Background/Purpose: Over the years, the attributes and traits associated with well being have been measured in school-aged children, with much of the same results: Children in the United States are less physically fit than those in other countries (Kraus & Hirschland, 2008); therefore, once again, we find ourselves answering the call to define fitness education through its content and means of dissemination. Accordingly, the purpose of this study was to conduct an analysis of state standards documents to identify the content and expectations of skills, knowledge, and abilities related to this content.
Methods: This investigation analyzed documents that included sixth (22 states), seventh (18 states), and eighth grade(45 states) health and physical education standards related to fitness content.
Analysis/Results: From a theory of change perspective, documents were openly coded and reduced using frequency counts, peer/team debriefing, and critical reflexivity to identify themes. After each session, the researchers reflected on the meaningfulness and appropriateness of the content for middle school students. The following themes were created to represent these data: (a) Are You Smarter Than a Sixth Grader?, (b) Where is the Technique?, (c) Knowledge Rules, and (d) Checkup for Healthy Living.
Conclusions: Findings indicate that students were expected to know and perform cognitively demanding concepts related to fitness. The majority of concepts were associated with frequency, intensity, time, and type (FITT). We recommend that content from both health and physical education is included in a national curriculum.
See more of: Research Consortium