A Controlled Trial of a Physical Fitness Program for Fifth Grade Students

Abstract

The relative effectiveness of a structured physical fitness program was compared with that of the customary organized activities for fifth grade students. The level of fitness was compared at the beginning and end of the nine-month academic year as well as after the three-month summer recess during which time no structured program was offered. The experimental group showed significant improvement over the control group in flexibility, strength and endurance during the school year; part of that improvement was maintained over the summer months; the physical fitness program had a positive influence on the general activity level of the students and was adopted by nine of the other 10 classrooms in the experimental school.

Physical health of today's school children

“…Running program subjects had enhanced cardiorespiratory health (e.g., lower pulse rates) and scored higher on a creativity test than did the PE group. Similar findings regarding improved cardiorespiratory functioning were reported for 5th graders by Duncan, Boyce, Itami, and Puffenbarger (1983) and for high school students by Cooper, Purdy, Friedman, Bohannon, Harris, and Arends (1975).…”

Health and Nutrition Education in Elementary Schools: Changes in health knowledge, nutrient intakes and physical activity over a six year period

“…The magnitude of changes observed in the current study are greater compared to other studies categorized under the broad term ''general nutrition education'' programmes 10 and ''fitness enhancing'' programmes 13,14 where behavioural changes were very small or questionable. The marginal behavioural changes observed in the latest programs could be attributed to the purely cognitive approach of these programmes as compared to the social learning theory model used in the present study and elsewhere 15,16 .…”

School‐Based Obesity Interventions: A Literature Review

“…Of these interventions, 15 only utilized an implementation or a modification of an existing physical activity program or an in-school physical education class. [16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28][29][30][31][32] Another 17 intervention protocols only used health and fitness educational models, dietary regimens, or physical activity behavior modification strategies. [33][34][35][36][37][38][39][40][41][42][43][44][45][46][47][48] The remaining 19 intervention studies utilized combinations of physical activity programs, health/fitness educational models, and/or dietary/ nutritional regimens.…”