We investigated changes in cardiorespiratory performance, BMI and leisure-time physical activity among Finnish adolescents from 2003 to 2010. In addition, we compared cardiorespiratory performance levels between normal weight and overweight adolescents, grouped according to their physical activity. Participants were a national representative samples of 15-16-year-old adolescents in their final (ninth) year of comprehensive school in 2003 (n = 2258) and in 2010 (n = 1301). They performed an endurance shuttle run test and reported their height and weight and leisure time physical activity on a questionnaire. Results showed no significant secular changes in cardiorespiratory performance from 2003 to 2010. The mean BMI increased in boys. Leisure-time physical activity increased among normal weight girls. Adolescents of normal weight had better cardiorespiratory performance than those classified as overweight at both assessment points. BMI-adjusted physical activity was a significant determinant for cardiorespiratory performance among overweight adolescents, and very active overweight adolescents had similar cardiorespiratory performance levels as moderately active adolescents of normal weight. The results of the present study support the idea that the physical activity has the great importance for the cardiorespiratory performance in adolescents. Overweight adolescents, in particular, benefit from higher levels of physical activity.

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The aim of this study was to examine the secular trends in fundamental movement skills (FMS) among 15- to 16-year-old adolescents at 2 assessment points scheduled in 2003 and 2010 and to investigate the associations between FMS, physical activity (PA), and body mass index (BMI). In 2003, self-reported PA, weight and height, and objective FMS scores were collected from 2390 students, and in 2010, similar data were generated from a second sample of 1346 students. FMS were assessed during both assessment phases using 3 identical objective FMS tests that were figure 8 dribbling, jumping laterally, and coordination track tests. This study indicated that the sum index of FMS did not change among the boys and the girls between 2 data collection points. However, findings demonstrated a secular decline in coordination test scores in both gender groups between 2 measurement points but an improvement in girls' object control skills between 2003 and 2010. The results also showed that FMS had a significant main effect on BMI in both gender groups, whereas the main effect of PA on BMI was not significant for either gender group. Results also demonstrated that there was no significant interaction effect between FMS and PA on BMI in either of the girls' or the boys' groups.

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The aim of this paper was to gain an understanding of the views of a group of physical education teacher educators on the purpose(s) of school physical education and whether, how and why these views have changed over time. Semi-structured individual interviews were carried out with thirteen physical education teacher educators; a fourteenth participant responded to interview questions in writing. Participants were based in seven countries: Belgium, Finland, Germany, Ireland, New Zealand, Switzerland and the USA. A relative consensus on the overarching purpose of physical education was evident, centred on physical education preparing young people for a lifetime of physical activity. The framing of this shared purpose differed somewhat between participants, reflecting a range of perspectives on the value of physical activity. Delineating the boundaries of their subject, participants characterised obesity prevention and maximising in-class physical activity as potential by-products rather than as goals of the subject. The views of many had changed over time, influenced by such factors as findings from research, societal expectations and a perceived need to legitimise physical education within school and university contexts. We note that many of the influences acting on the views of the physical education teacher educators are also known to affect practicing teachers. This suggests a possibility, in the open reflection of physical education teacher educators on the interaction between their views and the institutional and societal contexts within which they work, to provide future teachers with alternative value pathways paved with relatable explanations and shared experiences.Keywords: Physical education teacher educators, physical education, purpose, physical activity, value orientationsThe project of which this study forms a part focuses on the professional journeys, views, experiences and practices of an international group of physical education teacher educators. This paper represents a starting point for the sharing of this research, centring on the views these physical education teacher educators hold regarding the purpose(s) of their subject, how these views have changed over time and the influences acting on these views. Discussing values and purpose in teacher education, Hansen (2008, p. 23) argues that without dialogue on purpose people can become passive and resigned to the status quo and that enquiry into purpose functions to keep the conversation 'vibrant, dynamic and consequential', adding that such dialogue is 'indispensable to the very existence of a sense of purpose'. Physical education teacher educators are acknowledged to play key roles in the transformation and reproduction of physical education work practices and knowledge (Lawson, 1991;Kirk & Macdonald, 2001). In this light, the ends towards which the work of these professionals are directed and the circuits of persuasion within which the goals to which they aspire are formed, influenced, or resist influence, become of import for anyone inter...

The purpose was to develop a model to guide assessment for physical education planning for integration and inclusion at the school district level. A secondary goal was to determine if teachers’ gender, age, education, and experience of teaching children with special needs are associated with beliefs about barriers to integration. To test the model, data were collected from physical education specialists and classroom teachers in central Finland. The survey instruments were three scales: (a) Awareness of Individual Differences Survey, (b) Survey of Adapted Physical Education Needs–Finnish modification (SAPEN-F), and (c) Teacher Beliefs About Physical Education Integration Scale. Results indicated that Finnish teachers know they have students with special needs. PE specialists and classroom teachers share many common beliefs about priority needs. Teachers believe that the most important barrier that hinders physical education integration is attitude. The model described herein worked in Finland and is ready for further testing by other countries.

The purpose of this research was to develop and test an adapted physical education consultant model to assist regular elementary school classroom teachers to include children with special needs into regular physical education. The consultation model consisted of (a) Level 1, conducting a needs assessment, (b) Level 2, designing/implementing the program, and (c) Level 3, evaluating the program. The model was tested in two communities in Finland using the intensive and the limited consulting approaches. Data collection methods included videotaped observations of teacher and students, interviews, dialogue at interdisciplinary team meetings, and journals. Results are presented as case studies, which describe the process and product over a 2-month period of model implementation. Analysis of data indicate that classroom teachers, paraprofessionals, and students benefited from the consultant model. The adapted physical education consultant model appears to be a viable approach in facilitating the integration of children with special needs.