HOPPLearning - Active Learning in Elementary Schools

NCT ID: NCT02495714

Last Updated: 2021-06-02

Basic Information

• Recruitment Status: UNKNOWN
• Clinical Phase: NA
• Total Enrollment: 2300 participants
• Study Classification: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Start Date: 2015-01-31
• Study Completion Date: 2023-12-31

Brief Summary

HOPP Learning will be implemented in elementary schools in the Horten municipality and will assess the effect of a combined pedagogical approach, active learning, on a large student population. Students are to increase their amount of physical activity with learning, during a school day by one hour.

Detailed Description

Background It has for many decades been a discussion whether the proportion of hours of physical activity should be increased in the Norwegian primary school. In light of the evolution of inactivity, overweight and obesity, both internationally and in Norway, it is now time to implement measures that can provide improved health and preventing lifestyle diseases among children and adolescents. Until now, one in Norwegian society based on the fact that children are active enough in their spare time, with sport as an arena. This assertion has had its validity, but not with the tendency of children are significantly more sedentary than their parents were in their infancy. Thus, the community must take more responsibility. One of the measures is to increase the physical activities offered in primary schools. Then all the children get the opportunity to form healthy habits with regular physical activity.

HOPP Learning will be implemented in elementary schools in the Horten municipality and will assess the effect of a combined pedagogical approach, active learning, on a large student population. Students are to increase their amount of physical activity, during a school day by one hour. To evaluate the effect of HOPP Learning Horten municipality contacted University College of Health Sciences - Campus Kristiania.

Aims The primary aim is to chart and assess the effect of active learning through analysis of dietary intake (Ungkost 2000 questionnaire), quality of life (ILC questionnaire), cognitive tests (computer based measurements of reaction time using Flanker and Stroop test), academic performance (grades in national tests) and physiological factors as activity level (accelerometer measurements), aerobic capacity (Andersen shuttle run test and oxygen uptake), balance (Balance Y-test) and strength (Jamar handgrip). In addition medical variables as blood pressure, peak expiratory flow and blood work (total cholesterol, HDL, iron, feritin, CRP, blood sugar, Hb, Hematocrit, RBC).

Sample The project has a prospective clinical controlled study design and involves seven elementary schools in Horten Municipality with the estimated number of children in 1-6 grade being 1,822. The 12 year olds in the current schools will not be tested when they go over to their respective secondary schools in 2016 so will not participate in the intervention. Similarly, those children who start 1st grade in 2015 not be included in the intervention as they are enrolled in kindergarten during the first round of tests in Spring 2015. Consequently there will be a calculated "drop off" of one school grade per year based on the selection from the initial testing during spring 2015, and from the second round of testing in 2016. Based on an analysis of socioeconomic status between municipalities in Norway, Loerenskog and Baerum municipality has a socioeconomic composition as Horten. Given health inequalities in children are directly related to parents' socioeconomic status, and in particular education, Loerenskog and Baerum municipality were chosen as the control population. Two elementary schools were contacted and agreed to participate as control schools, ca. 500 pupils at each school. Similarly calculated dropout rates will occur at the control school. The total inclusion sample is approximately 2,800 pupils. Inclusion criteria: Students from Grade 1-6 from all elementary schools in Horten municipality and from two control schools. Exclusion criteria: Students with psychological or physical disabilities that prevent them participating in the tests, students afflicted with sickness/disease during the testing period and students who do not wish to participate in the test.

Implementation of the intervention A large activity learning library within reading, mathematics and english within the academic guidelines for grades 1-7 has been established. There is thus a total of 32 sites where it is 510 activities within each step. This means that it is unique exercise sets distributed on grades and subjects the individual teachers will have at least one hour per class they are responsible for every day. The range of exercises are based both on the teachers' own ideas, proposals from the Education directorate and www.skolesekken.no. Horten Municipality has distributed this exercise library to the individual schools. The activity is organized as different activity programs of 15 minutes for each subject they wish to teach.

Combining physical activity and learning (basic subjects) exercise sets are stored in boxes with the accompanying learning tools: a crate for english 1st grade, a crate for English 2nd grade, etc., thus making it easy to begin a lesson by simply bringing a box to each class.

Conditions

Health Behaviour

Study Design

• Allocation Method: NON_RANDOMIZED
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Primary Study Purpose: PREVENTION
• Blinding Strategy: NONE

Study Groups

Intervention schools

Active Learning; One hour each schoolday of physical Activity as part of academic learning Dietary councelling; teaching children and parents about a healty diet

Group Type: EXPERIMENTAL

Active learning

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

Physical activity one hour a day as part of academic learning

Dietary councelling

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

Teaching children and parents about a healthy diet

Control schools

No intervention

Group Type: NO_INTERVENTION

No interventions assigned to this group

Interventions

Active learning

Physical activity one hour a day as part of academic learning

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

Dietary councelling

Teaching children and parents about a healthy diet

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

Eligibility Criteria

Inclusion Criteria

• Students from Grade 1-6 (2015) from all elementary schools in Horten municipality and two schools from Loerenskog and Baerum municipality.

Exclusion Criteria

• Students with psychological and physical disabilities preventing them participating in the tests
• Students afflicted with sickness/disease during the testing period
• Students who do not wish to participate in the test

• Minimum Eligible Age: 6 Years
• Maximum Eligible Age: 12 Years
• Eligible Sex: ALL
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

Sponsors

Horten municipality

UNKNOWN

Sponsor Role: collaborator

Kristiania University College

OTHER

Sponsor Role: lead

Responsible Party

Responsibility Role: SPONSOR

Principal Investigators

Per Morten Fredriksen, Professor

Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

University College of Health Sciences - Campus Kristiania

Locations

Kristiania University College

Oslo, , Norway

Countries

Norway

References

de Onis M, Blossner M, Borghi E. Global prevalence and trends of overweight and obesity among preschool children. Am J Clin Nutr. 2010 Nov;92(5):1257-64. doi: 10.3945/ajcn.2010.29786. Epub 2010 Sep 22.

Reference Type: BACKGROUND

PMID: 20861173 (View on PubMed)

Wedderkopp N, Froberg K, Hansen HS, Andersen LB. Secular trends in physical fitness and obesity in Danish 9-year-old girls and boys: Odense School Child Study and Danish substudy of the European Youth Heart Study. Scand J Med Sci Sports. 2004 Jun;14(3):150-5. doi: 10.1111/j.1600-0838.2004.00365.x.

Reference Type: BACKGROUND

PMID: 15144354 (View on PubMed)

Moller NC, Wedderkopp N, Kristensen PL, Andersen LB, Froberg K. Secular trends in cardiorespiratory fitness and body mass index in Danish children: The European Youth Heart Study. Scand J Med Sci Sports. 2007 Aug;17(4):331-9. doi: 10.1111/j.1600-0838.2006.00583.x. Epub 2006 Aug 10.

Reference Type: BACKGROUND

PMID: 16903897 (View on PubMed)

Tomkinson GR, Olds TS. Secular changes in pediatric aerobic fitness test performance: the global picture. Med Sport Sci. 2007;50:46-66. doi: 10.1159/000101075.

Reference Type: BACKGROUND

PMID: 17387251 (View on PubMed)

Ekelund U, Anderssen SA, Froberg K, Sardinha LB, Andersen LB, Brage S; European Youth Heart Study Group. Independent associations of physical activity and cardiorespiratory fitness with metabolic risk factors in children: the European youth heart study. Diabetologia. 2007 Sep;50(9):1832-1840. doi: 10.1007/s00125-007-0762-5. Epub 2007 Jul 20.

Reference Type: BACKGROUND

PMID: 17641870 (View on PubMed)

Resaland GK, Mamen A, Anderssen SA, Andersen LB. Cardiorespiratory fitness and body mass index values in 9-year-old rural Norwegian children. Acta Paediatr. 2009 Apr;98(4):687-92. doi: 10.1111/j.1651-2227.2008.01181.x. Epub 2009 Jan 5.

Reference Type: BACKGROUND

PMID: 19133872 (View on PubMed)

Resaland GK, Mamen A, Boreham C, Anderssen SA, Andersen LB. Cardiovascular risk factor clustering and its association with fitness in nine-year-old rural Norwegian children. Scand J Med Sci Sports. 2010 Feb;20(1):e112-20. doi: 10.1111/j.1600-0838.2009.00921.x. Epub 2009 Jun 9.

Reference Type: BACKGROUND

PMID: 19522748 (View on PubMed)

Resaland GK, Andersen LB, Mamen A, Anderssen SA. Effects of a 2-year school-based daily physical activity intervention on cardiorespiratory fitness: the Sogndal school-intervention study. Scand J Med Sci Sports. 2011 Apr;21(2):302-9. doi: 10.1111/j.1600-0838.2009.01028.x.

Reference Type: BACKGROUND

PMID: 19895384 (View on PubMed)

Bugge A, Tarp J, Ostergaard L, Domazet SL, Andersen LB, Froberg K. LCoMotion - Learning, Cognition and Motion; a multicomponent cluster randomized school-based intervention aimed at increasing learning and cognition - rationale, design and methods. BMC Public Health. 2014 Sep 18;14:967. doi: 10.1186/1471-2458-14-967.

Reference Type: BACKGROUND

PMID: 25236478 (View on PubMed)

Fedewa AL, Ahn S. The effects of physical activity and physical fitness on children's achievement and cognitive outcomes: a meta-analysis. Res Q Exerc Sport. 2011 Sep;82(3):521-35. doi: 10.1080/02701367.2011.10599785.

Reference Type: BACKGROUND

PMID: 21957711 (View on PubMed)

Tomporowski PD, Davis CL, Miller PH, Naglieri JA. Exercise and Children's Intelligence, Cognition, and Academic Achievement. Educ Psychol Rev. 2008 Jun 1;20(2):111-131. doi: 10.1007/s10648-007-9057-0.

Reference Type: BACKGROUND

PMID: 19777141 (View on PubMed)

Singh A, Uijtdewilligen L, Twisk JW, van Mechelen W, Chinapaw MJ. Physical activity and performance at school: a systematic review of the literature including a methodological quality assessment. Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med. 2012 Jan;166(1):49-55. doi: 10.1001/archpediatrics.2011.716.

Reference Type: BACKGROUND

PMID: 22213750 (View on PubMed)

Brown T, Summerbell C. Systematic review of school-based interventions that focus on changing dietary intake and physical activity levels to prevent childhood obesity: an update to the obesity guidance produced by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence. Obes Rev. 2009 Jan;10(1):110-41. doi: 10.1111/j.1467-789X.2008.00515.x. Epub 2008 Jul 30.

Reference Type: BACKGROUND

PMID: 18673306 (View on PubMed)

van Sluijs EM, McMinn AM, Griffin SJ. Effectiveness of interventions to promote physical activity in children and adolescents: systematic review of controlled trials. Br J Sports Med. 2008 Aug;42(8):653-7.

Reference Type: BACKGROUND

PMID: 18685076 (View on PubMed)

Kriemler S, Meyer U, Martin E, van Sluijs EM, Andersen LB, Martin BW. Effect of school-based interventions on physical activity and fitness in children and adolescents: a review of reviews and systematic update. Br J Sports Med. 2011 Sep;45(11):923-30. doi: 10.1136/bjsports-2011-090186.

Reference Type: BACKGROUND

PMID: 21836176 (View on PubMed)

Fredriksen PM, Mamen A, Goswami N, Lindberg M. Waist-to-Height Ratio as a predictor of cardiovascular and metabolic health in a pediatric population. PLoS One. 2025 Jul 9;20(7):e0326772. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0326772. eCollection 2025.

Reference Type: DERIVED

PMID: 40632711 (View on PubMed)

Fredriksen PM, Hjelle OP, Mamen A, Meza TJ, Westerberg AC. The health Oriented pedagogical project (HOPP) - a controlled longitudinal school-based physical activity intervention program. BMC Public Health. 2017 Apr 28;17(1):370. doi: 10.1186/s12889-017-4282-z.

Reference Type: DERIVED

PMID: 28454531 (View on PubMed)

Other Identifiers

KristianiaUC

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id