Dissertation: Physical Education and Academic Performance – Literature Review. Part V

http://www.urgentcustomessays.com/blog/2010/01/dissertation-physical-education-and-academic-performance-%e2%80%93-literature-review-part-v/Dissertation: Physical Education and Academic Performance – Literature Review. Part VEssay Blog

The fact that the subjects were randomly selected reduced the chances of threats to internal validity. The sample size was derived from a wide cross-section of socioeconomic status and ethnic groups. The weakness of the study was the fact that there were no control schools in phase II. Furthermore, there were some reported differences in the way each school implemented its physical activity programs for this study. Overall, it was a very strong study that remained consistent with similar studies (Caterino & Polak, 1993; Caterino, & Polak, 1999; Labarre, Jequier, Shephard, Lavalle, & Rajic, 1984; Shephard, 1997)). Trudeau, Laurencelle, Tremblay, Mirjana, Rajic, and Shephard (1996) conducted a long-term follow up study of the participants in the previously mentioned Trios-Rivieres study. This study took place some 20 years after the participants’ initial involvement. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of daily primary physical education on their now adult life. Areas investigated were level of habitual physical activity, the different types of activities, and the attitudes towards physical activity. This study was done by contacting participants 20 years after they had participated in the Trios-Rivieres study. During that study, 546 primary students of both genders were placed into two groups, experimental or control. The experimental group received five hours of physical education per week targeted at increasing muscular and aerobic capacity. The control group received the standard physical education of 40 minutes per week taught by the homeroom teacher.During the follow up study, 178 of the original 272 experimental group members were contacted. Each of those participants were sent a questionnaire and consent form. One hundred forty-nine of the questionnaire and consent forms were returned. Due to concerns of cross contamination over the twenty-year period, the experimental groups status was compared to a matched control group from a Quebec health survey (1993). The control group was matched in terms of age, language, and socioeconomic profile.Results, according to Trudeau et al (1996) were calculated by using SPSS system. A two sample chi-squared test (p < 0.05) was applied to frequency distributions to assess the statistical significance of differences between groups. A t-test (p < 0.05) was applied to evaluate differences in height and body mass. As a whole the experimental group did not show a higher frequency of physical activity than the control group. However, the women did show a higher frequency of physical activity (p<0.01). There were no differences between the groups in regards toward intention to practice physical activity. There were no reportable differences in attitudes between the control and experimental group, as well as between genders. The experimental group did not show that they had more opportunities to practice physical activity. When genders were combined the experimental group showed a lower proportion of regular smokers than the control group (p < 0.01). However, when separated there were no differences between women in either group. As far as height and weight, the experimental men reported a higher height (p < 0.05) and greater body weight (p < 0.01) than the control men.The general consensus was that more activity during childhood benefited adulthood. However, this study does not support this consensus. The results of this follow up study were very discouraging. The study was considered to be the first adult follow up in regards to physical activity habits. Trudeau et al (1996)In reporting weakness of the study, Trudeau et al (1996) discussed the impossibility of administering more sophisticated questionnaires to the subjects. The fact that the female subjects reacted more positively to the experiment was addressed. In Canada, during the time of the original study in the early 1970’s, it was relatively unusual for girls to socialize in sport or leisure activity. After the 1976 Olympic games in Montreal, females showed a strong interest toward sports and physical activity. This trend could have had an impact on the study, but there is no way of putting the two together. One strength of the study according to Trudeau et al (1996) was the original well-controlled manipulation, which allowed for increased time on physical activity in the experimental group of children. Another strength was the rate of return of the questionnaire, which reduced the possibility of selection bias. The study showed that there is much research needed to prove that more primary physical education will positively affect adult life.Janz, Dawson, and Mahoney (2000) also examined effects of physical activity past childhood. The purpose of this study was to track fitness and physical activity data to grasp a better understanding of when children establish long-term fitness and exercise patterns. This study, also known as the Muscatine study, was a longitudinal; population based investigation of cardiovascular disease risk factors in children from Muscatine, IA. After a cross sectional screening of 925 Muscatine school children, 150 subjects of pre-pubertal age were selected. After the parents were contacted and consent was given, only 130 subjects were able to participate. Four of the 130 were discarded after physical examines showed that they had already begun significant pubertal development. Out of the 126 subjects, 64 were males and 62 were females. All subjects completed the baseline research procedures. After five years, 87% of the subjects attempted all of the research procedures. All of the subjects tested were Caucasian.

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