SPARK (Sports, Play, and Active Recreation for Kids)
A physical education/physical activity program designed to help children develop healthy lifestyles
Details
One study evaluated the sustainability of the SPARK physical education program in elementary schools.
- One hundred eleven schools in 7 states participated in the study
- Surveys were mailed to schools who had received the SPARK curriculum between 1 and 4 years earlier
- Survey was designed to assess current use of the SPARK program as well as identify factors that may influence continued use.
- Seventy percent of the respondents were women, 55% had been teaching for over 10 years, and 81% were current users of the SPARK program in their schools
What did they find out?
- SPARK users:
- had principals who supported PE programs and PE teachers’ projects
- were 4 times more to have had adequate equipment for PE than non-SPARK users
- had PE 3 or more days per week
- were nearly 5 times more likely to have had 30 or more minutes of physical activity per day during PE class than non-SPARK users
- had parents who supported PE programs
- had obtained PE-related academic credits during the previous 5 years
- nearly 80% reported they:
- had implemented SPARK for more than 2 years
- were trained to teach SPARK in grades K-6
- used SPARK lessons plans for 50% or more of the PE lessons
- had a regular schedule for using PE equipment and facilities
- had PE equipment that was organized and distributed for each lesson unit
- taught PE classes more often than non-SPARK users
- non-SPARK users:
- were more likely to have used standardized PE curricula prior to SPARK training
- had recently received one or more PE-related academic credits
- Sustainability rates were similar in advantaged and disadvantaged schools
- Disadvantaged schools were characterized by:
- Percentage of students with free or reduced lunch
- Percentage of students from single-parent households
- Availability of physical activity programs in the communi
- Disadvantaged schools were characterized by:
Conclusion
- SPARK program sustainability was most likely seen in schools were the teachers had not been using a standardized PE program and the teachers had not received and recent PE training.
- SPARK appeared to be most useful in schools that needed the most improvement
- SPARK programs appeared to be more successful in schools that had the administration’s support
Word of Caution: As with any self-reporting study, response bias or inaccuracies could have been introduced into the study. Nearly 300 schools adopted the SPARK program, but only 111 participated in the study. Therefore, over half of the schools that adopted the SPARK program were not represented in this study.
Resources:
Dowda M, Sallis JF, McKenzie TL, Rosengard P, Kohl HW. 2005. Evaluating the sustainability of SPARK physical education: a case study of translating research into practice. Res Q Exerc Sport