The Effects of Increased Physical Activity on Fifth Grade Males [sic] and Females [sic] Students

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to determine if fifth grade male and female students would achieve an increase in Body Mass Index and PACER scores with an increase in physical activity into their everyday lives. The study utilized a quasi-experimental design of a pre-measure, then treatment and post-measure. The study involved 25 African-American fifth grade students from an urban elementary school. The measurement tool was the Fitnessgram PACER test. This study involved the use of a pre-test/post-test design to compare data from February 2011, to data from April 2011, after the intervention. Achievement gains were not significant, though the results could be attributable to a number of intervening factors. The results of this study did not support the hypothesis that increasing physical activities benefits an individual’s BMI and PACER scores. Research in the area of childhood obesity should continue given the latest documentation on the increase in the number of children that are considered overweight and obese for their age in this country and the discussion as to what are the best practices to provide remediation and deceleration to this growing epidemic.