Introducing the ‘Promoting Physical Activity in Secondary Schools for Health’ (2PAS 4 Health) project
An exciting new project has recently launched that examines examples of physical promotion initiatives in schools across Europe. Over the next two years the ‘Promoting Physical Activity in Secondary Schools for Health’ project will identify good practices as well as the main problems linked to the design, implementation and evaluation of school-based interventions in order to improve their quality and sustainability.
Funded by the Erasmus+ Collaborative Partnerships 2020, this project is led by University of Pau and Pays de l’Adour and involves academic colleagues from Ireland (University of Limerick), Spain (University of Zaragoza), Portugal (University of Porto), Belgium (University of Ghent) and France (City of Tarbes). We know that schools can encourage students to confidently and enjoyably participate in physical activity while at school and in their future lives. However not all students attain this goal and it is crucial that best practices are shared to enable the best outcomes for all. Working collaboratively with institutions from several European countries allows us to gain insights into both the cross-cutting and country-specific issues encountered when promoting active lifestyles in the school setting.
Dr Enrique Garcia Bengoechea, Prof Catherine Woods and I (Dr Elaine Murtagh) are currently leading the development of a position paper on best practices to promote physical activity in the school setting. This publication will make specific recommendations to advance research and practice. Other planned outputs from the project include a toolkit that school staff can use to support initiatives in their schools. The culminating event of the project is a conference on Promoting Physical Activity in Secondary Schools, due to take place in Tarbes in September 2022. This will feature both theoretical and applied sessions to disseminate our research findings. We’ll update this blog post once the project website goes live, so do check back for future updates on the project.
Dr Elaine Murtagh is a Senior Lecturer in Physical Education in the Department of Physical Education and Sport Sciences (PESS) at the University of Limerick. Contact and Research Profiles: elaine.murtagh@ul.ie, Researchgate, ORCID. Follow Elaine on Twitter : @ElaineMurtagh
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