scholarly journals Playing by different rules: indicators of happiness on playgrounds

Author(s):  
Michelle Rowland

As our cities continue to urbanize, opportunities for children’s unstructured outdoor play are declining. Play is a right to children, and holds a critical role in children’s lives. Creating opportunities for play during school hours produces significant physical and social health benefits. OPAL (Outdoor Play and Learning) is a registered community interest program originating in England transforming attitudes to play supervision, environment and provision within schools. In Toronto, Canada an OPAL pilot project is being implemented at six public elementary schools. Using data from this pilot, this study examines how differences in happiness while playing at schools vary across play conditions and duration. The study explores baseline data collected in Spring 2016 among 352 of 9-12-year-old children, attending grades 4 to 6. Binomial logistic regression was performed for recess and lunch play showing the correlation between happiness and play duration. There are statistically significant relationships between happiness and play conditions. Key words: outdoor play, unstructured, happiness, children, Toronto

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michelle Rowland

As our cities continue to urbanize, opportunities for children’s unstructured outdoor play are declining. Play is a right to children, and holds a critical role in children’s lives. Creating opportunities for play during school hours produces significant physical and social health benefits. OPAL (Outdoor Play and Learning) is a registered community interest program originating in England transforming attitudes to play supervision, environment and provision within schools. In Toronto, Canada an OPAL pilot project is being implemented at six public elementary schools. Using data from this pilot, this study examines how differences in happiness while playing at schools vary across play conditions and duration. The study explores baseline data collected in Spring 2016 among 352 of 9-12-year-old children, attending grades 4 to 6. Binomial logistic regression was performed for recess and lunch play showing the correlation between happiness and play duration. There are statistically significant relationships between happiness and play conditions. Key words: outdoor play, unstructured, happiness, children, Toronto


2017 ◽  
Vol 36 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Siti Fatimah ◽  
Umi Mahmudah

This study aims to measure the performance efficiency of elementary schools in Special Capital Region of Jakarta, especially Central Jakarta district in the period 2014/2015 by using data envelopment analysis (DEA) approach. DEA is a non-parametric method to measure efficiency of decision making units (DMUs). DEA compares several homogeneous DMUs based on a number of inputs to produce the expected outputs. This study uses descriptive method using DMU as many as 103 public elementary schools that are A-accredited with three inputs and four outputs. Data is analyzed using DEAP version 2.1 application by comparing CRS (Constant Returns to Scale) model and VRS (Variable Returns to Scale) model. Results show that: 1) in CRS model, there are 8 public elementary schools (7.77 percent) have efficient performances while in VRS model there are 14 public elementary schools (13.59 percent) have efficient performances; 2) VRS model is better than CRS model in measuring the efficiency performance of public elementary schools in Central Jakarta.


Author(s):  
Himanshu Rajput

Smartphone-based messaging applications have shown phenomenal growth with the proliferation of the internet coupled with the high penetration of smartphones into masses. The current study is an attempt to understand the relationship between the individuals personality and their use of WhatsApp, a popular smartphone-based messaging application in Indian context. For personality assessment the study takes Big Five Inventory. A questionnaire consisting items on individual WhatsApp use and Big Five Inventory was administered to students in an Indian University. Multiple regression and logistic regression revealed significant relationships between personality and WhatsApp usage and use of its different inbuilt functions.


2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Brianne A. Bruijns ◽  
Andrew M. Johnson ◽  
Jennifer D. Irwin ◽  
Shauna M. Burke ◽  
Molly Driediger ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Early childhood educators (ECEs) play a critical role in promoting physical activity (PA) among preschoolers in childcare; thus, PA-related training for ECEs is essential. The Supporting PA in the Childcare Environment (SPACE) intervention incorporated: 1. shorter, more frequent outdoor play sessions; 2. provision of portable play equipment; and, PA training for ECEs. An extension of the SPACE intervention (the SPACE-Extension) incorporated only the shorter, more frequent outdoor play periods component of the original SPACE intervention. The purpose of this study was to explore the individual impact of these interventions on ECEs’ PA-related self-efficacy and knowledge. Methods ECEs from the SPACE (n = 83) and SPACE-Extension (n = 31) were administered surveys at all intervention time-points to assess: self-efficacy to engage preschoolers in PA (n = 6 items; scale 0 to 100); self-efficacy to implement the intervention (n = 6 items); and, knowledge of preschooler-specific PA and screen-viewing guidelines (n = 2 items). A linear mixed effects model was used to analyze the impact of each intervention on ECEs’ self-efficacy and knowledge and controlled for multiple comparison bias. Results The SPACE intervention significantly impacted ECEs’ self-efficacy to engage preschoolers in PA for 180 min/day (main effect), and when outdoor playtime was not an option (interaction effect). Further, the interaction model for ECEs’ knowledge of the total PA guideline for preschoolers approached significance when compared to the main effects model. Participants within the SPACE-Extension did not demonstrate any significant changes in self-efficacy or knowledge variables. Conclusions Findings from this study highlight the benefit of ECE training in PA with regard to fostering their PA-related self-efficacy and knowledge. Future research should explore the impact of PA training for ECEs uniquely in order to determine if this intervention component, alone, can produce meaningful changes in children’s PA behaviours at childcare.


2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (Supplement_5) ◽  
Author(s):  
S Čanković ◽  
D Čanković ◽  
I Radić ◽  
D Rakić ◽  
S Ukropina ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Some findings indicate that university students are at higher risk of depression despite being a socially advantaged population, showing that 15 to 25% of them develop some type of mental disorder during graduation, and depression is one of the most prevalent. The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence of depressive symptoms and its association with gender, material status, social health, and behavioral factors among university students. Methods The research represents a cross-sectional study conducted at the University of Novi Sad, Serbia. The research involved 455 first-year students. The average age of participants was 19.3 years (72.1% girls and 27.9% boys). Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) was used to measure depressive symptoms (cut point for depressive episode ≥10). Additional questions were focused on self-assessed material status, social health, and behavioral factors (smoking and alcohol use). The binary logistic regression model was used to estimate the association between depression and observed independent variables. Results The prevalence of moderate to severe depressive episode among students was 18.0%, with no gender differences. Out of the total, 11.0% of students had suicidal thoughts or thoughts of hurting themselves. Multivariable logistic regression showed that self-assessed poor material status (OR = 2.04; 95%CI: 1.06-3.89), self-assessed poor social health (OR = 8.9; 95%CI:4.87-16.42) and smoking (OR = 2.18; 95%CI: 1.09-4.39) were significant predictors of depression among first-year university students. Conclusions High prevalence of depressive episode among university students call for the action for the promotion of mental health, particularly among those of lower socioeconomic status, and points out the importance of social health and social network in the prevention of mental disorders. Key messages Students on the first year of University should be screened for depressive symptoms. It is important to educate students on how to create a strong support network and to implement intervention programs for improving mental health through fostering healthy lifestyles change.


2012 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
pp. 79-115 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin Scanlan

This study creates life history portraits of two White middle-class native-English-speaking principals demonstrating commitments to social justice in their work in public elementary schools serving disproportionately high populations of students who are marginalized by poverty, race, and linguistic heritage. Through self-reported life histories of these principals, I create portraits that illustrate how these practitioners draw motivation, commitment, and sustenance in varied, complicated, and at times contradictory ways.


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