Exploring the Effectiveness of a Battery of Physical Fitness Tests via Virtual Learning Environment

Abstract

Background. Online PFTs can assess students’ physical fitness, according to several studies. However, few papers examined this issue in the setting of a Philippine higher education institution. Study purpose. This experimental research examined how a subset of Physical Fitness Tests (PFTs) affects BMI improvement. Materials and methods. After five weeks of fitness tests, this study used an experimental design to compare pre- and post-test scores while controlling for gender, age, and BMI. A two-part survey questionnaire collected the participants’ data. First, gender, age, and pre-test BMI were provided. The Physical Activity Readiness Questionnaire was the second part (PAR-Q). Analysis of the 5-week experiment data used IBM SPSS version 27. Descriptive statistical approaches displayed the participants’ demographics and fitness testing results (frequency, percentage, mean, and standard deviation). Before and after the selected PFTs, the students’ performance was examined using the one-way ANOVA and the independent samples t-test to determine if factors like gender, age, and body mass index affected performance. After the fitness tests, the paired samples t-test was used to see if the pre- and post-test scores were statistically different. Results. Performance before and after the selected PFTs was not statistically different between age groups. Except for the vertical jump test, gender groups did not differ significantly. Males outperformed females. Finally, after five weeks of performing the recommended PFTs, post-test scores were statistically significantly higher than pre-test levels. Conclusions. The selected PFTs were useful in online learning, especially in a Philippine local institution. This study supports the idea that college physical education instructors can regularly test their students’ fitness levels using the above assessments.