ASSESSING CHILDRENS LIKING FOR ACTIVITY UNITS IN AN ELEMENTARY-SCHOOLPHYSICAL-EDUCATION CURRICULUM

Few studies have examined students' liking for physical education acti vities and factors that influence students' evaluations despite the im portance these have for continued engagement in physical activity. Thi s study examined 16,032 ratings of ''liking'' of 648 physical educatio n lessons reported by students in eight coeducational fourth- and fift h-grade classes during an 8-month period. Mean ratings on activity uni ts ranged from 3.15 to 3.62 on a 4-point scale, indicating that the ch ildren liked the activities. However, they liked some units more than others (p < .001), and they preferred skill-related over health-relate d activities (p < .001). Day of week (p < .53), child's grade (p < .69 ), and school (p < .56) were not associated with the children's liking scores. Ratings of activities did not change significantly as student s gained more experience with a specific instructional unit. Future re search is recommended on how students' needs and preferences relate to developing positive attitudes toward physical activities.