Assessment Of Health Related Physical Fitness And Motor Skill Ability Of 9-11 Year Old School Children In Nairobi County, Kenya

Physical activity (PA) is recognized as an important determinant for chronic lifestyle diseases. According to the World Health Organization (WHO) PA is one of the major underlying causes of Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) leading to significant global burden of death, disease and disability among children and adults. There are many factors that influence PA among school children, including physical fitness and motor skill development. Health-related physical fitness includes cardio-respiratory fitness, muscular strength and endurance, flexibility and body composition. Motor skills include elements of locomotor and object-control movements. The aim of the study was to assess health-related physical fitness components and motor skill ability among 9-11 year old school children in Nairobi County, Kenya. A cross-sectional descriptive survey design was used. A total of 199 (106 female and 93 male) school children were tested. The following variables were measured using standardized procedures, children’s height and weight, low back flexibility, muscular strength, static abdominal muscular endurance, aerobic fitness and motor skill ability. These factors are thought to influence the quantity and quality of PA thus justifying their inclusion. The study targeted school children in both public (n=104) and private schools (n=95). Ethical clearance was obtained from the Kenyatta UniversityEthics Review Board. Research permits were obtained from the  Ministry of Education and Nairobi City Council. Consent was sought from the parents of children who took part in the study, the children also provided assent to participate. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics using SPSS version 17.0. Independent T-tests were used to compare differences in the means of variables.