When social becomes biological: The effect of different physical education curricula on motor and physical development of highschool girls

Abstract

Article presents the differences between certain morphological and motor variables of the high-school girls according to the type of educational programme they attend: general (gymnasium), technical/professional or vocational. Research included 17.424 girls, out of them 8.910 attended general programmes, 6.226 technical or professional courses and 2.288 were included in vocational programmes. Data were collected within the framework of the Sport-educational chart data collection. Variance analysis and t-test were used to calculate the differences in the types of programmes for 11 variables, whereas discriminatory analysis was used to find variables, which most significantly differentiate the groups of 16-, 17- and 18- year old girls. Differences between individual groups are statistically significant in all of the morphological and motor variables. Girls in general programmes have better morphological structure than other two groups, which are discriminated only slightly in morphological structure. Presumably these differences are a result of different socio-economic environments that determine the quality of nutrition. Girls in general programmes also achieved best results in test of all the motor variables, followed by the girls in technical programmes and the girls in vocational schools. All the differences are probably a result of factors, which influence the completion of motor programmes, as well smaller quantity of physical education lessons in the vocational programmes.