Sport and recreation participation: The transition from grade 12 to third year at university

Abstract

Physical activities reflect the ability of man to exist within his environment. The benefits of physical activity have been extolled throughout western history, but it was not until the second half of the twentieth century that scientific evidence supporting these beliefs began to accumulate. Epidemiological data suggest that activity levels generally increase from middle childhood into early adolescence, and then they tend to decline. Adolescence is a critical period in which initiation and formation of health behaviours occur, which can continue into adulthood. The purpose of the study is thus to investigate sport and physical recreation participation (physical activity) in the transition from the completion of school education to the completion of the third year of university study. A total of 410 third year students at a university participated in a questionnaire survey. The results indicated that there is a serious decline in the participation in physical recreation and sport from Grade 12 to the third year of university. This is especially relevant to competitive sport and accentuates the importance of establishing physical activity patterns in early adolescence (and not necessarily participation in highly competitive sport). The motivation of a society from political, administrative and especially educational points of view to develop an infrastructure for the enhancement and development of sport from a recreational to an elite level of participation is of the utmost importance to address this problem. Physical education at school can and must contribute to the initiation and formation of lifelong physical behaviour patters.

African Journal for Physical, Health Education, Recreation & Dance Vol. 13 (2) 2007: pp. 149-161