Rural-urban differences in physical activity levels during the transition from primary education to high school

Abstract

Background: Sedentarism rates are increasing at school age, and it is necessary to know how it affects both rural and urban contexts. The present study aimed to identify whether the place of residence, rural or urban, influenced the level of physical activity that schoolchildren had in Primary Education and in Secondary Education. Methods: A longitudinal study was carried out using the Physical Activity Questionnaire for Children (PAQ-C) for data collection. The sample consisted of 542 students (272 boys and 270 girls), aged between 11 and 13 years, who were interviewed at two different times: during the sixth year of primary education, and later in the first year of secondary education. A descriptive analysis of the items and final score of the PAQ-C in the rural and urban environment were carried out in both educational periods and an ANCOVA analysis of the final score; The association between the level of physical activity and the variables used was studied through corrected typified residuals and Cramer’s V. The effect size was calculated. Results: The results obtained confirmed that there are significant differences in the course variable (f=63,757; p0.05), nor in the locality x course interaction. (p>0.05) when the sex variable was controlled (f=27,325; p <0.001; η2 =0.025). Conclusions: The transition to Secondary Education implies the increase of a sedentary lifestyle, both in rural and urban areas.