Prevalence of Recess and Supportive Practices at a Nationwide Sample of Public Elementary Schools in the United States.

ELEMENTARY schools -- United States; PLAY; SUPERVISION of employees; CROSS-sectional method; DESCRIPTIVE statistics; POPULATION geography; SURVEYS; ODDS ratio; RACE; STUDENT health; SCHOOL administration; METROPOLITAN areas; SOCIAL skills; CONFIDENCE intervals; PHYSICAL activity; TIME; CHILD behavior; SOCIAL classes

Background: Recess provides an important opportunity for children to be physically active during weekdays. Updated, nationally representative, prevalence estimates of elementary school recess practices in the United States are needed. Methods: Surveys were sent to a nationally representative sample of 1010 public elementary schools in the 2019‐2020 school year. Results were compared by region (Northeast, Midwest, South, West), urbanicity, size, racial and ethnic composition, and socioeconomic status (percent eligible for free/reduced‐priced meals). Results: A total of 559 responses were obtained. About 87.9% of schools provided at least 20 minutes of daily recess and 26.6% had trained recess supervisors. Most schools did not allow students to voluntarily stay inside during recess (71.6%) and around half prohibited withholding recess for poor behavior (45.6%) or to complete schoolwork (49.5%). Several practices varied by region, and withholding recess was more prevalent among schools with lower student socioeconomic makeup. Implications for School Health Policy, Practice, and Equity: Regular national surveillance of recess practices can inform policy needs and efforts to advance equitable access to recess. Quality and access should be considered when developing recess policies. Conclusions: Most United States elementary schools provide recess. However, regional and economic disparities exist. Promoting supportive practices for recess, particularly for schools serving lower‐income communities, is necessary. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of School Health is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)