Physical inactivity is responsible for more than 5 million deaths per year worldwide.1 Regular participation in physical activity is associated with health, social, cognitive, and economic benefits at the individual and community levels,2 and can contribute to the achievement of the sustainable development goals.3 However, alarming proportions of children4 and adolescents5 do not meet the recommended 60 minutes a day of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity worldwide,6 specially adolescent girls and those living in low- and middle-income countries. In 2018, the World Health Organization launched the Global Action Plan on Physical Activity and called for a 15% relative reduction on the global prevalence of physical inactivity by 2030.7 In 2022, however, the Global Status Report on Physical Activity evidenced that the progress toward this goal continues to be slow and unequal.8
For getting people more active, the Global Action Plan on Physical Activity,7 defined as a strategic policy action to strengthen the provision of quality physical education and of more positive physical activity experiences within schools. In doing so, a whole-of-school approach, which combines the provision of high-quality physical education classes, active classrooms, before and after school physical activity initiatives, and active recesses, has been recommended.9–11 Despite of the effectiveness of each individual component of the whole-of-school physical activity programs,12,13 there is still a need to enhance the implementation of multicomponent school physical activity programs and to strengthened monitoring systems of quality physical education and health-enhancing physical activity at school to track progress and drive policy and action.7–9,11
Policy reports and research has been put into place to identify the status of physical education worldwide.11,14–17 Few efforts, however, have addressed this problem in such a comprehensive manner as the European Physical Education Observatory (EUPEO).18 The EUPEO was an Erasmus + Sport projected that developed a comprehensive and applicable system for monitoring and supporting the promotion of quality physical education and physical activity within European schools. Examples such as the EUPEO can inform the development of innovative solutions that feel the gap of having a worldwide comprehensive monitoring system of quality physical education and physical activity at schools.8
The Global Observatory for Physical Activity (GoPA!) (http://www.globalphysicalactivityobservatory.com/) was established in 2012 and is unique in leading an evidence- and expert-based surveillance system to monitor physical activity surveillance, research, and policy worlwide.19 GoPA! involves a global and independent collaborative network of physical activity researchers, practitioners, and public health policymakers and is a council of the International Society of Physical Activity and Health. GoPA! produces evaluation and advocacy tools helping governments, researchers, and societies to improve their health status through the promotion of physical activity.19,20 Until now, GoPA! has not included specific indicators on physical education and physical activity within the school settings. Therefore, aligned with GoPA!, this is the moment to progress, fulfill the monitoring gap, and launch the GoPE!.
GoPE!’s mission is to monitor and evaluate quality physical education and health-enhancing physical activity at school surveillance, policy, and research worldwide. Specifically, a worldwide systematic monitoring system is going to be developed to inform and allow a comparative analysis to be made, every 4 years, so that each country, region, and continent can have the opportunity to check their status and progress around quality physical education and health-enhancing physical activity at school. GoPE! is part of the GoPA! initiative and involves an independent team that will interact with a global network of researchers, practitioners, and policymakers in the fields of physical education, school sport, physical activity, and public health.
Similar to GoPA! PA profiles produced (the Country Cards),19 the main product is going to be the GoPE! Country Cards. These Country Cards will be developed through several methodological phases: (1) revision and selection of the GoPE! standardized indicators; (2) design and pilot test the Country Card; (3) GoPE! country representatives (ie, “Country Contacts”) selection and data collection using a standardized methodology, inspired by GoPA! stepwise approach and EUPEO framework; and (4) final design, revision, and launch of the GoPE! Country Cards. These cards are going to provide countries with current and reliable data to improve surveillance, policy, and research and are going to allow the creation of country-specific physical education profiles. These cards will help countries to increase quality physical education and physical activity at school and contribute to young people’s physical literacy development, the World Health Organization target reduction of physical inactivity by 2030,7 and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.3
In launching and implementing GoPE!, the involvement of researchers, practitioners, and policymakers from the fields of physical education, physical activity, sport, education, and public health around the world, is needed and welcomed. By launching GoPE!, we are all going to be better positioned to monitor and increase quality physical education experiences and health-enhancing physical activity at schools, therefore contributing to having more active and healthier children and adolescents worldwide.
References
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USDHHS. 2018 Physical Activity Guidelines Advisory Committee Scientific Report. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; 2018.
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Varela A, Pratt M, Powell K, et al. Worldwide surveillance, policy, and research on physical activity and health: the global observatory for physical activity. J Phys Act Health. 2017;14(9):701–709. PubMed ID: 28513338 doi:10.1123/jpah.2016-0626
