High School Physical Education Teachers’ Attitudes and use of Fitness Tests

Abstract

Recommendations for using and implementing fitness tests have been extensively researched and teachers’ attitudes toward fitness tests are beginning to be studied. Less understood is how high school teachers use fitness tests and the role their attitudes toward fitness tests affect students’ attitudes toward physical activity. The purpose of this study was to understand how fitness tests are used in secondary physical education classes and how the attitudes of physical education teachers toward fitness testing relate to their use of fitness tests. High school physical education teachers ( N = 149) from 47 school districts completed the Physical Education Teacher Attitudes toward Fitness Tests Scale (PETAFTS), a 16-item survey on their attitudes toward fitness tests, with additional items on how they used fitness tests. Results indicated that teachers often do not implement fitness tests as recommended. Findings suggest that teachers with positive and negative attitudes toward fitness testing vary in their implementation and use of fitness tests. Teachers with more positive attitudes reported more frequently using fitness concepts, and teachers who thought fitness testing was important indicated they were more likely to send fitness test results home.