Feasibility of implementing fundamental movement skill microlessons in primary schools: A time-efficient solution for busy teachers

Background Many children worldwide are physically inactive and have low levels of physical fitness and motor competence. Schools are ideal settings to address these issues; however previous physical activity interventions have typically been delivered by specialist physical education teachers or trained researchers, and time is a common barrier to implementation. As such, the aim of our study was to determine the feasibility of a novel, time-efficient intervention (Burn 2 Learn junior: B2L-j), delivered by generalist teachers that targets children’s motor competency and fitness. Methods We recruited 85 children (10.6 ± 0.7 years, 46% girls) and their classroom teachers from two primary schools in New South Wales, Australia. Teachers (n = 7) were provided with training, resources, and support to deliver a six-week curriculum-aligned physical education program. The program involved the delivery of two ‘fundamental movement skill microlessons’ per week, which were designed to improve students’ motor competency and physical fitness (approximately 10–15 minutes in duration). Several feasibility domains (recruitment, acceptability, implementation, fidelity, practicality) were examined along with teachers’ capability, opportunity, and motivation to deliver the program. Assessment of motor competency, fitness, and motivation were conducted at baseline and post-intervention, with changes in student outcomes explored using paired sample t-tests. Results The recruitment target was exceeded, and the program was well implemented by teachers (100% of microlessons delivered). Overall program satisfaction was high among teachers (median value of 5.0/5.0 [interquartile range = 5.0–5.0]) and students (median = 4.0/5.0 [4.0–5.0]). Teachers reported delivering 2.1 ± 0.7 microlessons per week during the study period. Researcher fidelity observations revealed that the program was being delivered as intended, and teachers perceived the program to be practical for delivery in their schools (median values ranging from 4.0–5.0/5.0 for practicality items). Teachers reported high levels of capability, opportunity, and motivation to deliver the program (median values ranging from 4.3-5.0/5.0). Medium-to-large improvements were observed for students’ motor competency and fitness. Conclusions Our findings support the feasibility of training generalist primary teachers to deliver microlessons designed to improve children’s motor competency and fitness. Evaluation of fundamental movement skill microlessons in a larger-scale effectiveness trial is warranted. Trial registration : ACTRN12625000510448