Physical Classroom Research Articles

Associations of School-Level Factors and School Sport Facility Parameters with Overweight and Obesity among Children and Adolescents in Pakistan: An Empirical Cross-Sectional Study.

Childhood overweight and obesity are increasingly prevalent in Pakistan, posing significant public health challenges. This study explores the associations of school-level factors and school sports facility parameters with overweight and obesity among children and adolescents in Pakistan. A cross-sectional study across seven random districts in Punjab province, Pakistan, was conducted using a representative multistage random cluster sample. Underweight (BMI < 5th percentile), overweight (85th ≤ BMI < 95th percentile), and obese (95th percentile ≤ BMI) were defined using the US Center for Disease Control (CDC) 2000 criteria. Statistical analyses including the Chi-square test, Pearson correlation coefficient, and linear regression were performed to investigate predictive characteristics. Logistic regression analysis assessed the simultaneous impact of several covariates on dichotomous outcomes, with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) computed and a significance level set at p < 0.05. The study included 4108 Pakistani school children aged 9 to 17 years (mean age = 13.92 years, 59.3% boys) from 62 schools. The prevalence of overweight and obesity was 19.4% and 10.7%, respectively. Findings revealed a concerning lack of physical education activities (60% reported 0 sessions per week), morning exercise (60%), and classroom exercises (66%) among school-aged children. Leadership attitudes toward physical education (β = 0.04, p = 0.006) and students' satisfaction with the playground (β = 0.05, p = 0.015) showed significant associations with body weight status. Conversely, provision of physical education facilities, effective fund utilization for physical education, meeting school sports facility requirements, and weekend opening of school sports grounds did not significantly impact weight status. Satisfaction with the playground was significantly associated with a lower risk of overweight (OR 0.81, 95% CI 0.69-0.95, p < 0.05), indicating reduced overweight likelihood among students satisfied with school playgrounds. The study underscores significant gaps in promoting physical activity within school environments and highlights the urgent need for interventions to enhance physical education resources and sports facilities, aiming to create healthier school environments and reduce overweight and obesity prevalence among students. Further research and interventions are crucial for promoting lifelong physical activity habits and improving student health and well-being.

Responding to a global crisis: challenges of and strategies for online emergency remote teaching of media production courses

ABSTRACT The current investigation deepens our knowledge of emergency remote teaching’s (ERT’s) impact on tertiary-level media production courses during the COVID-19 pandemic. We draw on the accounts of instructors of media production courses to identify the repercussions of ERT on the teaching of such courses. We also unearth strategies used by instructors during pandemic ERT as they confronted disruptions to the delivery of their curricula. We gathered qualitative data using semi-structured interviews and conducted a thematic analysis. In doing so, this study reveals pedagogical, sociopsychological and other tensions arising from the sudden shift in teaching media production courses in a physical classroom to a virtual space. The findings identify an array of strategies employed during ERT to ameliorate these tensions. This study’s insights provoke a discussion about integrating disaster response and crisis management as part of curriculum design and educational planning for media education in higher education institutions.

Reflecting on Online Learning Experiences of Secondary School Teachers and Students during COVID-19

This paper examines the experiences of secondary-level students’ learning and teachers’ teaching strategies via Zoom during the COVID-19 pandemic in Nepal. The government formally announced the closure of physical classrooms to mitigate the outbreak of the coronavirus. This study utilised a qualitative interpretive research design and conducted online semi-structured interviews with the participants, observed their online classes and conducted documentary analysis. The findings of this study indicate that online learning in urban areas provided a flexible and alternative mode to physical classrooms. However, students and teachers faced challenges, such as irregular power supply, poor internet connection, expensive mobile data, lack of digital devices and limited ICT skills among teachers when it came to managing and delivering online classes. Additionally, the study highlights the inability of rural students to access online learning during lockdown. The efficacy of teachers in developing ICT and e-pedagogy skills played a crucial role in sustaining online learning. To ensure equal opportunities for quality education among students from marginalised and disadvantaged communities, it is recommended to equip schools, teachers, and students with the minimum ICT infrastructure and to provide subsidies on computers and internet access.

Smart Classrooms: How Sensors and AI Are Shaping Educational Paradigms.

The integration of advanced technologies is revolutionizing classrooms, significantly enhancing their intelligence, interactivity, and personalization. Central to this transformation are sensor technologies, which play pivotal roles. While numerous surveys summarize research progress in classrooms, few studies focus on the integration of sensor and AI technologies in developing smart classrooms. This systematic review classifies sensors used in smart classrooms and explores their current applications from both hardware and software perspectives. It delineates how different sensors enhance educational outcomes and the crucial role AI technologies play. The review highlights how sensor technology improves the physical classroom environment, monitors physiological and behavioral data, and is widely used to boost student engagements, manage attendance, and provide personalized learning experiences. Additionally, it shows that combining sensor software algorithms with AI technology not only enhances the data processing and analysis efficiency but also expands sensor capabilities, enriching their role in smart classrooms. The article also addresses challenges such as data privacy protection, cost, and algorithm optimization associated with emerging sensor technologies, proposing future research directions to advance educational sensor technologies.

Evaluation Method of Intelligent Teaching in Physical Training Classrooms Based on Multimedia Information Retrieval Technology

In different historical periods, people have different demands for Physical Education (PE), and the educational goal of school PE will also change, and the teaching mode and requirements of school PE will also be different. Multimedia information retrieval (IR) technology refers to searching in a large-scale multimedia database according to the content and context of media and media objects. In this paper, the Back Propagation instructional level of physical training class, and model is established. The BPNN is used to analyze the Multimedia IR data, and the simulation and experiment show the effectiveness of the assessment model, which provides a new method for comprehensively, fairly and scientifically evaluating the teaching work. This method is improved by 11.85% compared with the comparative assessment algorithms. The method of using BPNN to evaluate instructional level is easy to operate, which can overcome the shortcomings of traditional assessment methods, and avoid the complicated process of traditional assessment of instructional level.

There Is Another Room on the Other Side of the Screen: Learning via Zoom in a Hybrid Context

he tradition of physical presence in higher education has existed for years. Hybrid learning designs have emerged in recent years as a complement to the traditional way of teaching. This has created flexibility in education independent of time and place. The increasing number of students underscores an ambition to obtain high-quality education. Hence, it becomes critical understand how distance students residing in other countries perceive online-teaching in a synchronous hybrid-form, interconnected with traditional classroom teaching. The purpose is thus to gain an in-depth understanding of the factors affecting the experience of learning and engagement through Zoom. The data consists of 22 hours’ observation of Zoom lectures, supplemented by interviews with two distance students, to enable an in-depth understanding of the Zoom teaching model. The theoretical approach used is Community of Inquiry. The results highlight key conditions for the learning experience in the studied course and show that participation through Zoom in a hybrid classroom affects social and cognitive presence. This limits the interaction between physical classrooms and Zoom rooms and causes limited access to ongoing classroom activities, which slows down the learning process.

Sustainability Challenges of Universities’ Online Learning Practices

This paper analyses university teachers and students’ experiences of online learning during the COVID-19 pandemic in Nepal and presents post-pandemic implications. Potential ramifications of the findings in a normal setting were suggested by the analysis of data gathered through semi-structured interviews with participants both during and after the pandemic, as well as through observation of online classes during the period. Findings demonstrate teachers' ability to create online learning, an alternative mode to a physical classroom, during the pandemic while having an inadequate level of ICT understanding. Despite limited access to digital technology and no administrative assistance, teachers and students created an online learning environment. Findings, however, show an increasing digital gap between rural and urban areas. The discontinuation of effective online learning techniques in the post-pandemic circumstances produced by the teachers during the pandemic pointed out the issues of reforming higher education in developing countries such as Nepal.

“On Mars, we will speak Arabic”: Negotiating identity in upper secondary physics in Denmark

AbstractSeeking to make upper secondary school physics more relevant and engaging, an online collaborative learning curriculum was designed. Each of the curriculum's lessons was structured as a goal‐based scenario about human scientists on Mars. Video and audio data from the curriculum's implementation in Denmark was collected. This study utilized the theoretical lenses intersectionality, repertoires of practice, and epistemic agency. The use of comics as an analytical tool provided a novel and accessible way to depict the complex dynamics within the physics classroom. It allowed for a multimodal representation of the data and enabled a nuanced examination of the students' interactions. Findings suggest that interactions were shaped by the students' identities and these dynamics shaped their repertoires of practice. Moreover, the interactions had a profound impact on students' epistemic agency in physics. Collaborative learning with a goal‐based scenario can include and empower diverse gender, racial, and language identities. It can also, however, work to disempower and exclude when the hegemonically white and masculine culture of physics is left unproblematized. This leads to the conclusion that if reform‐based science education is untethered from a critical stance on socioscientific issues, students and teachers may reproduce social problems as much as they also may challenge them.

Who Needs Academic Campuses? Are There Advantages to Studying on an Academic Campus Considering the Experience of Online Teaching Five Years after COVID-19?

This study explores students’ perceptions of the advantages of academic campuses as the location of studies that involve social interaction, with a focus on the role of social interaction in the learning experience. The study examines students’ perspectives approximately five years after the time of COVID-19, when online studies have become more prevalent. Participants were 1048 students from several departments at two academic institutions, a university and a college, of whom 39.1% (407) were male and 60.9% (633) female. The age of the respondents ranged from 18–23 (30.4%), 24–30 (60.3%), and 31–63 (9.3%). Among all respondents, 64.2% were studying social sciences and 35.8% engineering. A mixed methods research design was employed, combining qualitative and quantitative analysis. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was utilized to test the goodness-of-fit of the presented model. The research findings showed that measures of comprehensibility, concentration, and contact with the lecturer enhance learning in a physical classroom more than learning via online teaching. However, interaction with peers does not improve one’s studies at all and is not a sufficient reason to attend classes. These findings are based on analysis of survey responses, after applying SEM to test the goodness-of-fit of the presented model. The final model showed a good fit: CMIN/DF = 1.26, CFI = 0.999, NFI = 0.996, TLI = 0.994, RMSEA = 0.02. The findings of this study may hold importance for leaders of higher education when endeavoring to plan teaching, learning, and evaluation at academic institutions and for shaping the academic campus as a significant educational space in the future. Moreover, the findings may have important implications for education management strategies towards sustainable development. Higher education institutions need to re-evaluate the role of the physical campus and social interaction within it in the era of remote learning.

The Student Empowerment through Narrative, Storytelling, Engagement, and Identity Framework for Student and Community Empowerment: A Culturally Affirming Pedagogy

For people from communities experiencing poverty and oppression, education, particularly higher education, is a means to ensure upward socioeconomic mobility. The access to and attainment of education are issues of social and economic justice, built upon foundational experiences in primary and secondary settings, and impacted by students’ cultural and socio-political environments. 6. The 2020 murder of George Floyd, the Black Lives Matter movement, ongoing discourse around immigration, and COVID-19-related hate targeting people of Asian American descent prompted national calls to dismantle social and systemic racism, spurring diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA) initiatives, particularly in education. However, these efforts have faced opposition from teachers who have told students that all lives matter, and racism does not exist in many American classrooms Loza. These comments negate students’ experiences, suppress cultural and identity affirmation, and negatively impact student wellness and academic performance. Forged in this polarized environment, two longtime community organizers and educators, an indigenous person living away from her ancestral lands and a multiracial descendant of Japanese Americans interned during WWII, whose identities, experiences, and personal narratives shape the course of their work in and outside of the physical classroom, call on fellow educators to exercise y (2018) component of the archeology of self, a “profound love, a deep, ethical commitment to caring for the communities where one works”, by adopting a framework to encourage this profound love in students, acting not just as a teacher, but as a sensei. The word sensei is commonly understood in reference to a teacher of Japanese martial arts. The honorific sensei, however, in kanji means one who comes before, implying intergenerational connection. Sensei is an umbrella expression used for elders who have attained a level of mastery within their respective crafts—doctors, teachers, politicians, and spiritual leaders may all earn the title of sensei. The sensei preserves funds of knowledge across generations, passing down and building upon knowledge from those who came before. The Student Empowerment through Narrative, Storytelling, Engagement, and Identity (SENSEI) framework provides an asset-based, culturally affirming approach to working with students in and beyond the classroom. The framework builds on tools and perspectives, including Asset-based Community Development (ABCD), the Narrative Theory, Yosso’s cultural community wealth, cultural continuity, thrivance, community organizing tenets, and storytelling SENSEI provides a pedagogy that encourages students to explore, define, and own their identities and experiences and grow funds of knowledge, empowering them to transform their own communities from within. The SENSEI framework begins by redefining a teacher as not simply one who teaches in a classroom but rather one who teaches valuable life lessons that transcend colonial conceptualizations of the teacher. In colonized contexts, teachers function to maintain hegemony and assert dominance over marginalized populations. In the SENSEI framework, teachers are those who disrupt colonial patterns and function to reclaim the strengths and voices of the communities they serve. In the SENSEI framework, students are not relegated to those enrolled in classrooms. As with a sensei, a student exists to counter hegemony by embracing and enacting their cultural wealth Educators must help counter harmful narratives and encourage students to identify the strengths that lie within themselves and their communities. Collective forms of narrative that value identity can ensure the continuity of a community or a people. The stories of students’ histories, traditional practices, and resilience can help disrupt harms, many that have lasted for generations, so they may not just survive, but thrive.

Instrument for Assessing Physical Literacy Skills Competence in Primary School Tasikmalaya, Indonesia

This study aimed to design, develop, and assess the validity of a Physical Literacy (PL) instrument designed for primary school students in Tasikmalaya, Indonesia. Children aged 8 and 12 were the sample for this development research design. The instrument's validity was evaluated using alpha coefficient analysis, and the results were quite good. All items had alpha coefficients close to or equal to 1.00, indicating the proposed evaluation instrument has good validity. As it allows them to classify students according to their ability levels and conduct more effective physical education evaluations, physical education teachers and classroom teachers require PL assessment. Physical education curriculum planning concentrates more on Physical Literacy; each student needs to be improved to be more straightforward with this tool. Therefore, this evaluation tool is beneficial for teachers in obtaining a track record of individual and collective student progress in Physical Education learning. The results from this study show that the instrument created is reliable and successfully collected PL data in Tasikmalaya City, located in Indonesia. Since we can ensure that coaching efforts can concentrate on the specific needs of each student by using the PL assessment instrument, we will achieve more significant results in primary school students' PL. Keywords: Physical Literacy, Assessment, Primary school, Skill competence

“It’s Not Like I Go Oh That’s Really Exciting” – A Qualitative Study of Upper Secondary School Students’ Identity Negotiations in Physics

AbstractTransitions between educational levels have been identified as posing potential barriers for students’ sense of belonging in science. In this paper, we focus on the transition from lower secondary to upper secondary school while foregrounding physics as a subject. We approach transitions as an ongoing negotiation-process of identities embedded within the norms, practices, and expectations of physics. Methodologically, we narrow the focus to students who self-identify as female, as these are underrepresented in physics worldwide. We apply the analytical lens of physics identity constructed through competence, performance, interest, and recognition while drawing on the concept of the ideal student to understand what identities are idealized and marginalized, and how these are negotiated by the students. We found that a large group of the students were marginalized in relation to their interests in physics and experienced learning physics to be instrumental and meaningless. Only a small group were able to form a sense of identity mainly due to the resemblances of physics to mathematics. In conclusion we call for attention on who counts as knowledgeable and what counts as knowledge in the physics classroom. Second, we wish to question interests as imperative for being in physics. Lastly, we urge reflection on mathematics’ role in physics and what physics is without mathematics to disrupt the elite status of the subject.

Entropy Theory in the Context of Physics Education

Entropy, initially a concept in thermodynamics describing the degree of disorder in a system, has been extended to information theory and non-equilibrium thermodynamics. The article proposes that the physical classroom teaching system can be viewed as a dissipative structure, promoting the orderly development of students' cognition through openness, non-equilibrium states, and fluctuation mechanisms. Specific strategies include opening up teaching content and methods, creating non-equilibrium state experiments, introducing cognitive fluctuations, and utilizing non-linear effects. These approaches help to stimulate students' desire for knowledge, optimize the teaching process, and achieve efficient physical classroom teaching.

Workplace Well-Being and Classroom Space: An Exploratory Survey of K–12 Music Teachers

Abstract Kindergarten through 12th-grade (K–12) music teachers spend much of their professional lives occupying physical workspaces like classrooms and offices. Given that teachers occupy these spaces for extended periods of time, the impact of these spaces on teacher well-being should be considered. This exploratory survey study examined the relationships between K–12 music teachers’ workplace well-being and perceptions of the physical classroom spaces. A questionnaire was completed by 484 music teachers who were members of the National Association for Music Education. The questionnaire included the Workplace PERMA Profiler (a measure of workplace well-being) and the Structural, Physical, and Campus Environment Survey (a measure of teachers’ perceptions of their classrooms). Higher levels of well-being were positively correlated with favorable perceptions of classroom space. Scale and aesthetics, the visual environment, and spatial environment elements were the strongest predictors of well-being. Taking statistical and textual data together, specific features including windows, good natural light, quality and controllable lighting, aesthetically pleasant (e.g., decorations and colors) rooms, ample space and storage, comfortable temperatures, good organization, and control over the classroom space had the largest positive impact on well-being among the participating teachers.

THE EDUCATIONAL IMPACT OF GAME-BASED LEARNING: ANALYZING BENEFITS ACROSS DISCIPLINES

Game-based learning has recently emerged as an innovative teaching and learning technique in both physical and virtual classroom settings. Hence, this study was done to analyse its documented effects on students that have been reported in previous empirical research papers. Employing qualitative method, several relevant studies, across science and social science disciplines, were examined. The data gathered was then presented in a comprehensive table, consisting of the objectives and participants, research approach, and key findings, reported by each research paper examined. The study also analysed emerging themes found in the data gathered. Most notably, the analysis found game-based learning to facilitate the learning process, regardless of the disciplines involved. The study concluded that game-based learning could be applied widely in any given classroom settings and provides favourable outcomes to the teaching and learning process. The study also emphasised that game-based learning must be carefully crafted in the educators’ planning to suit specific lesson objectives.

Ten Myths about Artificial Intelligence in Education

Objectives: I analyze, deconstruct, and debunk prevalent misconceptions about artificial intelligence (AI) in education. Methods: This study identifies and presents ten common myths about AI in education, followed by concise explanations that counter each myth with the corresponding reality, relying on credible sources and evidence. Results: AI does not replace educators; it lacks the vital human qualities crucial for effective learning experiences. Thus, it can complement rather than substitute for educators. Physical classrooms remain pivotal for fostering student engagement, an element AI cannot fully replicate, challenging the notion of AI replacing the need for traditional classrooms. Despite excelling in specific tasks, AI lacks human cognitive characteristics such as understanding and creativity, which counters the belief that AI is smarter than people. Conclusions: Dispelling these myths can help pave the way for a more nuanced, responsible, and beneficial integration of AI in the realm of education. This ensures that its influence aligns with constructive pedagogical goals and contributes to societal advancement. The strengths of AI can be leveraged to empower a more inclusive, equitable, and effective education for all. Implications for Practice: Educators are advised to be informed about the realities of AI in education to counter misconceptions and make informed decisions about its integration. Policymakers should also allocate resources for educator training in AI use, aiming for proficiency and confidence in incorporating these technologies into educational methodologies.

De-mystifying the Influence of PhET Simulation on Engagement, Satisfaction, and Academic Achievement of Bhutanese Students in the Physics Classroom

De-mystifying the Influence of PhET Simulation on Engagement, Satisfaction, and Academic Achievement of Bhutanese Students in the Physics Classroom

Study of New Physical Education Classroom Teaching Reform under the Concept of OBE

This thesis aims to explore the application and reform of OBE concept in physical education classroom teaching. Through the introduction of the OBE concept and the analysis of the current situation of physical education classroom teaching, the ideas and methods of the new type of physical education classroom teaching reform based on the OBE concept are proposed. The results of the study show that the new type of physical education classroom teaching reform under the OBE concept can promote the development of students' comprehensive quality and personalized learning, and improve the teaching effect and students' learning motivation.

Occupational health disorders among physical education teachers compared to classroom and subject specialist teachers.

During the course of their work, teachers may be subjected to conditions that cause different health problems. This study examines occupational health disorders in a representative sample of 858 teachers (528 female; age 44.0 ± 9.67 years) divided into three groups of teachers with specific occupational requirements: specialist physical education teachers (specialist PETs), classroom teachers, and specialist teachers. The number of health disorders in the last 12 months was recorded using the Chronic Health Disorders Questionnaire. The differences between the different types of teachers, controlled for sex and age, were analyzed using binary logistic regression. The results showed that 89% of teachers experienced colds as the most frequently reported health problem, followed by 58% for lower back problems, 57% for headaches, 51% for hoarseness, and 43% for neck problems. A binary logistic regression showed that specialist PETs were the group with the highest health risk. They were about twice as likely to have musculoskeletal or hearing disorders than the other two groups of teachers. They were also significantly more likely to suffer from hoarseness. Understanding these different health challenges is critical to developing targeted interventions and robust support systems. These interventions should include initiatives aimed at raising awareness of health risk factors, implementing injury interventions and vocal cord hygiene programs, making ergonomic adjustments, and promoting awareness of self-care (both mental and physical). Given that the teaching profession is currently struggling with an aging workforce and a shortage of teachers, addressing these challenges is critical to the continued well-being of the teaching professionals.

Investigating reported self-efficacy, attitudes, challenges, and knowledge of physical educators of autistic children across Europe

Throughout Europe, autistic children are increasingly supported in the inclusive classroom. However, little is known about physical educators’ preparation to support student diversity. Historically, European countries newer to the adoption of inclusivity, such as the Czech Republic, Cyprus, and North Macedonia, have less standardized practices in place for meaningful inclusion. As a result, physical educators may not have received needed training. To further investigate this, a survey was conducted to examine self-assessed knowledge and attitudes with 209 physical educators. Analysis of their responses showed moderate levels of self-efficacy. However, a novel look at challenges and practices verified that respondents do not consider themselves skilled in implementing strategies for supporting autistic children in inclusive physical education classrooms. The findings suggest that more substantial work is needed to develop empirically grounded preservice and continuing education programs and foster regulations surrounding evidence-based pedagogy.