A Study of Students’ Active Transportation to and from School. The Effect on Theirs Physical Activity

The purpose of this study was to investigate whether students’ attitudes towards physical activity, constraining factors of active travel to and from school and the level of physical activity are influenced by students’ mode of transport to and from school, by gender, by age (different school level) or by their physical health (categories based on BMI). Five hundred and fifty-three students aged 11-18 years, participated in this study (266 boys and 287 girls) from the island of Samos, Greece. They were selected by random sampling. The results of t- test and of One Way Anova suggested that a) students’ attitudes towards physical activity are influenced by different modes of transport to and from school (t=3.20, df=535, p< .05), by their differing ages (F(2,536)=13.031, p< .05), and by their different levels of health (F(2,536)=5.325, p< .05), b) constraining factors of active travel to and from school are influenced by different modes of transport to and from school (t=-5.70, df=475, p< .05) and by differing ages (F(2,476)=3.524, p< .05.), c) physical activity level is affected by the different modes of transport to and from school (t=3.41, df=551, p< .05), by gender (t=3.13, df=551, p< .05), and by differing ages (F(2,550)=33.685, p< .05). This study may be used as a tool for students’ safe and active transportation, and to promote the fact that walking or cycling to and from school is a way of increasing the physical activity of schoolchildren and fighting obesity, and, for some students it may be a unique opportunity for physical activity.