Teaching adapted physical education in the primary years – Taiwanese teachers’ attitudes

Abstract

This purpose of this study was to investigate primary teachers’ attitudes towards adapted physical education (APE) in New Taipei City in Taiwan. It was hypothesized that positive attitudes would be found within this group of teachers. The research adopts a quantitative approach, conducting surveys. The results of this study fall into three parts. First, physical educators’ attitudes towards APE tend to be positive in the primary schools surveyed. Second, variables such as gender, age, length of teaching, background, teaching style and so forth have no effect on physical educators’ views on APE, although significant difference was found regarding grade. Finally, factors such as professional training and governmental policy are found to influence physical educators’ attitudes towards APE. In its conclusion, this study manifests its value in several ways. It provides recommendable suggestions for improving the policy and implementation of APE and future research on this subject in Taiwan.     

Gender constructions and negotiations in physical education: case studies

In Denmark as in other European countries, many girls, and especially Muslim girls, seem to lose interest in physical activities and sport with increasing age. However, in a Danish context, little is known about the reasons why girls drop out of sport and which role physical education (PE) plays in this process. In this article we present results of a qualitative study on gendered discourses and doing gender in a PE class at a Danish high school. Drawing on constructivist and post-structuralist approaches to gender and ethnicity, we explore the different opportunities of girls in PE based on in-depth interviews and video observations. Three case studies of three girls are the focus of this article: Nanna, the Danish ‘athletic girl’ who found a balance between (en)acting femininity and presenting herself as a competent athlete; Iram, the ‘Muslim girl’ whose position as a Muslim causes her to hide her sporting abilities and Ida, the Danish ‘normal girl’ who re-interprets PE and adapts it to her needs. These three girls act in and react to a discourse that emphasises competitive sport and is orientated towards male sport tastes and sport practices. The results of this study indicate that PE, with its focus on games and performances, meets the requirements and expectations of many boys but contributes to the decrease in sporting interests and activities among numerous girls.     

Investigating elementary school children’s daily physical activity and sedentary behaviours during weekdays

The purpose of the study was to quantify the contributions of physical education, exergaming (active video games that also are a type of exercise), recess, lunch break and after-school time segments to children’s daily physical activity and sedentary behaviours. Participants were 138 second and third graders (71 girls) who attended 20-min recess and 75-min lunch time daily, 25-min regular physical education or exergaming-based classes being alternated daily. The after-school period was defined as 3:20–10:00pm. Physical activity was assessed via accelerometry and the dependent variables were children’s time spent in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA), light physical activity and sedentary behaviour. Children’s percentages of time spent in MVPA (P < .001; except for the difference between exergaming and lunch break: P = .63), light physical activity (P < .001) and sedentary behaviour (P < .001) differed significantly across the time segments (i.e., physical education/exergaming, recess, lunch break and after-school). Additionally, children accumulated significantly more MVPA (t = 10.22, P < .001) but less light physical activity (t = ?3.17, P = .002) and sedentary behaviour (t = ?3.91, P < .001) in physical education than in exergaming. Overall, physical education was more effective in generating MVPA than other segments over the school day. The after-school segment holds potential as an avenue for promoting children’s MVPA, as this long period could be better utilised to organise structured physical activity.     

Are habitual runners physically inactive?

The World Health Organisation’s (WHO) physical activity guidelines recommend 150min/week of moderate- to vigorous-intensity physical activity (MVPA) accumulated in 10 min bouts. To see whether people performing habitual exercise for recreation meet these guidelines, 25 long-distance runners [mean 67 km/wk], 25 joggers [mean 28 km/wk], and 20 sedentary adults wore an ActiGraph GT3X+ accelerometer for 7 days. Sedentary time and bouts were similar in runners and sedentary adults (p > 0.46). Sedentary adults performed 20 ± 16 min/day of MVPA (usual bout duration (W50%): 9.53 ± 3.45min), with joggers and runners performing 45 ± 31min (W50%: 16.92 ± 9.53min) and 83 ± 58min (W50%: 20.35 ± 8.85min), respectively (p ≤ 0.001 versus sedentary group). Data showed that 65% of the sedentary group, 32% of joggers and 4% of long-distance runners did not meet the WHO guideline for MVPA. Failure to meet the guideline was most prominent in, but not restricted to, runners who reported ≤50km running per week. Self-reported running does not ensure adults meet physical activity guidelines or offset daily sedentary behaviours. On the other hand, the sedentary group was very close in accumulating recommended bouts of MVPA in incidental activities. Future studies should assess whether modification of work and leisure physical activity would be more fruitful than encouraging recreational exercise per se in meeting physical activity guidelines.     

大学生体力活动影响身体成分的统计研究

采用实验法、问卷法、数理统计法对安徽省大学生身体成分现状、体力活动特点以及它们的相互关系进行了统计分析.结果表明:男大学生超重或肥胖发生率高于女大学生,女大学生低体重发生率高于男大学生;课余时间体力活动偏少,每天静坐时间较长;大学生超重或肥胖发生与体力活动并无肯定的联系;经常参加大中强度体力活动能够改善大学生身体成分分布,弥补由于静坐时间对健康产生的不利影响.     

Research on China＇s Private Entrepreneurs＇ Physical Activity Level and Amount of Physical Activity

以中国义乌小商品城287名民营企业家为例,以体力活动阶段量表、国际体力活动量表（短卷）为评估工具,探讨民营企业家体力活动阶段分布特征,体力活动量及阶段分布与体力活动量的相关性。结果显示,民营企业家阶段分布特征明显,体力活动量较低,不同体力活动阶段的体力活动量有差异。     

我国民营企业家体力活动阶段与体力活动量的相关研究

以中国义乌小商品城287名民营企业家为例,以体力活动阶段量表、国际体力活动量表（短卷）为评估工具,探讨民营企业家体力活动阶段分布特征,体力活动量及阶段分布与体力活动量的相关性。结果显示,民营企业家阶段分布特征明显,体力活动量较低,不同体力活动阶段的体力活动量有差异。     

试议体育与运动

在社会实践与科学研究的推动下,需要澄清体育和运动概念的含义。体育是从身心发展出发,以身体活动为内容进行的教育行为。运动是有意识的身体活动。运动存在着种种不同的形式和内容,竞技运动是其中主要的一类。体育和运动是一对矛盾,并非是上位概念和下位概念的关系。     

Children's Frequency of Participation in Moderate to Vigorous Physical Activities

Abstract

Third and fourth grade boys (n = 422) and girls (n = 390) in four Texas elementary schools reported their participation in moderate to vigorous physical activities (MVPAs) over a 3-day period. Students were surveyed during class on successive days. On a subsample (n = 44), the agreement between reported and observed physical activities during physical education or recess was 86.3%. Running, walking fast, games and sports, and bicycling accounted for 70% of Total MVPAs. Of Total MVPAs reported, 47.0% for boys and 44.6% for girls were 10 min or longer in duration (LMVPA). The average number of LMVPAs per day was 1.7 for both boys and girls. Students reported significantly more occurrences of LMVPAs out of school than during school. Significant interaction between grade and gender indicated that third grade boys reported more Total MVPAs and LMVPAs than third grade girls, but fourth grade boys reported fewer Total MVPAs and LMVPAs than fourth grade girls. During the 3-day reporting period, 12.3% of boys and 13.3% of girls reported no LMVPAs, and 35.6% of boys and girls reported fewer than one LMVPAs per day. While the majority of children reported obtaining at least some activity daily, a substantial proportion of children in this sample reported fewer than one LMVPA daily, indicating that many children may not be obtaining adequate amounts of physical activity.     

Association of physical activity with risk of metabolic syndrome: findings from a cross-sectional study conducted in rural area,Nantong, China

The prevalence of metabolic syndrome increases rapidly worldwide, and its association with physical activity (PA) varies with race and lifestyles. Little is known about the association in rural China. The Nantong Metabolic Syndrome Study recruited 13,505 female and 6997 male participants in 2007 and 2008. Socio-demographic characteristics, and physiological and behavioural data were collected. Logistic regression model was applied to estimate associations of metabolic syndrome and its components with different PAs. The overall metabolic syndrome prevalence was 21.6% in current study. Increasing total PA or moderate-to-vigorous-intensity occupational PA was associated with decreasing 5%–60% risk of having metabolic syndrome and abnormal metabolic syndrome components in both genders. An association between leisure-time PA and blood pressure was found in men, but no associations between leisure-time PA and metabolic syndrome components were found in women. Commuting PA, such as walking and taking bus, by bicycle and walking only, was associated with decrease of 20%–45% risk of several abnormal metabolic syndrome components in women. This study provides information for future investigation into the nature of these associations so that recommendations can be developed to reduce the prevalence of metabolic syndrome and its components among rural population in China.     

体力活动与健康:研究及应用

规律性体力活动对健康的益处已经被既往的研究所证实。多种慢性疾病,包括心脏病、2型糖尿病、高血压、中风、肥胖、骨质疏松以及某些癌症的发病都与缺乏规律性的体力活动有关。权威机构已明确提出了关于体力活动的参与指引。大量的研究致力于体力活动干预措施的制定。本文总结了体力活动与健康的研究证据、体力活动在人群中的评价、以及体力活动干预研究的进展,为中国下一步相关研究的开展提供借鉴。