The Effect of a Virtual Reality-Based Physical Education Program on Physical Fitness among Elementary School Students
Abstract
Background: This study aimed to verify the effectiveness of a virtual reality-based physical education program on physical fitness among Korean elementary school students.
Methods: The study, conducted at a public school in South Korea in the second semester of 2022, included experimental and control groups of 45 participants each (N=90). All participants underwent physical fitness tests before and after the experiment. The students assigned to the experimental group participated in the virtual reality-based physical education program three times a week for a total of 8 weeks (40 minutes per session), while those assigned to the control group did not participate in any exercise program. The effect size was confirmed using Cohen's d, and a two-way repeated measures analysis of variance was used to analyze changes in physical factors before and after the experiment for each group.
Results: Among the male participants, we observed significant differences in overall health-related physical fitness, cardiorespiratory endurance, muscular strength and endurance, and power between the experimental and control groups (P<0.05). Among the female participants, we observed significant differences in overall health-related physical fitness, cardiorespiratory endurance, flexibility, and muscular strength and endurance between the groups (P<0.05).
Conclusion: Virtual reality-based physical education may help to improve indicators of physical fitness among elementary school students, especially among those who have experienced deterioration of physical fitness during the COVID-19 pandemic. Our results, therefore, highlight the need to establish virtual reality-based physical education facilities at the elementary school level in Korea.
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| Files | ||
| Issue | Vol 52 No 2 (2023) | |
| Section | Original Article(s) | |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.18502/ijph.v52i2.11890 | |
| Keywords | ||
| Elementary school Physical activity Physical education Physical fitness Virtual reality | ||
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