Situational analysis of physical education among public primary schools in Côte d'Ivoire

Background. Physical activity is known to improve health and cognitive function in children. Yet, in Côte d’Ivoire, physical education (PE) receives little attention in the current school curricula due to insufficient time allocation, lack of fresh-up training for teachers, as well as insufficient governmental financial contribution towards school infrastructure, materials and sport facilities. Objective. In the frame of the implementation of a randomized-controlled trial, in which we will examine the effects of a school-based physical activity and multi-micronutrient supplementation intervention on primary school children in Côte d’Ivoire, we carried out a situational analyses of PE in eight randomly selected public primary schools in Taabo, Côte d’Ivoire, from November 2019 to March 2020 in advance. Methods. First, the study comprised a systematic observation of the school environment. Second, guided interviews were conducted with the Inspection of the Ministry of National Education of Taabo, and the general inspectorate of national education in charge of PE and sport at Abidjan. The primary focus in these interviews was placed on primary school organization, training of teachers, time allocated to PE in the official schedule, as well as monitoring and evaluation of the PE curriculum. Third, eight focus group discussions (FGDs) were conducted with 40 teachers and 8 school principals focusing on the PE program, teacher`s perception and motivation towards teaching PA. Fourth, we carried out cost analysis to estimate the required financial resources for basic school infrastructure (sport fields), teacher salary and consumables, sport materials and equipment, which are required to meet minimal standards for implementing quality PE at public primary schools in rural Côte d’Ivoire. Last, we implemented a participatory dialog with an educational inspector, school teachers and principals to improve the situation of PE in Taabo. FGD transcriptions were transferred to MAXQDA for analysis. Results. In line with the national curricula, teachers perceive PE to be important for children’s motor and social learning. Despite this importance, PE remains a neglected school subject. The main reasons stated were (i) significant reduction of PE lessons per week in favour of academic subjects, (ii) lack of training, (iii) insufficient sports facilities and equipment, and (iv) absence of an evaluation guideline on how to grade a child`s PE performance. Our financial appraisal reveals that a minimum investment of FCFA 2’710’000 (~ US $ 5’000) per school is needed to establish a basic infrastructure at each school and to empower teachers to conduct standardised and quality PE in this area.Discussion. The promotion of PE is currently not a key educational target in Côte d’Ivoire. Thus, the neglected importance at national level perpetuates the marginalized status of PE. Overall, teachers claim that the lack of support in a setting without proper facilities, equipment, and personal skills hampers their motivation to implement PE. Conclusion. In order to initiate a change to the current situation, evidence on the overall health benefits and academic performance of regular physical activity among primary school children is urgently needed to highlight the importance of this neglected school subject to education authorities