Associations between Community Built Environments with Early Care and Education Classroom Physical Activity Practices and Barriers

Bethany D. Williams, Susan B. Sisson, Dipti A. Dev, Bryce Lowery, Diane Horm, Janis Campbell, Denise Finneran, Jennifer Graef-Downard and Linda Whaley
Additional contact information
Bethany D. Williams: Department of Nutritional Sciences, College of Allied Health, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, 1200 N. Stonewall Ave., Oklahoma City, OK 73114, USA
Susan B. Sisson: Department of Nutritional Sciences, College of Allied Health, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, 1200 N. Stonewall Ave., Oklahoma City, OK 73114, USA
Dipti A. Dev: Department of Child, Youth and Family Studies, College of Education and Human Sciences, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Louise Pound Hall, 512 N 12th St, Lincoln, NE 68588, USA
Bryce Lowery: Department of Regional and City Planning, Gibbs College of Architecture, University of Oklahoma, 830 Van Vleet Oval, Norman, OK 73019, USA
Diane Horm: Early Childhood Education Institute, University of Oklahoma-Tulsa, 4502 E. 41st St., Tulsa, OK 74135, USA
Janis Campbell: Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, Hudson College of Public Health, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, 801 N.E. 13th Street, Oklahoma City, OK 73104, USA
Denise Finneran: Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, College of Allied Health, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, 1200 N. Stonewall Ave., Oklahoma City, OK 73114, USA
Jennifer Graef-Downard: Department of Nutritional Sciences, College of Allied Health, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, 1200 N. Stonewall Ave., Oklahoma City, OK 73114, USA
Linda Whaley: Oklahoma Department of Human Services, Child Care Services, P.O. Box 25352, Oklahoma City, OK 73125, USA

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 12, 1-16

Abstract: The influence of community-built environments on physical activity (PA) support in Early Childhood Education settings (ECEs) is unknown. The purpose of this cross-sectional study was to determine associations between community PA environments and ECE classroom PA practices. We included licensed Oklahoma ECE directors serving 3-to-5-year-old children. Parks and playground locations were exported from Google Earth. National Walkability Index was derived from 2010 US Census data. ArcMap 10.6 was used to geocode ECE locations, which were within an Activity Desert if no parks/playgrounds were located within a 1-mile radius or if Walkability Index was 10.5 or below. Classroom PA practices were determined by using the Nutrition and PA Self-Assessment tool (NAP SACC). Barriers to implementing practices were reported. Most Head Starts ( n = 41; 80.3%), center-based childcare settings (CBC; n = 135; 87.0%), and family childcare homes (FCCHs; n = 153; 96.4%) were in an Activity Desert. Parks/playgrounds within a 10-mile buffer were correlated with classroom PA practices in FCCHs only ( p < 0.001). Activity Desert status was not related to classroom PA practices for any ECE context ( p > 0.029). While FCCHs may be the most vulnerable to lack of park and playground access, overall findings suggest ECEs provide a healthful micro-environment protective of the typical influence of community-built environments.

Keywords: childcare; physical activity practices; barriers; parks; walkability; GIS (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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