The significance of an active break in class

Proceedings of The 4th International Conference on Teaching, Learning and Education

Year: 2021

DOI:

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The significance of an active break in class

Petra Havaj Kuharič

 

ABSTRACT: 

When performing numerous activities such as a sedentary job, working on a computer or phone, reading, etc., we are forced to round forward our whole back, so that our shoulders are hunched up by our ears. This means that the head is tilted forward and downward, and thus additional strain is placed on the spine. The curvature of the spine changes and consequently the balance is altered as well. If we do not analyse our posture and if we are not familiar with the proper body positions, we cannot adjust them to individual situations. Gumilar (b. d.) emphasises that the misconceptions about the correct posture are acquired in our childhood. Whenever we were slouching, we were told to sit up straight, not knowing that by doing so, we place additional strain on the spine. The present article presents the results of an online research, in which lower secondary level students took part. There were 138 students from grades 6 to 9 included in the research. The findings show that there are enough reasons to study the body posture of students and to form a programme which will help prevent the children from developing problems while growing. However, the question remains of how to incorporate daily practice of these exercises into the educational process, so that children will adopt them and also implement them in their home environment.

Keywords: active break, students’ body posture, distance learning, sedentary lifestyle, movement.