A Comparison of Attitude Toward Physical Education Class, Physical Activity Level, and Aerobic Fitness between Hong Kong and Shanghai Adolescents

Abstract

Studies revealed that participation in Physical Education (PE) classes could increase the chance to be more physically active and influence aerobic fitness among youth (Chen, 2014; Fairclough & Stratton, 2004). Meanwhile, it is noted that weekly amount of PE classes in Shanghai and Hong Kong is largely different (Shanghai: 5 times per week, 40 mins per session; Hong Kong: 80-120 mins per week). Due to the difference in PE class volume, we hypothesized that attitude toward PE class, physical activity (PA) level and aerobic fitness of adolescents may be different between these two cities. PURPOSE: to compare the attitude toward PE class, PA and fitness between adolescents in Hong Kong and Shanghai. METHODS: A total of 2,059 adolescents (12-15 yrs old) randomly recruited from middle-schools of Hong Kong and Shanghai completed questionnaire surveys on attitudes toward PE (like, okay, or dislike), self-reported weekly moderate to vigorous PA (MVPA) (IPAQ), and field test on aerobic fitness (15m PACER). RESULTS: Chi-square test showed Hong Kong adolescents “like” PE (54.8%) more than that of Shanghai counterparts (39.5%) (p<0.001), whereas Hong Kong adolescents “dislike” PE (5.3%) much less than the Shanghai adolescents (21.5%) (p<0.001). After adjusting for age and gender, ANCOVA revealed that MVPA of Hong Kong adolescents was considerably higher (369.8±10.8) than that of Shanghai counterparts (302.0±8.4) (p<0.001). There was no difference (p> 0.05) in aerobic fitness between adolescents from the two cities. CONCLUSIONS: The present study demonstrated that Shanghai adolescents, though receiving much higher volume of PE classes than Hong Kong adolescents, do not have better attitudes toward PE class nor higher MVPA level than the Hong Kong counterparts. Other factors other than the PE volume, such as PE curriculum and contents, teaching styles or leaderships, may be more important to affect attitude toward PE, PA and fitness levels.