A Systematic Review of Community Engagement Outcomes Research in School-Based Health Interventions.

BACKGROUND: Involving communities in school health has been purported as a practice integral to supporting a Whole School, Whole Community, Whole Child (WSCC) approach. Although community collaboration is often included in school-based health initiatives, there is little research considering methods for increasing community engagement. The purpose of this study was to identify effective school-based health interventions documenting changes in community engagement. METHODS: Academic experts and school stakeholders guided procedures for a systematic review of studies published from 1987-2017 and gray literature (ie, best practice documents; policy documents, etc.) on comprehensive school health interventions including community engagement as a targeted outcome. RESULTS: The search identified 9 studies addressing community as an outcome of school-based health interventions; types of partnership mechanisms and partners' roles were classified. CONCLUSIONS: Although involving communities is a WSCC component and commonly recommended as a strategy fundamental to school health, there is little empirical research examining effective strategies for engaging communities and engagement is often not measured as part of intervention studies. Further measurement and research in engaging communities in school health is warranted.

Effects of Sharing Data With Teachers on Student Physical Activity and Sedentary Behavior in the Classroom.

BACKGROUND: Data-driven decision making is an accepted best practice in education, but teachers seldom reflect on data to drive their physical activity (PA) integration efforts. The purpose of this study was to explore the impact of a data-sharing intervention with classroom teachers on teacher-directed movement integration and students' PA and sedentary behavior. METHODS: Teacher-directed movement behaviors from 8 classroom teachers in 1 primary school were systematically observed during four 1-hour class periods before (pre) and after (post) an intervention in which teachers individually discussed student movement data with a trained interviewer. Teachers' K-2 students (N = 132) wore accelerometers for 10 school days both preintervention and postintervention. RESULTS: Multilevel mixed effects regression indicated a nonsignificant increase in teacher-directed movement from preintervention to postintervention (+7.42%, P = .48). Students' classroom time spent in moderate to vigorous PA increased (males: +2.41 min, P < .001; females: +0.84 min, P = .04) and sedentary time decreased (males: -9.90 min, P < .001; females: -7.98 min, P < .001) postintervention. Interview data inductively analyzed revealed teachers' perspectives, including their surprise at low student PA during the school day. CONCLUSIONS: Findings suggest that sharing data with classroom teachers can improve student PA and decrease sedentary behavior at school.