Children and Adolescents? Fitness Skill Level in Physical Activity: A Motivational Concern for Public Health Education

Background Physical activity is a public health factor that relates to human movement patterns and structures of the musculoskeletal systems that requires the intake and expenditure of kilocalories for improved wellness and healthy lifestyle, which prevents cardiovascular related diseases, morbidity and mortality. Physical fitness is a well structured, organized and planned physical activity and education programme that involves circuit training, which requires the use of maximum volume of oxygen, the intake and expenditure of kilocalories by the musculoskeletal and cardiovascular systems for functional movement skills, fitness, health and wellness acquisition, which also helps prevent lifestyle related cardiovascular diseases, mortality and morbidity. This study only aimed at scoring the measured and evaluated factors under children and adolescents fitness skill level in physical activity a motivational concern for public health education. Methods American Association for Health, Physical Education and Recreation (AAHPER) was adopted as survey instrument. The variables were analyzed using (IBM SPSSv.23) Statistics, with sampled participants of (N=122), mean and standard deviation (MSD) age of (14.55.5) with a response rate of (100 %), ranged from (9-20) years, selected using a process of simple random sampling method. Results A significant difference was recorded regarding all tested variables with highest scores displayed as follows under USS [Shuttle-Run-Test = (2.770.668), t value = 2.982 with 2 tailed sig. (.003) and Fifty-Yards-Dash-Test = (2.770.864), t value = 0.343 with 2 tailed sig. (.732)] and under TSS [Fifty-Yards-Dash-Test = (2.720.710), t value = 0.343 with 2 tailed sig. (.732)] in tables 2& 5 respectively. The results were tested @ significance level pless than0.05. Conclusion and Recommendation From the findings, it was worthy to note that, the schools targeted for the study had all offered physical education as a subject and that the pupils already had ideas about physical fitness and wellness activities, which as a result, the researchers did not find it difficult to direct the required activities. It was recommended that, principals and teachers should always be in constant touch with their pupils by educating and encouraging them about the importance and relevance of physical health education as a subject in society.