In spite of increasing interests in the relationship between neighborhood environments and children's walking-to-school behaviors, few studies have examined the dynamic nature of school-community relationships from physical and social perspectives. Questions such as how centrally the school is located within the larger community, and how connected or accessible the school is to the surrounding communities, will have significant implications for children?s walking to school and physical activity behaviors and also for the community's social capital. The primary aims of this study are: (a) to assess the association between school-community relations and social capital among parents of school children; (b) to assess the relationship between school-community relations and walking-to-school behaviors among school children; and (c) to examine the mediating effects of social capital on the relationship of (b). This cross-sectional study focuses on children and parents from 19 elementary schools in the Austin Independent School District (AISD) in Austin, Texas, utilizing the parental Safe Routes to School (SRTS) survey and conducting a follow-up Parental Social Capital survey to gather additional in-depth data on social capital. Also objective measurements are performed to assess school-community relations and physical environments using the spatial centrality index and Geographical Information System (GIS) network analysis at/around schools and surrounding communities. Data analyses are conducted based at the school/community-level and the individual-level (large full data and small sub-group data) separately by using ANOVAs, bivariate statistical analysis and multivariate statistical models. Overall findings of this study show that: (a) neighborhood schools have more students walking to school and a higher centrality of the school than non-neighborhood schools; (b) differences in social capital between neighborhood schools and non-neighborhood schools are not significant or are only marginally significantly; (c) two social capital variables, "volunteerism" and "social cohesion" are correlated with children's walking-to-school behaviors but no significant mediating effect is found for social capital in the association between school-community relations and children's walking-to-school behaviors; and (d) "volunteerism" is shown to be positively correlated with "perceived centrality" but negatively associated with all objective centrality measures. The other social capital variable of "social cohesion" has a positive correlation with one of the objective centrality measures, "closeness centrality." Findings of this study may contribute to research exploring the dynamics of school-community relations with socio-spatial perspectives, and also bring attention to the policy makers for school siting in the large community context and evidence-based knowledge promoting healthy community design.

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / Esta pesquisa é fundamentada e metodologicamente construída objetivando descrever e analisar o que e como é o Programa Bairro-Escola de Nova Iguaçu, implementado como política educacional, em 2006, para organização curricular da Rede Municipal de Ensino. O foco deste estudo qualitativo está centrado na identificação das principais diretrizes e características produzidas por essa política curricular no/para o desenvolvimento da gestão democrática e na melhoria da prática educativa. Para tanto, a metodologia utilizada para a elaboração deste trabalho foi a abordagem qualitativa, a investigação teórica de eixos temáticos e o estudo de caso do significado do Programa Bairro-Escola para os sujeitos que o vivenciam em Nova Iguaçu, abordando especificamente quais são as principais características que o Programa tem produzido, até então, na gestão macro e micro educacional, na prática educativa e na relação entre ambas as práticas, sob a ótica dos sujeitos que o vivenciam no seu cotidiano de desenvolvimento. Para tanto, este estudo de caso de cunho descritivo-analítico utilizou como campo de investigação duas escolas municipais (situadas em bairros geograficamente distantes) como amostragem e a Secretaria Municipal de Educação de Nova Iguaçu para a obtenção, por meio de entrevistas semiestruturadas (realizadas no segundo semestre de 2011), de informações que "respondessem" aos objetivos desta pesquisa. No entanto, os sujeitos escolhidos para serem entrevistados foram: (um) representante da Secretaria Municipal de Educação de Nova Iguaçu, (dois) diretores, (dois) coordenadores, (dois) orientadores, (dois) professores, (dois) estagiários, (dois) agentes comunitários, (dois) pais de alunos e (dois) alunos, os quais relataram nas entrevistas que o Programa Bairro-Escola iguaçuano, apesar de ser uma política educacional ainda recente, tem contribuído para a melhoria da prática educativa, na medida em que as oportunidades educativas foram ampliadas com a implantação do Horário Integral através das oficinas fixas de aprendizagem, esporte, cultura, informática, entre outras experiências socioeducativas desenvolvidas no âmbito escolar ou em ambientes parceiros nas comunidades do entorno das escolas. E na gestão educacional através da conquista da implementação do conselho escolar, o qual tem possibilitado uma gestão mais participativa e mais autônoma nas escolas. Mas expuseram também que, para um "melhor rendimento", o Bairro-Escola, aqui, ainda carece de variados recursos infraestruturais (recursos de natureza física, humana ou pedagógica) e de mais estratégias que dinamizem a gestão mais participativa, o envolvimento comunitário e o reconhecimento do Programa. / This research is based and methodologically constructed aiming to describe and analyze what and how is the Neighborhood Program, School of New Iguaçu, implemented as educational policy, in 2006, to curriculum organization of municipal schools. The focus of this qualitative study is focused on identifying the main characteristics and guidelines produced by this policy in curriculum / development of democratic management and improvement of educational practice. For this purpose, the methodology used for the preparation of this work was the qualitative approach, the theoretical investigation of themes and case study of the meaning of the Neighborhood Program School for the guys who live in New Iguaçu, specifically addressing what are the main features that the program has produced so far in the macro and micro management of education in educational practice and the relationship between both practices, from the perspective of individuals who experience it in their daily development. Therefore, this case study used a descriptive-analytical research as a field of two public schools (located in geographically distant neighborhoods) as sampling and the Municipal Education New Iguaçu to obtain through structured interviews (conducted in the second half of 2011), information that "answer" to the objectives of this research. However, the subjects chosen for interview were: (a) representative of the City Department of Education New Iguaçu, (two) directors, (two) coordinators (two) mentors (two) teachers (two) interns, (two) community agents (two) and parents of students (two) students, who reported in interviews that the program iguaçuano School District, despite being a relatively new educational policy, has contributed to the improvement of educational practice, as where educational opportunities were expanded with the implementation of Full-time fixed through learning workshops, sports, culture, information technology, among other social and educational experiences developed within school environments or partners in the communities surrounding the schools. And in educational administration through the conquest of the implementation of the school board, which has enabled a more participatory and more autonomous schools. But it also exposed to a "better performance", the Neighborhood School, here, still lacks several infrastructural resources (resources of a physical nature, human or teaching) and more strategies that streamline the management more participatory, community involvement and Recognition Program.

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / Esta pesquisa é fundamentada e metodologicamente construída objetivando descrever e analisar o que e como é o Programa Bairro-Escola de Nova Iguaçu, implementado como política educacional, em 2006, para organização curricular da Rede Municipal de Ensino. O foco deste estudo qualitativo está centrado na identificação das principais diretrizes e características produzidas por essa política curricular no/para o desenvolvimento da gestão democrática e na melhoria da prática educativa. Para tanto, a metodologia utilizada para a elaboração deste trabalho foi a abordagem qualitativa, a investigação teórica de eixos temáticos e o estudo de caso do significado do Programa Bairro-Escola para os sujeitos que o vivenciam em Nova Iguaçu, abordando especificamente quais são as principais características que o Programa tem produzido, até então, na gestão macro e micro educacional, na prática educativa e na relação entre ambas as práticas, sob a ótica dos sujeitos que o vivenciam no seu cotidiano de desenvolvimento. Para tanto, este estudo de caso de cunho descritivo-analítico utilizou como campo de investigação duas escolas municipais (situadas em bairros geograficamente distantes) como amostragem e a Secretaria Municipal de Educação de Nova Iguaçu para a obtenção, por meio de entrevistas semiestruturadas (realizadas no segundo semestre de 2011), de informações que "respondessem" aos objetivos desta pesquisa. No entanto, os sujeitos escolhidos para serem entrevistados foram: (um) representante da Secretaria Municipal de Educação de Nova Iguaçu, (dois) diretores, (dois) coordenadores, (dois) orientadores, (dois) professores, (dois) estagiários, (dois) agentes comunitários, (dois) pais de alunos e (dois) alunos, os quais relataram nas entrevistas que o Programa Bairro-Escola iguaçuano, apesar de ser uma política educacional ainda recente, tem contribuído para a melhoria da prática educativa, na medida em que as oportunidades educativas foram ampliadas com a implantação do Horário Integral através das oficinas fixas de aprendizagem, esporte, cultura, informática, entre outras experiências socioeducativas desenvolvidas no âmbito escolar ou em ambientes parceiros nas comunidades do entorno das escolas. E na gestão educacional através da conquista da implementação do conselho escolar, o qual tem possibilitado uma gestão mais participativa e mais autônoma nas escolas. Mas expuseram também que, para um "melhor rendimento", o Bairro-Escola, aqui, ainda carece de variados recursos infraestruturais (recursos de natureza física, humana ou pedagógica) e de mais estratégias que dinamizem a gestão mais participativa, o envolvimento comunitário e o reconhecimento do Programa. / This research is based and methodologically constructed aiming to describe and analyze what and how is the Neighborhood Program, School of New Iguaçu, implemented as educational policy, in 2006, to curriculum organization of municipal schools. The focus of this qualitative study is focused on identifying the main characteristics and guidelines produced by this policy in curriculum / development of democratic management and improvement of educational practice. For this purpose, the methodology used for the preparation of this work was the qualitative approach, the theoretical investigation of themes and case study of the meaning of the Neighborhood Program School for the guys who live in New Iguaçu, specifically addressing what are the main features that the program has produced so far in the macro and micro management of education in educational practice and the relationship between both practices, from the perspective of individuals who experience it in their daily development. Therefore, this case study used a descriptive-analytical research as a field of two public schools (located in geographically distant neighborhoods) as sampling and the Municipal Education New Iguaçu to obtain through structured interviews (conducted in the second half of 2011), information that "answer" to the objectives of this research. However, the subjects chosen for interview were: (a) representative of the City Department of Education New Iguaçu, (two) directors, (two) coordinators (two) mentors (two) teachers (two) interns, (two) community agents (two) and parents of students (two) students, who reported in interviews that the program iguaçuano School District, despite being a relatively new educational policy, has contributed to the improvement of educational practice, as where educational opportunities were expanded with the implementation of Full-time fixed through learning workshops, sports, culture, information technology, among other social and educational experiences developed within school environments or partners in the communities surrounding the schools. And in educational administration through the conquest of the implementation of the school board, which has enabled a more participatory and more autonomous schools. But it also exposed to a "better performance", the Neighborhood School, here, still lacks several infrastructural resources (resources of a physical nature, human or teaching) and more strategies that streamline the management more participatory, community involvement and Recognition Program.