods.
ìIt is known from other studies that adults from lower socioeconomic backgrounds have more sedentary behavior and physical inactivity. Barriers to physical activity, including limited access to facilities, lack of safe recreational areas, and high expenses, are disproportionately high among those with lower socioeconomic backgroundsî says McGrath.
Children, aged 9, 13 and 16 from 190 schools across the Canadian province of Quebec, answered questions about how often they played sports and engaged in physical activity, how often they had physical education classes at school, and how much time they spent watching television or playing videogames (as part of the original 1999 Quebec Child and Adolescent Health and Social Survey conducted by Sante Quebec). Socioeconomic background was measured for the parents and the schools. Parents answered questions about their education level and their household income. The socioeconomic level of the school was derived from indices created by the Quebec Ministry of Education and included maternal undereducation, global poverty, and a socioeconomic environment index.
The results showed that children from poorer and less educated families were less physically active and had more sedentary behavior than children from wealthier and better educated families. Similarly, children attending schools with lower socioeconomic levels were less physically active and had more sedentary behavior than those attending higher socioeconomic schools.
However, regardless of whether they came from rich or poor families or schools, all children received the same amount of school physical education classes ñ the only source of physical activity for some disadvantaged youth. These findings underscore the importance of physical education classes within our schools and have considerable implications on policy decisions as they relate to school funding. Schools ought to provide sufficient physical education classes to ensure that all children meet the recommended guidelines for physical activity.
For further information please contact, Dr. Jennifer McGrath, assistant professor of psychology at (514) 848-2424, ext.5207, or at jmcgrath@alcor.concordia.ca .
- 30 -
Source :
Tanya Churchmuch
Senior Media Relations Advisor
Concordia University
