Elementary Students' Attitude towards Physical Education and Differences regarding Gender and Grade Level

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate elementary students’ attitudes toward physical education and the differences in this attitude, according to the gender and grade level. The study was held using an instrument developed by Subramaniam and Silverman (2000) and was adjusted for the Greek population. Τhe instrument examines two factors: enjoyment (affect) and usefulness (cognition). The teacher and the curriculum are considered to be sub-factors (contextual factors) of enjoyment and usefulness. Three thousands, one hundred and forty students in 4th, 5th, and 6th grade from 43 urban elementary schools participated in the study. The results showed that as grade increased there was a decline in the cognitive component of attitude (perceived usefulness) in its two subcomponents (usefulness-teacher and usefulness-curriculum). Scores for boys and girls were not significantly different. Attitude scores were moderate (mean of 80.48 out of 100) indicating that these students may posses less than positive attitudes toward physical education.