Many children as well as adults are able to recall experiences doing a timed sit-up test or a one mile walk/run. These are not always pleasant memories. Educators often find that students view fitness testing as painful, negative experiences to be either actively or passively "dodged" (Hopple & Graham, 1995). The problem may be more about motivating students to want to positively engage in the process rather than the act of fitness testing itself. Therefore the goal of this project was to examine if traditional fitness testing (President's Challenge), or using an alternative fitness test (self-assessment and goal setting) helped to motivate students to be engaged with the subject matter for a longer period of time. Engagement with the subject matter material was defined as the Academic Learning Time in Physical Education (ALT-PE). Two fourth/fifth grade multi-age elementary classes were the participants for this study. One class was fitness tested using the standardized President's Challenge. The second class was fitness tested using a self-assessment and personal goal setting instrument developed by the researchers. All classes were videotaped and researchers then watched and coded the tapes using a paper and pencil interval-recording instrument. Analysis of the data revealed that the duration (percentage) of time spent in ALT-PE or motor appropriate activity during the classes utilizing self-assessment and goal setting averaged approximately 32% of the total class time in comparison to 9% for those being fitness tested with the President's Challenge. The frequency of ALT-PE for the two groups also revealed that the self-assessment & goal setting class was successfully engaged in subject matter material more frequently than the class tested with the President's Challenge. A possible explanation for these findings may be that those in the alternative fitness group were given the opportunity to be more personally involved in the process, from setting their own goals to choosing what testing item(s) they would attempt to try to meet those goals. Whereas those in the other group had no choice in picking their own testing items, their own goals, or how the assessment of those items would be accomplished. As Stein (1991) has stated, children will experience more enjoyment when they perceive that they have some control over their own behavior. The results from this study strongly suggest examining alternative methods of fitness testing as a way of motivating students to be more actively engaged with the process. Keyword(s): assessment, elementary education, exercise/fitness