Developing the Physical Fitness of Children: A Systematic Scoping Review of Pedagogy in Research.

Abstract

Despite a robust body of evidence supporting both the need for and the effectiveness of physical fitness interventions in children aged 5-11, global fitness levels in this age group continue to decline. This systematic scoping review interrogates a critical, often overlooked dimension of this paradox: the pedagogy of fitness-intervention design and delivery. By analysing 106 primary research studies, the review exposes a consistent pattern. Interventions are predominantly highly structured (89%), rarely foster a mastery-oriented motivational climate (only 11%), and fail to report practitioner behaviours (65%). While most interventions yielded positive fitness outcomes, these gains were achieved without the use of pedagogical strategies known to support engagement, autonomy, and long-term adherence in children. This suggests that current approaches may achieve short-term physiological improvements but are limited in cultivating the motivational and developmental conditions necessary for sustained impact. The findings underscore a pressing need for future research to move beyond the "what" of fitness programming and rigorously address the "how." Embedding and explicitly reporting pedagogical elements-such as supportive practitioner behaviours, autonomy-supportive structures, and mastery climates-could transform fitness interventions into developmentally appropriate, engaging, and sustainable experiences for children. Without this shift, we risk perpetuating interventions that are effective in the lab but ineffective in life.