Children and youth who are new to Canada are at greater risk of being physically inactive compared to their Canadian-born peers, says Brock University Associate Professor of Child and Youth Studies Matt Kwan.
Language barriers, lack of equitable access to recreational programs, financial constraints and cultural differences are among systemic challenges accounting for this difference, he says.
“Regular engagement in physical activity is important not only for physical, social and mental health and well-being outcomes, but also for psychosocial development and positive settlement experiences,” says Kwan, who is also Canada Research Chair in Youth Mental Health and Performance.
With the support of a $2.5-million Partnership Grant from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC), announced July 9, Kwan and his team are forming a national network to boost physical literacy in immigrant children and youth.
The Pan-Canadian Community of Practice, which brings together more than 65 community organizations and 45 researchers across 15 academic institutions, aims to expand access to evidence-based physical literacy programs and support positive settlement outcomes.
Physical literacy refers to the quality and quantity of bodily movement and having the motivation, confidence, knowledge and understanding to be regularly active.
“As newcomers to Canada contend with many settlement challenges, physical activity for children and youth may fall by the wayside,” says Acting Vice-President, Research Michelle McGinn. “SSHRC’s tremendous support for Dr. Kwan and his Canada-wide network of partners underscores the importance of addressing the physical and mental health needs of this vulnerable population.”
The project, “Co-creating Opportunities through Physical Literacy for All newcomer children and Youth (CO-PLAY),” begins with the establishment of regional hubs in Victoria, Calgary, Hamilton, Sherbrooke and Halifax.
Academic teams and community partners within these hubs will first identify community organizations already working to support newcomer children and youth through sport and physical activity.
The hubs will then develop comprehensive community profiles that connect existing efforts and identify opportunities for enhancing settlement outcomes.
“We aim to generate evidence on best practices, support real-time knowledge mobilization, and ensure culturally responsive and sustainable programming,” says Kwan. “Ultimately, this partnership seeks to reimagine local ecosystems to better support the physical, social and mental well-being of young newcomers across Canada.”
The research builds on a 2022 pilot project Kwan and his team conducted in Calgary called Immigrant-focused Physical Literacy for Youth (IPLAY), a partnership with WinSport and the Calgary Catholic Immigration Society.
The eight-week program enabled refugee youths aged 12 to 16 to participate in new activities and games that target different movement skills each week. In addition to Kin-Ball — a team sport played with an oversized ball — and archery, youth got to experience activities such as ice luge and human curling — where team members are pushed across the ice — at a local arena.
Kwan says IPLAY is an example of how a program to boost physical literacy for newcomer children and youth can be “co-developed with community partners and rigorously evaluated to understand its impact.”
“This Partnership Grant will enable us to access existing programs and develop new programs and practices across the CO-PLAY Network, while fostering opportunities to share insights and learn from one another within and across our regional hubs,” he says.
Last week’s funding announcement also included a SSHRC Insight Grant supporting Kwan’s project “Sustaining physical activity during Transition into Emerging Adulthood: Examining motivational and real-time factors impacting DailY-assessed behaviours – Project STEADY.”
The project’s international research team is identifying and examining factors causing adolescents to be less physically active as they enter early adulthood.
SSHRC’s Partnership Grant program supports new and existing formal partnerships to advance research, research training and knowledge mobilization in the social sciences and humanities.
SSHRC’s Insight Grants program supports research excellence judged worthy of funding by fellow researchers and/or other experts. The research can be conducted individually or by teams.
For more information or for assistance arranging interviews:
*Sarah Ackles, Communications Specialist, Brock University [email protected] or 289-241-5483
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