NatCen Social Research has been funded by the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF) to carry out an independent evaluation of the ‘Fit to Study’ project. The aim is to assess whether ‘Fit to Study’ improves pupil attainment, and to identify the necessary conditions and potential barriers to the success of the study.
Who is NatCen?
NatCen is an independent social research organisation and a registered charity that carries out research on a wide range of social issues. To find out more about NatCen click here.
What does the independent evaluation involve?
NatCen Social Research is conducting a Randomised Control Study of ‘Fit to Study’. The different components of this evaluation are:
- Randomisation of schools to the ‘Fit to Study’ Intervention or Control group
- A study of how your school is delivering PE lessons (‘Fit to Study’ or standard PE lessons)
- Testing of pupils in Summer 2018 to study the impact of PE lessons on attainment
What does participation involve?
At various points during the school year we will require information and support to access school staff, pupils, and PE activities. Participation will involve:
- Agreeing for information collected by the ‘Fit to Study’ research team and NfER (including pupil information, fitness test results and lesson logs) to be securely transferred to NatCen and used in analysis;
- Distributing information about the evaluation to parents/carers and pupils;
- Completing two short web surveys, providing information about your school, PE staff and PE provision and any costs associated with delivering Fit to Study;
- Facilitating access to your school so that NatCen researchers can conduct PE lesson observations and staff interviews;
- Supporting NatCen to administer a Maths attainment test to a randomly selected group of Year 8 pupils in Summer 2018.
At each stage of the evaluation NatCen researchers will provide the key contact at your school with the necessary information including data collection plans and timescales.
Click here for the parental ‘opt-out’ form.
What will NatCen do with this information?
All the information collected during this study will be used to inform EEF and the ‘Fit to Study’ research team about the ‘Fit to Study’ intervention. We will not use the names of schools, staff members or pupils when reporting our findings. No individual school, staff member, or pupil will be identifiable. All information will be treated confidentially. All data will be transferred and stored securely.
If you would like to speak to a NatCen researcher on the Fit to Study team please call 0808 281 9513 or email [email protected]