Trickle down effect? Exploring the influence of the Olympic Games on preschooler sport participation and development
Background / Context / Objective The benefits of sport participation among youth are well recognized, yet little work has focused on understanding sport participation among very young children, despite growing participation at increasingly early ages. The first objective of this project was to explore sport participation and development among preschoolers. Findings suggest that while parents…
Matching Activities to Personal Style (MAPS): Developing a physical activity guidance system for high school students
Project Summary A series of investigations was designed to create building blocks for a process of guiding physical activity choices among high school students and young adults based on psychosocial information and experiential processes. The initial studies explored patterns of physical activity (PA) interests and motivations over the lifespan, as well as their relationships with…
Rwandan girls’ perspectives on their lived experiences of physical education and sport: Challenges and solutions to sport participation
Project Summary The objectives of this research were to: Though this research took place in Rwanda, the tools developed to gather girls’ perspectives and feedback and to integrate them into decision-making processes are relevant and can easily be adapted to a Canadian context in order to contribute to a better understanding of physical education and…
Strategies used by physical educators to implement a program that encourages their students to “adopt a healthy and active lifestyle”
Project Summary Essentially, the purpose of this research project is to implement a program, such as Team Pentathlon, in primary and secondary schools to encourage physical activity and study various aspects of the program implementation process. More specifically, we: The analysis of preliminary research data shows that 84% of the students, both boys and girls,…
Transitioning students’ sport and physical activity participation
Project Summary The transition from late adolescence to young adulthood represents a time of profound changes, including a period for which substantial declines in physical activity levels occur. As the late adolescent population transitions into early adulthood, a number of trajectories are possible (e.g., entry to the workplace, armed forces), but a large proportion of…
An Analysis of High School Sport
Project Summary Among the various opportunities young people have to practise sports, school sports are of particular interest because the ultimate goal of schools is to shape our future citizens. Although school sport has become increasingly popular in Canada, there are very few studies enabling us to assess whether it is achieving its stated mission…
Tips for Back to School Nutrition and Physical Activity
While this has been an exciting summer in sport, September brings us back to the classroom. This time of year reminds us that it is time to return to learning and it’s time to consider the best way to fuel the body and mind to optimize school lessons and the learning environment. How can we…
Sport Academies: A Growing Phenomenon in Canadian Schools
SIRC is pleased to be working together with Sport Canada to share current research on topics informing policy and promoting quality sport programming. This week we are sharing highlights of a recent article reviewing a research study on SPORT ACADEMY TREND IN ALBERTA, CANADA. Sport Academies: A Growing Phenomenon in Canadian Schools. Balderson, D. (2015)….
Overtraining in High-School Athletes – The “Always-In-Season” Athlete
By Konrad Wiltmann Algonquin Sport Business Management student Many high-school athletes compete in a wide variety of sports over the course of the school year, while maintaining their studies, social life, and sometimes a part-time job. It is not uncommon for a high-school athlete to be “in-season” the whole year. From participating in soccer and…
High school coach vs. the club coach
Organized sports played among youth participants are usually in the form of club sports or school athletic teams. It is also likely that those who participate in club sports are also members of their high school teams. Having the opportunity to represent your school at a city or provincial championship engenders a sense of school…