Teaching Physical Fitness and Exercise Using Computer-Assisted Instruction: A School-Based Public Health Intervention

Abstract

Empirical evidence has demonstrated the benefits of physical activity in preventing chronic diseases and premature death. Unfortunately, there is a global trend of insufficient physical activity, which was aggravated by the recent global pandemic. Although physical education is often used to promote physical activity, the transition to online education made it difficult to teach fitness and exercise from a distance due to several limiting factors. This chapter aims to respond to these challenges by implementing a school-based public health intervention using a computer-assisted instruction (CAI) tool called VD-CAI. Through an experimental approach, it was found that VD-CAI as an instructional technology shows a performance advantage compared to other pedagogies. Specifically, students who used VD-CAI in their physical education courses received higher scores and exhibited a more positive attitude. This chapter contributes to the growing scientific evidence of the effectiveness of school-based health education programs as well as the expanding literature on CAI and physical education.