Physical activity and sedentary time during physical education lessons between different physical activity groups of a sample of Finnish 11-year-old students

Abstract

Problem statement: Insufficient PA is rising concern in modern society. Physical education as a compulsory subject allows all students to engage physical activity. However, the activity levels may vary during the physical education lesson depending on the motivation of students. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine the amount of time spent in light physical activity, moderate to vigorous physical activity and sedentary activity by a sample of Finnish fifth grade students during physical education lessons. Approach: A cohort of 407 Finnish students’ (177 boys, 232 girls) participated to study. To determine activity, participants wore GTX3 Actigraphs for seven consecutive days. Participants’ activity scores were grouped in quartiles based on their weekly average moderate to vigorous physical activity. Different activity group and gender comparisons were undertaken using MANOVA. Results: Contrasts regarding activity quartiles revealed that in the least active group quartile (Q1) boys had more sedentary time and less MVPA time than in the more active group quartiles (Q3&Q4). Among girls, Q1 girls had less moderate to vigorous physical activity than girls grouped in Q3-Q4, and had more sedentary time than all other quartile groups. Conclusions: Results demonstrated that during PE lessons differences in activity between children with different moderate to vigorous physical activity levels exist. Physical education teachers should consider developing lesson strategies to address the differences identified in ST and MVPA. Programs that foster consistency in student engagement at the moderate to vigorous physical activity level may also support a decrease in levels of sedentary time across the physical education lesson.