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Background: Many adolescents do not reach the recommended levels of physical activity (PA), and students attending vocational studies are less committed to take part in physical education (PE) than other students. The purpose of the present study was twofold: 1) to examine differences in physical activity, diet, smoking habits, sleep and screen time among Norwegian vocational high school students who selected either a PE model focusing on PA skills, technique and improvement of physical performance ("Sports enjoyment") or more on health, play and having fun when participating in PE lessons ("Motion enjoyment"), and 2) to explore the students' experiences with PE programs.Methods: In this mixed methods study 181 out of 220 invited students (82%) comprising 141 (78%) girls and 40 (22%) boys attending vocational studies of Restaurant and Food Processing (24%), Design, Arts and Crafts (27%) or Healthcare, Childhood and Youth Development (49%) were recruited for participation in the new PE program. PA level, sedentary time and sleep were objectively recorded using the SenseWear Armband Mini. A self-report questionnaire was used to assess dietary habits, smoking and snuffing habits, use of alcohol, screen use and active transportation. Four focus group interviews with 23 students (12 boys) were conducted to explore how the students experienced the new PE program.Results: Students attending "Motion enjoyment" accrued less steps/day compared to the "Sports enjoyment" group (6661 (5514, 7808) vs.9167 (7945, 10390) steps/day) and reported higher screen use (mean, 3.1; 95% CI, 2.8, 3.5) vs. 2.4 (2.0, 2.9) hours/day). Compared to those attending "Sports enjoyment", a higher number of students attending "Motion enjoyment" reported an irregular meal pattern (adjusted odds ratio, 5.40; 95% confidence interval (CI), 2.28, 12.78), and being a current smoker (12.22 (1.62, 107.95)). The students participating in the focus group interviews emphasized the importance of having competent and engaging teachers, being able to influence the content of the PE program themselves, and that PE classes should include a variety of fun activities.Conclusion: Students selecting "Motion enjoyment" accrued less steps/day and reported overall more unhealthy lifestyle habits, including higher screen time, a more irregular meal pattern and a higher number were current smokers, compared to those selecting "Sports enjoyment". Program evaluation revealed that both groups of students valued competent PE teachers and having influence on the content of the PE program. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and purpose: Due to attitudinal and motivational aims in the national curriculum, and to lack of research on adolescents' experiences with physical education (PE) in Norway, the purposes of this study were to (1) attain data on attitudes toward PE and self-determined motivation for PE among a representative sample of adolescents (N= 2010) in middle school (grade 8–10/age 13–15) and high school (grade 11–13/age 16–19) in Norway, and (2) to explore the relationship between involvement in movement activities outside school and self-determined motivation in PE. Findings: The results showed that 43% of the adolescents were not happy with how PE is taught in Norwegian schools, and that the variance in motivational regulations among students was substantial. Females reported a less positive attitude toward PE compared to males, and positive attitude tends to decrease with age for both sexes, both of which go against the intentions stated in the Norwegian core curriculum and in the PE-curriculum. However, the results showed that adolescents who reported involvement in organized competitive youth sports outside school reported significantly higher scores on attitude to PE and on self-determined motivation for PE compared to those who were not, even when eagerness to be involved in movement activity was controlled for. The results indicate that it is not gender per se that differentiates females from males with regard to self-determined motivation in PE, but rather their experience with competitive youth sports. Conclusions: The study concludes that PE in Norway seems to favor students, and female students in particular, who are involved in competitive youth sports. Based on the results, it is hypothesized that PE coincides with the logic of competitive youth sports, that youth sport participants reap most of the benefits of PE, and thus, that PE may produce social inequity in health. In accordance with proposals from Van den Berghe et al., the results on motivation in particular are integrated in a broader pedagogical discussion. It is claimed that PE is experienced in context, and that research on adolescents' experiences of PE, and thus development through PE, should be approached from a relational developmental systems perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]