Table 3. Characteristics of Physical Education Lessons Taught by Classroom Teachersa in Elementary Schools, by School Typeb, Evaluation of Effectiveness of Physical Activity Policies, San Francisco, California, 2010–2011 School Year.
| Lesson Characteristic | Specialist Schools (n = 10), Classroom Teachers (n = 7), mean (SD) | Range | Nonspecialist Schools (n = 10), Classroom Teachers (n = 7), mean (SD) | Range | P Valueb |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Scheduled lesson length (min) | 36.4 (8.4) | 30.0–55.0 | 37.1 (8.2) | 30.0–55.0 | .88 |
| Observed lesson length(min) | 30.7 (9.0) | 14.7–50.0 | 29.1 (8.3) | 12.3–47.3 | .71 |
| Observedc proportion of lesson time in MVPA, % | 55.4 (14.9) | 24.3–79.5 | 51.6 (9.7) | 36.5–73.1 | .49 |
| Calculated minutes of MVPA per lesson | 16.5 (5.1) | 8.3–26.0 | 14.9 (4.4) | 7.0–22.0 | .41 |
| Proportion of time spent in lesson contexts, % (SD) | |||||
| Management | 28.9 (45.3) | NA | 23.4 (42.4) | NA | .06 |
| Knowledge | 12.8 (33.4) | NA | 8.5 (27.9) | NA | .45 |
| Fitness activity | 15.3 (36.0) | NA | 21.9 (41.3) | NA | .68 |
| Skill drills | 19.2 (39.4) | NA | 2.5 (15.5) | NA | .03 |
| Game play | 17.8 (38.3) | NA | 38.1(48.6) | NA | .05 |
| Free play/other | 6.0 (23.8) | NA | 5.6 (23.0) | NA | .54 |
Abbreviation: MVPA, moderate to vigorous physical activity; NA, not applicable.
a
Teachers were observed 3 times each for a total of 21 observations at specialist schools and 21 observations at nonspecialist schools.
b
P value for difference in means between teacher types calculated by linear and logistic mixed effects models accounting for clustering by teacher and school; P < .05 indicates significance.
c
Lesson observation began when 50% of students had arrived at the PE area.