A study on students' perspectives on participation in a cultural activity and nutrition knowledge in physical education

<ns3:p>In human development, childhood is a crucial and significant stage where lifestyle plays an important role in children’s growth. Non-communicable diseases (NCDs), such as obesity and type II diabetes, have been rated as the most dominant diseases in secondary schools in New Zealand (Healthy Active Living, 2008). Lower levels of participation in physical education led to students being disengaged, poor nutrition, and physical activity, eventually leading to them dropping out of school. The World Health Organization (WHO) highlighted that a lack of physical activity, exercise, and consumption of unhealthy food can increase lifestyle health issues in young adults. This research aims to understand students’ perspectives on cultural activity in Physical Education (PE) and how it improves students’ nutrition, physical activity, and health. Three secondary schools in Manawatu, New Zealand, were selected as part of this research. It was envisaged that students’ perspectives on cultural activities would affect health, obesity, nutrition, and physical activity. The card-sorting methodology was used to capture students’ experiences, and participants were asked to explain why they had chosen that particular response. The particular interest of this study was the students’ perception of the inclusion of cultural activities and how this improves their food intake, participation in physical activity, and obesity in PE. In analyzing these qualitative responses, Bernard (2005) offered a unique way of understanding the data by thematically analyzing students’ feelings and thoughts and then labelling them for common themes through the process of ‘open coding. The findings of this study support the idea that physical and cultural activities are associated with nutrition and are an important part of a healthy life. The inclusion of cultural, physical activity, and nutritional education in the PE curriculum could be beneficial for the New Zealand Ministry of Education.</ns3:p>