Barriers and facilitators to physical activity and further digital exercise intervention among inactive British adolescents in secondary schools: a qualitative study with physical education teachers.

BackgroundIt is evident that physical activity (PA) programmes implemented in schools were not effective in improving PA behaviours among adolescents. This study investigated students’ perceptions of barriers to PA among inactive English adolescents in secondary schools based on the Capability, Opportunity, Motivation, and Behaviour (COM-B) model, the Behaviour Change Wheel (BCW), and Theoretical Domains Framework (TDF). The study compared barriers faced by inactive and active groups participating in sports and PA in secondary schools to identify sources of behaviour contributing to inactivity.MethodsA pre-intervention online survey was distributed to affiliated schools by 233 Teaching Schools Alliances (TSAs) as part of the monitoring and evaluation of the Secondary Teacher Training study. Data were cross-tabulated to analyse activity levels and behavioural barriers for active and inactive groups, using the COM-B domains. The research team followed a seven-step process to categorise barriers based on their relevant domain in the TDF mapped to the COM-B.ResultsThe findings were derived from one of the most extensive surveys of adolescents ever undertaken involving 200,623 active and 8,231 inactive respondents. The study identified 52 barriers and 68 behaviours that prevent adolescents from participating in PA. Psychological and social barriers were found to affect all activity levels, genders, and ethnic groups, with a lack of confidence and self-consciousness being the most prevalent. Certain demographic groups, such as those from minority ethnic groups and disabled individuals, were found to be overrepresented among inactive populations. The finding of the study indicated that there were common barriers that affected both inactive and active groups, with further similarity when examining barriers between active and inactive girls. The study also found that girls were more likely to experience the main barriers compared to boys, while inactive boys were more likely to encounter these barriers compared to active boys. The findings suggest that common barriers could be addressed across the population, while recognising some differences in demographics, and the need to provide personalised support. Targeted interventions are also suggested for all girls and inactive boys.ConclusionThis study highlights the range of barriers that impact adolescents and provides insight into potential mechanisms for behaviour change, including intervention functions, policy categories, and evidence-based behaviour change tools. The study highlights the need for further research to address the barriers to PA among adolescents, particularly those who are inactive. Utilising the findings of this study, future research should investigate the effectiveness of novel digital exercise interventions and policies in increasing PA levels among children and adolescents. Complex digital exercise interventions, including conversational AI solutions, could provide personalised tools to identify and revolutionise support around the multitude of barriers that impact adolescents globally.“For the purpose of open access, the author has applied a Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) licence to any Author Accepted Manuscript version arising from this submission.”

We investigated whether a 4-min sprint interval training (SIT) protocol had an acute effect (15 min after) on improving alertness, mood, and memory recall in female students. Sixty-three children and 131 adolescents were randomly assigned to either a SIT or control (CON) group by the class Physical Education (PE) teachers. The SIT intervention was delivered twice a week for 3 weeks. SIT participants performed three, 20-s ‘all-out’ effort sprints interspersed with 60-s intervals of walking while CON group sat down and rested. PE lessons were arranged such that the first two sessions were to familiarise participants with the SIT protocol leading to acute assessments conducted on the third session. On that occasion, both groups rated their alertness and mood on a single-item hedonic scale and underwent an adapted memory recall test. The same assessments were administered to both groups fifteen minutes after delivery of SIT intervention. A 4-min SIT involving three, 20 s ‘all-out’ effort intensity sprints did not have an acute main effect on improving alertness, mood and, memory recall in female children (ηp2 = 0.009) and adolescents (ηp2 = 0.012). Students’ exercise adherence and feedback from PE teachers are indicatives of the potential scalability of incorporating SIT into PE programmes. Different work-to-rest ratios could be used in future studies.

The purpose of this research was to examine the causes of marginalization in Physical Education (PE) and to examine how PE teachers can counter the effects of this marginalization. Therefore, a recent literature review was conducted for the purpose of investigating the effects of marginalization. Four studies addressed feelings of burnout among PE teachers, including isolation, lack of equipment, and lack of space. Three research articles addressed communication with parents to encourage their support of PE. These three articles examined the use of PE websites as a tool to stay in constant communication with parents. In addition, one research study looked at how PE assessments needed to be consistent with other content areas and aligned with state and national standards. Moreover, one research article addressed the causes of parents' misconceptions of their children's PE programs. The final research article was a case study that related to how one teacher was able to change the parents' misconceptions about the PE programs. Results from this literature review study indicated that PE programs are being marginalized, yet there are ways for PE teachers to combat this issue.

LANGUAGE NOTE | Document text in English; abstract also in Chinese. Physical activities in school PE programs have been recognized as ideal paths and environments for developing a healthy lifestyle. Researchers have indicated that principals at all school levels (K-12) would be the critical players in the reform efforts for physical activities and improve their PE programs. This study examined 46 principals’ PE perception. The Principal’s perception of Physical Education Questionnaire and the Self-Evaluation Tool for School Physical Education Program were employed for this survey. Finding included (a) the top three statements that strongly structured the principals’ PE perception were Item 2 (We can activate and foster the physical activity skills children need through our school physical education programs), 11 (Once physical education and daily physical activities are valued and supported, children will gradually form their active and healthy lifestyle.”, and item 1 (Physical education plays a vital role in our school curricula). Regarding self-evaluation for their school PE Program, the principals indicated that their school PE programs were not well-established; some particular areas were far from satisfaction. The relationship between the principals’ PE perception and selfevaluations on their schools’ PE program exists with some correlations stronger than others. 身體活動是學校體育課程中已被確認為發展健康的生活方式的理想途徑和環境。研究表示，提高學校體育課程的品質中，各級學校的校長(從小學到高中)將是關鍵的人物。本研究搜集了46名校長的體育看法。調查問卷是：校長對體育的看法調查問卷和學校體育教育計畫的自我評估量表。本調查發現：校長對體育認知的前三項構成最強烈的影響：分別為：我們可以啟動並促進兒童需要的身體活動技能通過我們的學校體育教育計畫；身體教育和日常身體活動得到重視和支持，孩子們就會逐步形成自己的積極和健康的生活方式；在我們的學校課程中，體育教育起著至關重要的作用。關於他們對自己學校的體育課程的自我評價，校長們表示，他們的學校體育教育計畫尚未很好地建立起來，在一些特定的領域仍未得到校長們的滿意。

It is now well over 60 years since the publication in Britain of the Board of Education’s (1933) Syllabus For Physical Training For Schools. It was a remarkable document, not only for the amount of detail it provided on the teaching of physical education, no doubt necessary for a teaching force then predominantly untrained to teach it, but also for the status it was accorded (then called physical training) in the elementary school curriculum. “The development of a good physique” and the provision of an “efficient system of physical training” were seen as nothing less than a matter of “national importance” as “vital to the welfare, even the survival of the race” (p. 8). The echoes of war, general economic recession, and widespread social deprivation unsoftened by the supporting structures of a welfare state had much to do with the Board’s emphasis on the production, promotion, and maintenance of fitness for health. Throughout the syllabus the social and medical functions of physical training loomed large. An efficient system of physical training could help compensate, but not correct, alleviate, or act as a “remedy for all (British economic and social) ills” (Board of Education, 1933, p. 8). Such was their magnitude that the Board acknowledged (in a manner not always so prevalent in more recent health reports) that physical training had its curative limits. Even so, it went on somewhat optimistically to claim that the syllabus could, “if rightly and faithfully used, widely adopted and reasonably interpreted, yield an abundant harvest of recreation, improved physique and national health” (p. 8). Physical education has long been associated officially with the development and maintenance of the health of school children in the United Kingdom (UK), as in the United States (US) and elsewhere (see Kirk, 1992, 2004). Over the past 20 years this association has become even stronger. Since the 1980’s “health issues” began to be featured regularly in the physical education literature, first in the form of expressions of commitment to “health related fitness,” later renamed “health related education” and, thereafter, increasingly in mainstream physical education programs in schools (see Fox, 1991; Penney & Harris, 2004). A commitment to certain elements of health education is now embedded in the National Curriculum for Physical Education (NCPE) to which all pupils between the ages of 5 and 16

Aims: To determine the sources of career inspiration of adolescents in secondary schools and their career choice in Delta State, Nigeria
 Study Design: Descriptive Survey Research Design.
 Place and Duration of Study: Secondary schools in Asaba, Education Zone of Delta State, between March 2019 and July 2021.
 Methodology: The population of this study comprises 5,273 (male = 3754, female = 1519) senior secondary school II adolescents drawn from the 65 secondary schools situated in four local government areas in Asaba education zone of Delta State. The sample for this study comprises 810 SS II adolescents (male = 434, female = 371). The multistage sampling procedure was adopted in sampling the respondents. Firstly, simple random sampling technique was used to draw two local government areas, from the existing four LGAs in Asaba education zone of Delta State. There exist 30 secondary schools in the sampled LGAs. Secondly, disproportionate stratified sampling technique was used to select 27 senior secondary school II adolescents from each secondary school. The instruments for data collection were a structured questionnaire, structured on a 5–point response option of strongly agreed – strongly disagree with weighed values of 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. The instruments were validated and reliability established. The Cronbach alpha reliability coefficient was 0.621, 0.841, 0.721 for the three sub-scales and an overall reliability of 0.715. The administration of the questionnaire structured for data collection was done through direct delivery approach. A total of 810 questionnaires were administered and 780 retrieved and used for data analysis. Data relating to research questions 1 - 3 was analyzed using mean and standard deviation. Data relating to the hypotheses was tested using the T-test for independent sample at 0.05 significance level.
 Results: The mean of means score is a pointer that adolescents agree to family influence as a source of career inspiration. More so, the standard deviation score shows heterogeneity of the respondents rating. The significant value is greater than the alpha value, hence there is no significant difference. This goes to show that male and female adolescents in secondary schools in Delta State do not differ significantly in their mean rating of family influence as a source of career inspiration. The mean of means scores revealed that adolescents agree to environmental influence as a source of career inspiration. More so, the standard deviation score indicates a heterogeneity of the respondents rating. The significant value is greater than the alpha value, this goes to show that male and female adolescents in secondary schools in Delta State do not differ significantly in their mean rating of environmental influence as a source of career inspiration. Mean of means score reveals that adolescents strongly disagree to occupational stereotyping influence as a source of career inspiration. The significant value is greater than the alpha value, hence there is a no significant difference. This goes to show that male and female adolescents in secondary schools in Delta State do not differ significantly in their mean rating of occupational stereotyping influence as a source of career inspiration.
 Conclusion: Based on the findings of this study it was concluded that adolescents in secondary schools agreed to family influence and environmental factor as sources of career inspiration. However, they strongly disagreed to occupational stereotyping as a source of career inspiration in Delta State. It was further concluded that adolescents in secondary schools in Delta State do not differ significantly in their mean rating of family influence and occupational stereotyping influence as sources of career inspiration. More so, there differ significantly in their mean rating of environmental factor as a source of career inspiration based on gender.

One of the grand challenges of our time is to educate children and youth to live physically active and healthy lives today and into adulthood. To do so, we must first agree that the highest mission priority for physical education programs in schools is that of public health promotion through physical activity. Under that mission, school physical education programs from preschool to Grade 12 (P–12) would be designed, implemented, resourced, and evaluated to help children meet the recommended 60 min of daily physical activity. From there, the worth of those programs would be judged on their success in accomplishing that mission. This article outlines an agenda for conducting longitudinal, cross-disciplinary team research on exemplary physical education programs that have demonstrated the capacity to help more children achieve the recommended daily level for physical activity. Once those exemplars have been studied and documented, the final step in this agenda is for researchers to disseminate their findings beyond the traditional audiences who read scholarly journals. Those new audiences would include school leaders, parents, other physical activity professionals and organizations, and, ultimately, policymakers. The article ends with a description of a 2-year research project that achieved many of the goals aligned with comprehensive school physical activity programs and that would promote SHAPE America – The Society of Health and Physical Educators' 50 Million Strong by 2029 initiative.

This article aimed to identify the behavior change techniques (BCTs) based on facilitators and barriers to lifestyle management in women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) according to the behavior change wheel (BCW). This qualitative study design using inductive thematic analysis following semistructured interviews (n = 20) identified barriers and enablers to lifestyle management. These were then mapped to Capability, Opportunity, Motivation-Behavioral Model (COM-B) constructs and the corresponding Theoretical Domains Framework (TDF) domains. This study included women with PCOS residing in Australia. Main outcome measures include intervention functions, policy categories, and BCTs described in the BCW. Twenty-three BCTs were recognized to influence behavior change in women with PCOS. Factors were categorized into the subcomponents of the COM-B: psychological capability (e.g., lack of credible information), physical capability (e.g., managing multiple health conditions), physical opportunity (e.g., limited access to resources), social opportunity (e.g., adequate social support), reflective motivation (e.g., positive health expectancies following behavior change), and automatic motivation (e.g., emotional eating). Future research should use this work to guide PCOS lifestyle intervention development and then test intervention effectiveness through an experimental phase to provide empirical evidence for wider use and implementation of tailored, theory-informed PCOS lifestyle programs as part of evidence-based PCOS management.

Sport administrators, sport coaches and physical educators in schools are expected to be well grounded in their profession. They are expected to work within their limit and minimize occurrence of accidents and severity of injuries if not out rightly eliminate it in physical education and sport settings. More than any other subject in the school curriculum, physical education and sport programmes expose students to risky situations, which sometimes result in accidents and injuries. These may sometimes result in litigations against the physical education teacher or the school authority, and if found guilty, a teacher may pay heavy damages for his negligence and may also lose his job. School authority may also be found to be vicariously liable with the burden of payment of heavy compensation. This paper presents an exposition of legal issues in the administration of physical education and sports in Nigeria schools. While this paper is not attempting to make an attorney out of a physical educator or sport administrator, the paper adopted a theoretical approach to explaining the need to be conscious of what is legally expected of a professional physical educator or a sport coach because parents and students in Nigeria are becoming more legalistic nowadays. This paper explains the roles of professionals in the field of sports and physical education in preventing accidents and injuries, so as to reduce situations that can lead to litigation. The paper also tries to awaken the consciousness of the professionals on the defenses they can put up in case of any litigation emanating from the discharge of their duties and the expected standards of care, which a physical educator must demonstrate in a physical education lesson or during sport outing.

This study aimed to identify factors that influence student learning outcomes and motivation in Physical Education through a systematic literature review. This study identified 577 research articles from Scopus database and SAGE publications published from 2014 to 2024. The article selection process used PRISMA flow diagram. According to the screening and eligibility review, five papers met the analytic requirements. The results of analysis show that a motivating environment promotes a sense of competency and participation as well as persistence in goal orientation. It also shows that self-talk helps students manage anxiety and boosts confidence. In addition, the use of technology, such as video-based learning, improves student understanding leading to increased engagement in Physical Education. Studies also show that self-talk is helpful for learning Physical Education. It can be a mental strategy, a tool for controlling emotions, and a reflection tool. Self-talk can help with anxiety management, confidence building, skill evaluation enhancement, and physical activity performance. Positive self-talk, technology, and inspiring surroundings could assist Physical Education process to be more accessible and successful. Therefore, this study underlines that psychological tactics must be included into Physical Education programs in schools to improve the student physical, cognitive, and emotional involvement.

BackgroundHealth policy papers disseminate recommendations and guidelines for the development and implementation of health promotion interventions. Such documents have rarely been investigated with regard to their assumed mechanisms of action for changing behaviour. The Theoretical Domains Framework (TDF) and Behaviour Change Techniques (BCT) Taxonomy have been used to code behaviour change intervention descriptions, but to our knowledge such “retrofitting” of policy papers has not previously been reported. This study aims first to identify targets, mediators, and change strategies for physical activity (PA) and nutrition behaviour change in Finnish policy papers on workplace health promotion, and second to assess the suitability of the Behaviour Change Wheel (BCW) approach for this purpose.MethodWe searched all national-level health policy papers effectual in Finland in August 2016 focusing on the promotion of PA and/or healthy nutrition in the workplace context (n = 6). Policy recommendations targeting employees’ nutrition and PA including sedentary behaviour (SB) were coded using BCW, TDF, and BCT Taxonomy.ResultsA total of 125 recommendations were coded in the six policy papers, and in two additional documents referenced by them. Psychological capability, physical opportunity, and social opportunity were frequently identified (22%, 31%, and 24%, respectively), whereas physical capability was almost completely absent (1%). Three TDF domains (knowledge, skills, and social influence) were observed in all papers. Multiple intervention functions and BCTs were identified in all papers but several recommendations were too vague to be coded reliably. Influencing individuals (46%) and changing the physical environment (44%) were recommended more frequently than influencing the social environment (10%).ConclusionsThe BCW approach appeared to be useful for analysing the content of health policy papers. Paying more attention to underlying assumptions regarding behavioural change processes may help to identify neglected aspects in current policy, and to develop interventions based on recommendations, thus helping to increase the impact of policy papers.

Despite recognition of the important influence of environmental determinants on physical activity patterns, minimal empirical research has been done to assess the impact of environmental/contextual determinants of physical activity. This article aims to investigate environmental and sociodemographic determinants of physical activity and inactivity patterns among subpopulations of US adolescents. We define environmental determinants as modifiable factors in the physical environment that impose a direct influence on the opportunity to engage in physical activity. The present research examines environmental and sociodemographic determinants of physical activity and inactivity with the implication that these findings can point toward societal-level intervention strategies for increasing physical activity and decreasing inactivity among adolescents. The study population consists of nationally representative data from the 1996 National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health on 17 766 US adolescents enrolled in US middle and high schools (including 3933 non-Hispanic blacks, 3148 Hispanics, and 1337 Asians). Hours/week of inactivity (TV/video viewing and video/computer games) and times/week of moderate to vigorous physical activity were collected by questionnaire. Outcome variables were moderate to vigorous physical activity and inactivity, which were broken into categories (physical activity: 0-2 times/week, 3-4 times/week, and >/=5 times/week; inactivity: 0-10 hours/week, 11-24 hours/week, and >/=25 hours/week). Sociodemographic and environmental correlates of physical activity and inactivity were used as exposure and control variables and included sex, age, urban residence, participation in school physical education program, use of community recreation center, total reported incidents of serious crime in neighborhood, socioeconomic status, ethnicity, generation of residence in the United States, presence of mother/father in household, pregnancy status, work status, in-school status, region, and month of interview. Logistic regression models of high versus low and medium physical activity and inactivity were used to investigate sex and ethnic interactions in relation to environmental and sociodemographic factors to examine evidence for the potential impact of physical education and recreation programs and sociodemographic factors on physical activity and inactivity patterns. Moderate to vigorous physical activity was lower and inactivity higher for non-Hispanic black and Hispanic adolescents. Participation in school physical education programs was considerably low for these adolescents and decreased with age. Participation in daily school physical education (PE) program classes (adjusted odds ratio [AOR]: 2.21; confidence interval [CI]: 1.82-2.68) and use of a community recreation center (AOR: 1.75; CI: 1.56-1.96) were associated with an increased likelihood of engaging in high level moderate to vigorous physical activity. Maternal education was inversely associated with high inactivity patterns; for example, having a mother with a graduate or professional degree was associated with an AOR of.61 (CI:.48-.76) for high inactivity. High family income was associated with increased moderate to vigorous physical activity (AOR: 1.43; CI: 1.22-1.67) and decreased inactivity (AOR:.70; CI:.59-.82). High neighborhood serious crime level was associated with a decreased likelihood of falling in the highest category of moderate to vigorous physical activity (AOR:.77; CI:.66-.91). These results show important associations between modifiable environmental factors, such as participation in school PE and community recreation programs, with activity patterns of adolescents. Despite the marked and significant impact of participation in school PE programs on physical activity patterns of US adolescents, few adolescents participated in such school PE programs; only 21.3% of all adolescents

Fundamental motor/movement skills (FMS) describe the basic skills necessary to complete physical tasks, and are a key aspect of primary school physical education (PE) programs. Yet, specific teaching styles for FMS development have been relatively unexplored. Through a mixed-methods design, experiences and perceptions of different PE teachers (preservice, specialist, and generalist) were explored. The Spectrum of Teaching Styles (STS) survey was used to quantify self-reported use of teaching styles that may be used by PE teachers (N = 102). Semi-structured, qualitative interviews with a subset of participants (N = 11) were employed to explore how PE teachers perceive FMS development in PE classes. Combined, the findings highlight a preference for collaborative approaches to teaching and learning in PE, with a specific preference for explicit teaching strategies. Survey results demonstrated a preference for Style B (the practice style), which promotes teacher facilitation of activities and constructive feedback, with opportunities for students to practice skills and receive feedback. Teachers described how confidence with PE content influences the ability to provide lessons that target FMS development; this was reinforced by desires for additional professional development and training. Together, the findings provide a holistic view of teaching styles used in PE for FMS development, and outline a need to explore teaching approaches used by different PE teachers.

This study examined the effect of life skill intervention and retention on depression, anxiety and stress among Nigerian adolescents in secondary schools. Three research questions and three hypotheses were formulated to guide in the study. The survey research method was used to conduct the study. This target population of this study comprised of all adolescents in secondary schools in Lagos State. This research was carried out in Shomolu Local Government Area of Lagos State. One Hundred and Fifty (150) respondents were randomly selected as sample for this study and were retrieved for data analysis. A self-structured questionnaire was constructed and were used for the data collection. The hypotheses were tested using Regression analysis. The findings of the study were as follows: there is an effect of life skill intervention and retention on depression among Nigerian adolescents in secondary schools; there is an effect of life skill intervention and retention on anxiety among Nigerian adolescents in secondary schools; and there is an effect of life skill intervention and retention on stress among Nigerian adolescents in secondary schools. Some recommendations were made and they are: it is recommended that life skills education should be made a priority and part of the school curriculum; It is also suggested that this area be further researched in the developing world, and more resources and training should be provided to teachers to create an enabling environment for teaching life skills to the adolescents; Teacher should conduct activities in their topic to build critical thinking, creative thinking, decision-making, and problem-solving skills, as well as other skills including social and emotional skills; Educational institutions should play an important role in the prevention of psycho-social stress, improving mental health and promoting healthy habits among students.

Physical education programs in schools have the potential to promote healthy, active lifestyles by providing children with some of their recommended physical activity, increasing their physical fitness levels, and teaching them generalizable movement and behavioral skills. If “exercise is medicine,” physical education is the pill not taken. Numerous barriers, including limited curriculum time allocations, low subject status, and inadequate resources hinder physical education from playing a major role in providing and promoting physical activity. This article profiles physical education as it relates to physical activity, describes its current status from both historical and contextual standpoints, and concludes with recommendations for improving it.