Promoting physical activity among university students: a systematic review of controlled trials

Objective: University study is often accompanied by a decline in physical activity (PA) levels but can offer the opportunity to promote a lifelong active lifestyle. This review aims to summarize controlled trials of interventions promoting PA among uni- versity students, describing the quality of the evidence, effective strategies, and deficiencies in the interventions employed, to provide directions for future research and for practical implementations. Data Source: PubMed, PsychINFO, Cochrane Library, Education Source, and SPORTDiscus. Study Inclusion Criteria: Randomized or nonrandomized controlled trial, describing an intervention to promote PA in uni- versity students, where PA was one of the outcomes and results were published in English. Data Extraction: Country, study design, participants\u2019 inclusion criteria, participation rate and characteristics, randomization, blinding, theoretical framework, intervention characteristics, participant retention rate and withdrawal reasons, measures employed, data analysis, PA results, and findings regarding PA correlates. Data Synthesis: Data were synthetized considering study characteristics, strategies used, and outcomes. Results: Two thousand five hundred eighty-five articles were identified. Twenty-seven studies met the inclusion criteria. Sixteen studies reported an increase in PA levels. Conclusion: Physical Activity promotion interventions should address a range of behavioral determinants. Personalized approaches and PA sessions should be considered in future studies. The high risk of bias of many studies (mainly due to attrition and poor reporting) and missing information about intervention components limit the strength of conclusions about the most effective strategies and the evidence of effectiveness, highlighting the need for further high-quality studies

Usability evaluation of the international FitBack web portal for monitoring youth fitness

Open access funding provided by Libera Università di Bolzano within the CRUI-CARE Agreement. This research was co-funded by the Erasmus + Sport Programme of the European Union within the project FitBack No. 613010-EPP-1-2019-1-SI-SPO-SCP and the Slovenian Research Agency within the Research programme Bio-psycho-social context of kinesiology No. P5-0142.Background FitBack is an international network established to support the creation of physical fitness monitoring and surveillance systems for children and adolescents across Europe. Aims As a part of the greater scope of the FitBack European project, the FitBack web portal was designed and tailored for various target groups, such as teachers, health professionals, policy makers, parents, and youths, with the aim to promote their physical and health literacy. Methods The FitBack web portal is a free and multilingual online resource, and two of its webpages were evaluated: “Make interactive report” was evaluated by 78 secondary school students and 27 physical education teachers, and “10 steps to design a physical fitness monitoring system” by 14 physical activity promotion policy makers. Validated scales and open-ended questions were used to collect both quantitative and qualitative responses. Results ‘Good’-to-‘excellent’ scores emerged for user experience (5.43–6.36 out of 7) and webpage usability (3.70–4.27 out of 5). Qualitative feedback highlighted positive comments and cues on how to improve website features. Conclusions Results indicate that the current FitBack web portal is a clear and user-friendly mobile health tool, which includes relevant information on how to use and implement youth physical fitness monitoring and surveillance systems.Libera Università di Bolzano CRUI-CARE AgreementErasmus + Sport Programme of the European Union FitBack 613010-EPP-1-2019-1-SI-SPO-SCPSlovenian Research Agency Research programme Bio-psycho-social context of kinesiology P5-014

Valutare il piacere nelle attività motorie: il PACES-It

Il piacere è una delle principali ragioni per cui gli individui si impegnano nelle attività motorie. Piacere e motivazione intrinsecasono strettamente correlati: esperienze piacevoli durante l’attività motoria accrescono la motivazione intrinseca, sviluppano attitudinipositive e promuovono l’aderenza a lungo termine alla pratica. Nonostante questo, è stato condotto solo un numero limitato di ricerche per sviluppare specifici strumenti di valutazione, una importante eccezione è rappresentata dalla Physical Activity Enjoyment Scale (PACES) proposta da Kendzierski e De Carlo nel 1991 e rivista da Motl et al. nel 2001. Le finalità di questo lavoro sono discutere il ruolo del divertimento e del piacere nelle attività motorie e sportive e presentare la struttura della versione Italiana della Physical Activity Enjoyment Scale (PACES-It, Carraro, Young e Robazza, 2008). Vengono inoltre date alcune esemplificazioni di impiego dello strumento in diversi contesti

Barriere all’attività fisica di giovani adulti con disabilità intellettiva percepite dai loro genitori e allenatori

Physical activity (PA) is essential for promoting well-being, health, and positive social relations. Nevertheless, in industrialized countries, high levels of physical inactivity are reported, with higherlevels in people with disabilities. People with intellectual disability (ID) are characterized by particularly high inactivity rates and have various barriers to regularly participating in PA. The aim ofthe present research was to explore the barriers to PA of young adults with ID perceived by their parents and sports coaches. The cross-sectional study involved 52 parents and 9 coaches, who provided information on 55 young adults with mild or moderate ID, filling two separate questionnaire packages, one for parents and the other for coaches.The main reported barriers were the low number of available PA programs, the prejudice toward the disability, the level of expertise of the sports coaches, and the lack of motivation to PA practice of people with ID.The intervention trajectories are therefore multiple including actions on policies at a general and a local level (PA programs availability and accessibility seem intervention targets), educational actions to promote inclusion and reduce stigma, and programs to support parents and to improve the relational and teaching abilities of coaches

I giochi di lotta in educazione fisica: effetti sull’aggressività degli adolescenti

Prevenire la violenza e altri comportamenti antisociali rappresenta un’importante sfida educativa. La scuola può giocare un ruolochiave nella gestione dei comportamenti aggressivi degli adolescenti proprio per la sua funzione di agenzia di socializzazione.L’educazione fisica in questo senso ha delle potenzialità molto importanti proprio per la riconosciuta efficacia nel migliorare le abilità sociali e nella possibilità di sperimentazione e gestione delle emozioni. In particolare i giochi di lotta hanno un elevato valore educativo, e vengono riconosciuti loro importanti funzioni in ambito motorio, socio-affettivo e cognitivo. L’esperienza proposta riguarda un intervento educativo sui giochi di lotta condotto in due scuole secondarie di primo grado con l’obiettivo di valutare quali fossero gli effetti nella gestionedell’aggressività degli studenti

Special education teacher preparation: a discussion of Brazilian and Italian models

Com os recentes avanços legislativos no sentido da massificação da inclusão de alunos com necessidades educacionais especiais nas escolas regulares, emergem discussões sobre as mudanças requeridas na formação de docentes para o atendimento desta nova demanda. O objetivo deste estudo foi discutir os modelos brasileiro e italiano de formação de professores para atuar na educação especial. Para tanto, foi realizada uma pesquisa documental, analisando textos legais de ambos os países que versassem sobre o tema. A Itália foi o primeiro país na Europa a promover o fim das escolas especiais e a inclusão de todos os alunos com deficiência nas escolas regulares. Ainda neste país, nota-se que as diretrizes governamentais são claras com relação à capacitação de professores para atuar com alunos com necessidades educacionais especiais. Por outro lado no Brasil, embora tenham ocorrido grandes avanços no que se refere à legislação que sustenta a formação docente, ainda existe uma carência de parâmetros mais específicos sobre os conteúdos mínimos necessários para que os professores tenham maiores subsídios para promover a inclusão com qualidade

European fitness landscape for children and adolescents: updated reference values, fitness maps and country rankings based on nearly 8 million test results from 34 countries gathered by the FitBack network

OBJECTIVES (1) To develop reference values for health-related fitness in European children and adolescents aged 6-18 years that are the foundation for the web-based, open-access and multilanguage fitness platform (FitBack); (2) to provide comparisons across European countries. METHODS This study builds on a previous large fitness reference study in European youth by (1) widening the age demographic, (2) identifying the most recent and representative country-level data and (3) including national data from existing fitness surveillance and monitoring systems. We used the Assessing Levels of PHysical Activity and fitness at population level (ALPHA) test battery as it comprises tests with the highest test-retest reliability, criterion/construct validity and health-related predictive validity: the 20 m shuttle run (cardiorespiratory fitness); handgrip strength and standing long jump (muscular strength); and body height, body mass, body mass index and waist circumference (anthropometry). Percentile values were obtained using the generalised additive models for location, scale and shape method. RESULTS A total of 7 966 693 test results from 34 countries (106 datasets) were used to develop sex-specific and age-specific percentile values. In addition, country-level rankings based on mean percentiles are provided for each fitness test, as well as an overall fitness ranking. Finally, an interactive fitness platform, including individual and group reporting and European fitness maps, is provided and freely available online (www.fitbackeurope.eu). CONCLUSION This study discusses the major implications of fitness assessment in youth from health, educational and sport perspectives, and how the FitBack reference values and interactive web-based platform contribute to it. Fitness testing can be conducted in school and/or sport settings, and the interpreted results be integrated in the healthcare systems across Europe

European fitness landscape for children and adolescents: updated reference values, fitness maps and country rankings based on nearly 8 million test results from 34 countries gathered by the FitBack network

Objectives (1) To develop reference values for health-related fitness in European children and adolescents aged 6–18 years that are the foundation for the web-based, open-access and multilanguage fitness platform (FitBack); (2) to provide comparisons across European countries. Methods This study builds on a previous large fitness reference study in European youth by (1) widening the age demographic, (2) identifying the most recent and representative country-level data and (3) including national data from existing fitness surveillance and monitoring systems. We used the Assessing Levels of PHysical Activity and fitness at population level (ALPHA) test battery as it comprises tests with the highest test–retest reliability, criterion/construct validity and health-related predictive validity: the 20 m shuttle run (cardiorespiratory fitness); handgrip strength and standing long jump (muscular strength); and body height, body mass, body mass index and waist circumference (anthropometry). Percentile values were obtained using the generalised additive models for location, scale and shape method. Results A total of 7 966 693 test results from 34 countries (106 datasets) were used to develop sex-specific and age-specific percentile values. In addition, country-level rankings based on mean percentiles are provided for each fitness test, as well as an overall fitness ranking. Finally, an interactive fitness platform, including individual and group reporting and European fitness maps, is provided and freely available online (www.fitbackeurope.eu). Conclusion This study discusses the major implications of fitness assessment in youth from health, educational and sport perspectives, and how the FitBack reference values and interactive web-based platform contribute to it. Fitness testing can be conducted in school and/or sport settings, and the interpreted results be integrated in the healthcare systems across Europe

European fitness landscape for children and adolescents: updated reference values, fitness maps and country rankings based on nearly 8 million test results from 34 countries gathered by the FitBack network

Objectives (1) To develop reference values for health-related fitness in European children and adolescents aged 6–18 years that are the foundation for the web-based, open-access and multilanguage fitness platform (FitBack); (2) to provide comparisons across European countries. Methods This study builds on a previous large fitness reference study in European youth by (1) widening the age demographic, (2) identifying the most recent and representative country-level data and (3) including national data from existing fitness surveillance and monitoring systems. We used the Assessing Levels of Physical Activity and fitness at population level (ALPHA) test battery as it comprises tests with the highest test–retest reliability, criterion/construct validity and health-related predictive validity: the 20 m shuttle run (cardiorespiratory fitness); handgrip strength and standing long jump (muscular strength); and body height, body mass, body mass index and waist circumference (anthropometry). Percentile values were obtained using the generalised additive models for location, scale and shape method. Results A total of 7 966 693 test results from 34 countries (106 datasets) were used to develop sex-specific and age-specific percentile values. In addition, country-level rankings based on mean percentiles are provided for each fitness test, as well as an overall fitness ranking. Finally, an interactive fitness platform, including individual and group reporting and European fitness maps, is provided and freely available online (www.fitbackeurope.eu)