School of Occupational Therapy, Faculty of Health Sciences, Elborn College, Western University, London, ON N6G 1H1, Canada.
Health and Rehabilitation Sciences Program, Faculty of Health Sciences, Elborn College, Western University, London, ON N6G 1H1, Canada.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2022 Mar 24;19(7):3890. doi: 10.3390/ijerph19073890.
Early childhood educators (ECEs) influence young children's early uptake of positive health behaviours in childcare settings and serve as important daytime role models. As such, it is imperative that post-secondary early childhood education programs provide students with the foundational knowledge and professional training required to confidently facilitate quality active play opportunities for young children. The primary objective of the is to develop and implement an e-Learning course in physical activity and sedentary behaviour to facilitate improvements in: pre-service ECEs' self-efficacy and knowledge to lead physical activity and outdoor play opportunities and minimize sedentary behaviours in childcare. This study will also explore pre-service ECEs' behavioural intention and perceived control to promote physical activity and outdoor play, and minimize sedentary behaviour in childcare, and the implementation of the e-Learning course.
METHODS/DESIGN: A mixed-methods quasi-experimental design with three data collection time points (baseline, post-course completion, 3-month follow-up) will be employed to test the e-Learning course in early childhood education programs ( = 18; 9 experimental, 9 comparison) across Canada. Pre-service ECEs enrolled in colleges/universities assigned to the experimental group will be required to complete a 4-module e-Learning course, while programs in the comparison group will maintain their typical curriculum. Pre-service ECEs' self-efficacy, knowledge, as well as behavioural intention and perceived behavioural control will be assessed via online surveys and module completion rates will be documented using website metrics. Group differences across timepoints will be assessed using linear mixed effects modelling and common themes will be identified through thematic analysis.
The TEACH study represents a novel, evidence-informed approach to address the existing gap in physical activity and sedentary behaviour-related education in Canadian post-secondary early childhood education programs. Moreover, e-Learning platforms, can be employed as an innovative, standardized, and scalable way to provide ECEs with consistent training across jurisdictions.
幼儿教育工作者（ECE）在儿童保育环境中影响幼儿早期积极健康行为的养成，并作为重要的日间榜样。因此，专上幼儿教育计划必须为学生提供自信地为幼儿提供优质积极游戏机会所需的基础知识和专业培训。本研究的主要目的是开发和实施一项有关体育活动和久坐行为的电子学习课程，以促进以下方面的改进：职前幼儿教育工作者的自我效能感和知识，以领导体育活动和户外游戏机会，并最大限度地减少儿童保育中的久坐行为。本研究还将探讨职前幼儿教育工作者促进体育活动和户外游戏以及最大限度地减少儿童保育中久坐行为的行为意向和感知控制，以及电子学习课程的实施情况。
方法/设计：采用混合方法准实验设计，在三个数据收集时间点（基线、课程完成后、3 个月随访），在加拿大测试幼儿教育计划中的电子学习课程（=18；9 个实验组，9 个对照组）。被分配到实验组的学院/大学的职前幼儿教育工作者将被要求完成 4 个模块的电子学习课程，而对照组的课程将保持其典型课程。职前幼儿教育工作者的自我效能感、知识以及行为意向和感知行为控制将通过在线调查进行评估，模块完成率将使用网站指标进行记录。使用线性混合效应模型评估时间点的组间差异，并通过主题分析确定共同主题。
TEACH 研究代表了一种新颖的、基于证据的方法，旨在解决加拿大专上幼儿教育计划中与体育活动和久坐行为相关的教育现有差距。此外，电子学习平台可以作为一种创新、标准化和可扩展的方式，为幼儿教育工作者在司法管辖区内提供一致的培训。
