Abstract:

The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of socio-economic level on the physical fitness in boys from 8 to 10 years-olds by using AAHPERD American Alliance For Health, Physical Education, Recreation And Dance test battery. The number of the participants in the study was 566 students; 295 students from state schools of The Ministry of National Education and 271 students from private schools. In the identification of socio-economic level of the participants in the study, level of education of parents, the number of the children in the family, the living environment, whether the children have their own rooms in at home, and the level of income of the family, which are socio-economic criteria, were taken into consideration. The order of testing and measurement was as follows: the measurement of weight, the measurement of height, sit-and-reach test, skin-fold measurement, sit-up test, pull-up test and 1 mile run-and-walk test. At the statistical analyses of the data the mean, standard deviation, maximum and minimum values of AAHPERD tests applied to the subjects were obtained and Correlation Analyses Pearson tests were used for the evaluation of the relationship among the AAHPERD tests and socio-economic level of the participants,. As a result, it was found that the socio-economic level had an impact on physical fitness of the student; and that in boys from 8 to 10 years-olds who had a higher socio-economic level, the sum of skinfold values and the strength of sit-up were higher compared to those obtained from the boys who had a lower socio-economic level; and that the boys who had a lower socio-economic level yielded higher values of flexibility, strength in pull-up and cardiovascular endurance

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