EXTRACURRICULAR PHYSICAL CULTURE AND SPORTS ACTIVITIES AS A FACTOR IN IMPROVING THE PHYSICAL FITNESS OF SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS

Abstract

The article examines the impact of regular extracurricular physical culture and sports activities on the level of physical fitness of secondary school students. The relevance of the study is determined by the general tendency toward a decrease in students’ motor activity, which has intensified due to the security challenges caused by martial law.

The aim of the article is to experimentally substantiate the influence of regular (three times a week) participation in extracurricular physical culture and sports sections on the physical fitness of 7th-grade students. The study aimed to compare the dynamics of changes in physical qualities between groups with different volumes of weekly physical activity.

Methodology. A comparative-analytical pedagogical experiment was conducted at Lyceum No. 15 in Chernihiv during the 2023–2024 academic year. The sample consisted of 120 seventhgrade students belonging to the main medical group. The Experimental Group (EG, n = 30) had a total physical activity load of six sessions per week, while the Control Group (CG, n = 90) participated only in three physical education lessons per week. Physical fitness testing was carried out twice: in October (baseline level after adaptation) and in May (final level). Data were processed using Student’s t-test to determine the statistical significance of differences (p < 0.05).

Scientific novelty. For the first time under conditions of security restrictions, it has been experimentally proven that systematic extracurricular physical culture and sports activities act as a compensatory factor for the deficit of motor activity caused by martial law. It has been demonstrated that increasing the total weekly volume of physical activity to six sessions provides a synergistic effect in the development of key physical qualities (speed, explosive strength, endurance), significantly exceeding the results achieved through school physical education lessons alone.

Conclusions. By the end of the academic year, the Experimental Group demonstrated significantly higher levels of physical fitness compared to the Control Group across all indicators (p < 0.01). The most pronounced improvements (over 12%) were observed in strength and muscular endurance. It has been established that extracurricular physical culture and sports activities are not only an effective means of improving physical fitness but also an important educational and rehabilitative component supporting students’ physical and psycho-emotional well-being under modern conditions.