新北市小學球類運動設施與學生課餘身體活動之關聯性

It has been shown that availability of various sports facilities could encourage individuals to participate in physical activities. The influence of campus sports facilities on childhood physical activity in elementary schools is not yet to be studied. The purpose of this cross-sectional study was to investigate the correlation between ball sports facilities and level of physical activity participation among elementary school students of New Taipei City. Available data were extracted from ＂2014 New Taipei City school children physical and mental health survey＂ and ＂National Sports Venue Information.＂ Multiple regression was used to access the relationship between sports facilities number per thousand students and physical activity. Our results showed that the average time of afterschool physical activity of children was about 17 minutes per day. 50.3% of students do not achieve the daily recommended physical activity levels (at least 60 minutes of moderate physical activity). In multiple regression analysis, we found that the number of dodgeball, football, and badminton courts were positively associated with time of afterschool physical activity of children after adjusted gender, age, and household income. Basketball, dodgeball, football, and badminton courts were positively associated with frequency of exercise participation during school recess. However, the numbers of indoor sports facilities were not associated with any indicators of physical activity. In conclusion, popular ball sports facilities were associated with higher extracurricular physical activity participation of students in elementary school. The findings of this study may help further planning and construction of campus facilities in the future.