A Sport Education fitness season's impact on students' fitness levels, knowledge, and in-class physical activity

• Published in: Research quarterly for exercise and sport Vol. 88; no. 3; pp. 346 - 351
• Main Authors: Ward, Jeffery Kurt, Hastie, Peter A, Wadsworth, Danielle D, Foote, Shelby, Brock, Sheri J, Hollett, Nikki
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Routledge 03.07.2017
• Subjects: Achievement; Athletics; Bewegung (Motorische); Child; Competition; Curriculum; Effektivität; Elementary school; Elementary School Students; exercise; Exercise - physiology; Exercise - psychology; Fachdidaktik; Female; Fitness; Fitnesstraining; Grade 5; Grundschule; Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; Humans; Knowledge Level; Körper (Biol); Leistungsfähigkeit; Leistungssteigerung; Male; Measurement Equipment; Physical Activity Level; physical education; Physical Education and Training - methods; Physical Fitness; Physical Fitness - psychology; Pretests Posttests; Program Effectiveness; Sportpädagogik; Sportunterricht; Students - psychology; Unterrichtsgestaltung; Unterrichtsmethode; Unterrichtsmodell; Unterrichtsreihe; USA; Wettkampf; Wissensvermittlung; physical education; exercise; Elementary school
• ISSN: 0270-1367; 2168-3824; 2168-3824
• DOI: 10.1080/02701367.2017.1321100

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine the extent to which a sport education season of fitness could provide students with recommended levels of in-class moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) while also increasing students' fitness knowledge and fitness achievement. Method: One hundred and sixty-six 5th-grade students (76 boys, 90 girls) participated in a 20-lesson season called "CrossFit Challenge" during a 4-week period. The Progressive Aerobic Cardiovascular Endurance Run, push-ups, and curl-ups tests of the FITNESSGRAM® were used to assess fitness at pretest and posttest, while fitness knowledge was assessed through a validated, grade-appropriate test of health-related fitness knowledge (HRF). Physical activity was measured with Actigraph GT3X triaxial accelerometers. Results: Results indicated a significant time effect for all fitness tests and the knowledge test. Across the entire season, the students spent an average of 54.5% of lesson time engaged in MVPA, irrespective of the type of lesson (instruction, free practice, or competition). Conclusions: The results suggest that configuring the key principles of sport education within a unit of fitness is an efficient model for providing students with the opportunity to improve fitness skill and HRF knowledge while attaining recommended levels of MVPA. (Autor).