Gender Differences in Academic Resilience and Well-Being among Senior High School Students in Ghana: A Cross-Sectional Analysis.

Senior high school (SHS) students are at risk of stress and other adverse exposures that may negatively affect their well-being and possibly cause attrition. The concepts of academic resilience and well-being share commonality as psychological attributes linked to positive functioning among students. Despite this connection, there seems to be limited research exploring these concepts across genders among SHS students in developing regions. This study examined the gender difference in academic resilience and well-being among SHS students in Ghana. Using a cross-sectional survey design, 190 SHS students in three schools from Kwahu North and South district (i.e., Afram Plains) of Ghana's Eastern Region completed the Academic Resilience Scale (ARS-30) and College Student Subjective Wellbeing Questionnaire (CSSWQ). The sample consists of 102 males and 88 females, with a mean age of 17.83 years. The data were analyzed using independent samples t-tests and hierarchical regression. The study established that students have a moderate level of academic resilience and a higher level of well-being, with no statistically significant variation in students' academic resilience (t = 0.718; p = 0.474) or well-being (t = -1.596; p = 0.112) across gender. Further, the study discovered that resilience significantly predicted academic well-being (B = 0.425; SE = 0.050; t = 8.50; p < 0.001). This study highlights the importance of promoting gender-sensitive intervention strategies that enhance the academic resilience and well-being of SHS students and help boost their educational attainment.

Moderated moderation modelling of subjective social status, pocket money and depressive symptoms of university students in Ghana.

Introduction: Although the relationship between subjective social status and depression in university students has been well-established, this association could be seen as a spurious one. Previous studies have shown that key variables like financial resources and age could play key roles in explaining the variances in social status and mental health outcomes. In this research, we assessed the complex interrelationships between subjective social status, financial resources at their disposal and depressive symptoms among university students within their young and middle adulthood stages. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted in a university in Ghana to sample 1134 university students through accidental sampling. The McArthur Scale and WHO-5 Well-being measure were used for the data collection. Results: The results revealed that higher levels of subjective social status were associated with lower levels of depression. It was further found that the interaction between students' pocket money and age played unique roles in the relationship between subjective social status and depression. Conclusion: The study findings call on stakeholders in education to explore funding opportunities and to examine ways of empowering parents (financially) to adequately support the students. Health educationists and promoters, including psychologists, school counsellors and parents could compliment these efforts by helping to train and empower students through self-regulation or management skills to help improve their well-being. Continuous efforts are required to improve the financial status and mental health of students.

Stress-related experiences and intentions to quit studies among female married postgraduate distance education students in Ghana.

BACKGROUND: Although postgraduate studies have been shown to be associated with stressful experiences, students reading programmes through the distance and e-learning mode experience greater levels of stress due to several reasons. These stressful encounters might be heightened in female married postgraduates on distance education programmes due to other family-work-related engagements. This study investigated the stress-related experiences and intentions to quit studies among female married students on a distance education programme in Ghana. METHODS: Using a sequential explanatory mixed-methods design, 164 married postgraduate distance education students were sampled to participate by responding to a questionnaire. Follow-up interviews were conducted with 10 participants to offer insight into the quantitative findings. Quantitative data were analysed using descriptive statistics, including frequency and percentages, while the qualitative data were thematically analysed. RESULTS: Stress was prevalent among the female married distance education students, with the majority having intentions of quitting their studies. The stressors identified ranged from personal (i.e., work and family demands) to institutional ones (i.e., academic load, unresolved complaints and high financial demands from the programme). CONCLUSIONS: Key findings suggest that female married postgraduate distance education students perform multiple roles as full-time employees with family and academic demands that can negatively impact their health and academic work. Implications and recommendations of the findings are discussed.

Effectiveness of Video Modeling in Improving Technical Skills in Young Novice Basketball Players: A Quasi-Experimental Study.

(1) Objective: This is a quasi-experimental study that investigated the effect of four weeks of training sessions using video modeling (VM) on individual and collective technical skills in young novice basketball players. (2) Method: 20 players were equally assigned to either a control group (CG, n = 10; 12 ± 0.7 years) or a video modeling group (VMG, n = 10; 12.5 ± 0.5 years; visualizing videos before each session) were assessed before and after the four-week training period using the Basketball Skill Test of the American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance for individual techniques and three vs. three small-sided games for collective aspects. (3) Results: For the passing test, VMG induced higher performance than CG (p = 0.021; d = 0.87). For offensive balls post-intervention, higher values were recorded for VMG compared to CG (p = 0.003; d = 1.81). In addition, the number of attack balls index post-intervention was higher for VMG compared to CG (p = 0.001; d = 0.28). For losing the ball, VMG induced lower values than CG after the training intervention (p < 0.001; d = -3.23). The efficiency index was higher post-training compared to pre-training for VMG (p = 0.013; d = 1.24). (4) Conclusion: The study highlighted the importance of using video modeling as an effective strategy to improve technical skills and collective performance in novice young basketball players.

Moderation modelling of COVID-19 digital health literacy and sense of coherence across subjective social class and age among university students in Ghana.

BACKGROUND: The study assessed the moderation modelling of digital health literacy and sense of coherence across subjective social class and age among university students in Ghana during the COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS: A total of 1160 students were conveniently sampled from two universities namely, the University of Education, Winneba and University of Cape Coast, using the descriptive cross-sectional survey design. Preliminary analysis was performed using descriptive statistics, whilst multivariate multiple regression and moderation analyses (Haye's Model) were employed to analyze the main data. RESULTS: The study revealed that COVID-19 digital health literacy is directly and positively associated with sense of coherence among university students. Further, higher subjective social class positively and strongly moderated the relationship between COVID-19 digital health literacy and sense of coherence among university students. Additionally, the relationship between COVID-19 digital health literacy and sense of coherence was indirectly prominent among relatively older university students than younger ones. CONCLUSIONS: The findings have implications for university management/authorities and public health agencies to organize effective orientation and self-management training programmes for university students.

A cross-sectional study of university students' pocket money variance and its relationship with digital health literacy and subjective well-being in Ghana.

Background: Mental health concerns of university students are gaining more attention since the emergence of the coronavirus disease. Consequently, scholars in education, health and psychology-related fields have attributed the dwindling subjective well-being (SWB) of students to their low levels of digital health literacy (DHL). However, little attention has been paid to an important variable like pocket money (PM) which might serve as a buffer against reduced levels of SWB. In this study, we explored the dynamics of PM and its linkage with DHL and SWB among university students in Ghana. Methods: With a cross-sectional design, a convenient sample of 1160 students was obtained from the University of Education, Winneba, Ghana. The COVID-DHL and WHO-5 Well-being instruments were used for the data collection for a 2 months period (February-March, 2021). Chi-square test, multivariate regression, simple linear regression, and PROCESS mediation analyses were performed with the use of SPSS software version 25. Results: The study found that while most of the students were financially supported by their parents (n = 715, 61.6%), a larger proportion of them reported that their PM was either less sufficient or not sufficient (n = 550; 76.9%). Findings revealed a positive relationship between PM and SWB (B = -36.419, p < 0.001; B = -13.146, p = 0.012; B = -10.930, p = 0.043), with this relationship mediated by DHL (B = -1.139, confidence interval [CI] [-2.073, -0.263] vs. -2.300, CI [-4.290, -0.532] vs. -8.366, CI [-14.863, -1.908]). Conclusions: Students with little to insufficient PM were vulnerable to mental health problems, although this could be buffered by the high DHL levels. In practical terms, not only should the PM of university students be increased, but the sources of PM should be complemented since the sufficiency level of PM was associated with the source of finance. More importantly, parents should be empowered through job creation so that sufficient levels of PM can be provided to university students.

Assessing secondary school students' digital health literacy, information searching behaviours, and satisfaction with online COVID-19 information in Northern Ghana.

Available evidence suggests that managing the complexities of health information and the behaviours associated with information search call for adequate digital health literacy (DHL). Students' ability to judge the relevance of health-related information largely affects their level of satisfaction with the information. The study assessed DHL, information searching behaviours, and the link between DHL and COVID-19 information. The cross-sectional study utilised the multi-stage sampling technique in the selection of 1392 secondary school students in the Northern Region of Ghana. A DHL questionnaire was used to survey the students. The students displayed inadequate level of DHL concerning the relevance of online information. Predictably, most of them had not searched for information in the past four weeks prior to the data collection. Search engine portals, websites of public bodies, and news portals were the predominant platforms used for information search. Majority of the participants reported not being satisfied with the information they found on the internet about coronavirus. A significant association between DHL levels and utilization of COVID-19 information platforms was identified, such that students who showed high levels of DHL used platforms which had reviewed/professional content compared to those with low levels of DHL. Advanced DHL may serve as a disincentive to the consumption of information from sources which are not credible. There is an urgent call for collaboration among the ministries/agencies responsible for education and health, telecommunication networks, and civil society organisations for interventions aimed at integrating DHL in schools..

Subjective social status and well-being of adolescents and young adults in Ghanaian schools: conditional process analysis.

BACKGROUND: With the growing concern and interest in the mental health and well-being of adolescents and young adults (AYAs) including those in schools, many studies have explored the bivariate relationship between subjective social status (SSS) and AYAs' subjective well-being (SWB). Acknowledging the spurious nature of this relationship, we assessed the relationship between SSS and SWB of AYAs in schools within Northern Ghana, focusing on the conditional indirect effect of monetary resource (MR) and sense of coherence (SoC). METHODS: We utilised a cross-sectional descriptive design to survey 1096 senior high school students from two regions in Ghana's Northern zone through a stratified sampling method. A questionnaire consisting of a number of calibrated standardized measures was used for the data collection. The data were processed using SPSS and PROCESS Macro and analysed using Hayes' conditional process analysis. RESULTS: The results revealed that students' MR significantly moderated the relationships between SSS and SoC as well as SSS and SWB. A significant moderated mediation effect of MR and SoC on the relationship between SSS and SWB was found. Particularly, AYAs who reported higher levels of MRl, SSS and SoC reported a better SWB. CONCLUSION: The findings underscore the relevance of providing sufficient financial support for students in secondary schools in Ghana; thus, highlighting the sheer relevance of economic capital as a leading factor for better well-being. The findings also place much emphasis on building students' personal coping mechanisms as a key variable in explaining how the students' SSS and MR translate into having positive mental health outcomes.

Modelling the associations between academic engagement, study process and grit on academic achievement of physical education and sport university students.

OBJECTIVE: The present study examined the impact of academic engagement, study processes, and grit on the academic achievement of physical education and sport university students. METHODS: An internet-based survey recruited 459 university students aged 19-25 years (M = 21 ± 1.3) in physical education and sports (PES) to fill out questionnaires on Physical Education-Study Process Questionnaire (PE-SPQ), Physical Education-Grit (PE-Grit), academic engagement (A-USEI), and Grade Point Average (GPA). A path analysis was carried out to understand variable relationships. RESULTS: Data from each variable exhibited symmetrical and normal distribution, as indicated by the skewness and kurtosis values. The model's fit indices showed sufficient Comparative Fit Index (CFI = 0.92), Tucker-Lewis Index (TLI = 0.90), Goodness of Fit Index (GFI = 0.99) and Normed Fit Index (NFI = 0.90) and showed acceptable levels. The results indicated a statistically significant positive impact of engagement (ß = 0.299, p < 0.001) and study processes (ß = 0.397, p < 0.001) on academic achievement. However, the effect of grit on achievement was non-significant. CONCLUSIONS: Academic engagement as well as study processes are two important factors predicting academic achievement while grit seems to be not a major predictor. Hence, physical education and sport faculty and university administrators should prioritize student engagement as a determinant of academic outcomes by reforming or redesigning physical education and sport curriculum modules that can facilitate engagement.

Prevalence and Predictors of Alcohol Use among School-Going Adolescents in Panama: A Population-Based Cross-Sectional Study.

This study investigated the prevalence and predictors of alcohol use among school-going-age adolescents in Panama. Using a national school-based cross-sectional survey, data from a proportionate sample of school-going adolescents aged 13-17 years were obtained from the 2018 Panama Global School-based Student Health Survey [GSHS]. Data were analysed with a Pearson's Chi-square test and weighted binary logistic regression. The results were reported with their corresponding adjusted odds ratio (AOR) at a 95% confidence interval (CI) and level of significance set at p < 0.05. The prevalence of alcohol use among adolescents in Panama was 30.6%. The odds of alcohol use were lower among adolescents in a lower grade than those in upper grades, and lower in those who did not eat from a restaurant than those who ate from a restaurant. Further, the likelihood of alcohol use was significantly high among those who engaged in physical fights, were seriously injured, were mostly worried, and whose parents used any form of tobacco. Other results showed that the odds of alcohol use were high among sedentary respondents, those who had multiple sexual partners and those who used amphetamines. Based on the present findings, a collaborative approach (i.e., stakeholders- the Ministry of Social Development and the Ministry of Education- community-individual levels) towards the development and adherence of appropriate interventions aimed at reducing alcohol use is required in Panama. Specific preventive interventions would be fundamental in promoting a positive school climate to help reduce adolescents' alcohol use and, perhaps, other anti-social behaviours (e.g., physical fights and bullying).

Assessing the prevalence, sources and selective antecedents of organizational stressors among elite football players and coaches in the Ghana premier league: Empirical evidence for applied practice.

Globally, job-related stress has been classified as a health epidemic which is common among many individuals across diverse populations. Despite this established knowledge, research has primarily focused on the general population and among health workers. Therefore, understanding stress related experiences in the context of professional sport would help design appropriate stress management interventions for effective coping. The overarching aim of this research was to assess occupational stress related experiences among players and coaches in the Ghana premier league. The study sought to assess: (1) the prevalence and sources of stressors among players and coaches, and (2) how age and years of experience influenced the stressors they experienced. Using a census survey, 44 premier league coaches and 424 players who were officially registered by 17 premier league clubs completed the intensity dimension of the Organizational Stressor Indicator for Sport Performers which has 5 subscales namely: Goals and Development, Logistics and Operations, Team and Culture, Coaching and Selection. Descriptive statistics (means and standard deviation) and multivariate analysis of variance were used to analyze the data. The results revealed that stressors were prevalent among football players and coaches, with these being significantly more dominant among coaches, p < 0.001. Selection was identified as the most predominant stressor for coaches (i.e., selecting players to play) and players (i.e., being selected). Age and experience were found not to be significant predictors of stressors for players and coaches in Ghana. Findings suggest that generally, stressors are common among football players and coaches, especially on issues related to selection. Sport psychologists and team managers in the various premier league clubs should incorporate appropriate interventions (e.g., stress inoculation training) aimed at providing adequate psychological support to promote players' and coaches' wellbeing.

Gender Risk Perception and Coping Mechanisms among Ghanaian University Students during the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Recent research has shown that gender is an important driver of the risk of mortality and morbidity rates for people with COVID-19, with case fatality rates being higher for women than men. Despite this pattern, research is sparse on gender risk perception and potential coping mechanisms. This study examined the role gender plays in the relationship between COVID-19 risk perception and coping mechanisms among university students. Through the adoption of traditional and online surveys, 859 students from two public universities in Ghana were conveniently selected to respond to the survey instrument. The results from the multivariate regression analysis revealed that COVID-19 risk perception was positively related to active coping. The outcome of the moderation analysis showed that while males were more likely than females to adopt active and emotional support coping with heightened risk perception, a contrary outcome was observed for behaviour disengagement. This result is an indication that female students are likely to be overwhelmed with a high level of risk perception and easily give up trying to adopt effective strategies to reduce the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic situation. The findings highlight the need for different forms of intervention for male and female students for dealing with the effect of COVID-19.

Psychometric properties of the cultural mix coping inventory for stressful situations using physical education teachers: a multidimensional item response theory analysis.

The incidence of the COVID-19 pandemic heightened the levels of stress of not only students but for teachers, particularly physical education (PE) teachers. The reference to PE teachers is due to their role in engaging students in practical in-person lessons after the resumption of school. Previous literature has revealed that PE teachers exhibit significantly increased levels of anxiety, fear, tension and uncertainty that they could contract the virus during these lessons. Given this scenario, there is a growing need for identifying a suitable coping scale which can accurately measure coping strategies employed these teachers. This research assessed the psychometric properties of the 16-item coping inventory using a multidimensional item response theory approach. The study surveyed 484 PE teachers through the convenience sampling technique, after which the cultural mix coping instrument was administered to them. The findings of this study confirmed the 4-factor structure of the coping measure which is consistent with the original measure. Results further revealed that a modified 14-item compared to the original 16-item coping inventory was optimal in measuring coping strategies among PE teachers. The study concluded that the 14-item cultural mix coping inventory was appropriate, applicable and reproducible to the PE teachers' population.

Reproducibility of the brief religious coping inventory with African athletes' sample using ordinal factor analytical approach.

Background: Previous studies have revealed that religious coping strategy is common among athletes due to the stressful experiences before and during competitions as part of the mental preparations they go through, the uncertainty of sporting outcomes, and other organizational issues they encounter. This research assessed the reproducibility of the Brief Religious Coping (RCOPE) instrument in an African setting using athletes' samples from different countries. Particularly, the research sought to assess the (1) factor structure of Brief RCOPE with an African sample, (2) construct validity of the RCOPE measure, and (3) measurement invariance of the RCOPE instrument based on gender and nationality. Methods: The study surveyed a convenient sample of 300 athletes, including 164 male and 136 female athletes, from 3 African countries (Benin, Ghana, and Nigeria) who participated in the 2018 West African University Games. The Brief RCOPE instrument was administered to the athletes for validation purposes before the competition. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were conducted using the ordinal factor analytic approach. Results: This validation study confirmed the two-factor dimension (positive and negative religious coping) of the Brief RCOPE measure. Further, all items for each of the dimensions of the inventory contributed significantly to the measure of the Brief RCOPE domains. The positive and negative religious coping dimensions contributed more than half of the variance of their respective indicators. Measurement invariance across gender and nationality was confirmed. Conclusion: Sufficient evidence was gathered to support the interpretation and use of the Brief RCOPE measure. Coaches and sports psychologists could adopt the Brief RCOPE measure to understand the mental or thought patterns of religious athletes based on existential concerns or stress accrued from impending competitions to inform appropriate religious coping interventions. This notwithstanding, the Minimum Clinical Important Difference (MCID) of the Brief RCOPE should be further investigated to enhance the utility of the instrument for use in intervention-based studies.

Examining the underlying latent structure of the sports emotion questionnaire: Insights from the bifactor multidimensional item response theory.

Background: Despite the widespread use of the sports emotion questionnaire (SEQ) in several studies, it is surprising that only a few have explicitly tested the validity and utility of the instrument in non-western populations. Besides, the issue of dimensionality and the latent structure of the instrument remain inconclusive given that several authors have revealed different factor structures across diverse populations. The central concern is whether the items on the various dimensions, proposed for the original SEQ, offer adequate information to their respective expected subscale or otherwise. This study assessed the underlying latent structure of the SEQ using confirmatory and bifactor multidimensional item response (MIRT) models. Methods: Through a well-designed validation study 300 athletes from three West African countries, participating in the 2018 West African University Games were surveyed to respond to the SEQ. The data were analyzed using first, a 5-factor confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) via the MIRT model and second, a bifactor MIRT analysis. Results: The results revealed that items on the SEQ were fairly good in measuring the construct under the respective domains of the instrument. However, the outcome of the bifactor model showed that the majority of the items on the SEQ explained common variance in relation to the general factor other than the specific domains (5-dimensions). Conclusion: Findings of the bifactor model question whether the sub-dimensions of the SEQ are needed since most of the items on the SEQ explained larger variances in the general factor than any of the five domains. It is concluded that instruments like SEQ should be scored for a general factor and not as sub-dimensions. Further investigations are encouraged by scholars within the area to probe the dimensionality of the SEQ.

Relationship Between COVID-19 Related Knowledge and Anxiety Among University Students: Exploring the Moderating Roles of School Climate and Coping Strategies.

The emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in abrupt disruptions in teaching and learning activities in higher education, with students from diverse programs suffering varying levels of anxieties. The physical education field happens to be one of the most affected academic areas due to its experiential content as a medium of instruction. In this study, we investigated the roles of school climate and coping strategies in the relationship between COVID-19 related knowledge and anxiety. Through the census approach, a cross-sectional sample of 760 students was administered a questionnaire in two universities offering Physical Education in Ghana: the University of Education, Winneba, and University of Cape Coast. The outcome of the study found a positive and significant link between COVID-19 knowledge and anxiety. Further, school climate and coping strategies significantly moderated the relationship between students' COVID-19 knowledge and associated anxiety. The findings have implications for creating a conducive school environment that reduces the risk of COVID-19 infection and through students' adoption of active coping strategies in an attempt to reduce psychological distress associated with COVID-19 anxiety.

Re-assessing the Psychometric Properties of Stress Appraisal Measure in Ghana Using Multidimensional Graded Response Model.

Despite the widespread use of the stress appraisal measure questionnaire in sport psychology literature, information on the psychometric properties of this survey instrument across different cultures and samples is still lacking. This study sought to validate the stress appraisal measure among male football players in the Ghana's Premier League using the multidimensional item response theory. The descriptive cross-sectional survey design was adopted to recruit 424 footballers from the 2020/2021 Ghana Premier League season using the census approach. The 28-item Stress Appraisal Measure was used to assess six (6) appraisal mechanisms under primary and secondary cognitive appraisals. The ordered polytomous item response theory was used for analyzing the data. The study found that although some items were problematic, the majority of them were found to have good item parameters, effective scale option functioning, and provided adequate empirical information in the measurement of stress appraisal. This research concluded that the stress appraisal measure has promising applicability among male footballers who participated in the premier league in Ghana. Future researchers are encouraged to re-validate the stress appraisal measure with a different sample to contribute to the understanding of the applicability of the instrument in non-western populations.

COVID-19 Pandemic and Teachers' Classroom Safety Perception, Anxiety and Coping Strategies during Instructional Delivery.

Several professionals, including teachers, have been engrossed in fear of the worst happening due to COVID-19 and the rapidly evolving nature of the virus affecting the perception of safety in any working environment. This study examined teachers' perception of classroom safety, anxiety, and coping strategies during instructional delivery in senior high schools in Ghana. Adopting the cross-sectional survey design with a quantitative approach, a convenient sample of 174 senior high school teachers in the Cape Coast Metropolis completed a questionnaire. Data were analyzed using descriptive analysis, analysis of variance, and multiple linear regression. The findings showed that teachers perceived their classroom environment as unsafe during instructional delivery amidst COVID-19 and reported modest to extreme levels of anxiety. Further, teachers with a high level of COVID-19 anxiety were found to utilize active coping strategies to manage stressful situations. The reported unsafe working environment in schools during pandemic times highlights the critical role of supportive working environments for teachers' mental and psychological wellness. School counseling psychologists, school welfare officers, and school health coordinators should collaborate to implement interventions (e.g., social emotional learning; resilience strategies) that promote the wellbeing of teachers and a safe working environment.

Validation of the WHO-5 Well-Being Scale among Adolescents in Ghana: Evidence-Based Assessment of the Internal and External Structure of the Measure.

The WHO-5 well-being measure happens to be one of the most renowned measures of subjective well-being across the globe. Although the instrument has been calibrated in different countries, its psychometric properties and applicability in Africa, especially in Ghana, are not known. In this study, the WHO-5 well-being scale was validated among adolescents in Ghana by assessing the validity evidence of the measure based on the internal and external structure. In particular, the study examined the (1) dimensionality of the WHO-5 well-being scale, (2) quality of the items (including the scale functioning) for the measure, and (3) criterion validity of the well-being measure. Using a survey approach, 997 adolescents were recruited in secondary schools across the northern belt of Ghana. The study found a one-factor structure of the scale, which supports the factor solution of the original measure. The items were found to be of high quality, except for one item. The WHO-5 well-being measure was found to have sufficient evidence regarding convergent and divergent validity. The outcome of this validation study provides support for the validity and reliability of the WHO-5 well-being scale's utility and use among adolescents in Ghana. The study encourages further validation studies to be conducted in Ghana to widen the reproducibility of the WHO-5 well-being measure.

Perceived Safety of Learning Environment and Associated Anxiety Factors during COVID-19 in Ghana: Evidence from Physical Education Practical-Oriented Program.

The outbreak of COVID-19 led to the swift migration to alternate instructional delivery models and pedagogical practices in educational institutions. This study examined the perceived safety of the learning environment and associated anxiety factors among physical education students amidst COVID-19. Using a cross-sectional design, a sample of 638 students drawn purposively and conveniently from a public university in Ghana completed a self-developed questionnaire. Frequency counts, percentages, and ordered logistic regression were used to analyze the data. Findings of the study showed that students perceived the practical lesson environment as unsafe, with self-reported moderate to high levels of anxiety during their practical lessons. The ordered logistic regression results revealed that varied factors such as age, COVID-19 information platforms, certainty about personal safety, and adequacy of preparation to manage COVID-19 cases were associated with anxiety. The study concluded that an unsafe practical physical education learning environment increases the anxiety levels of students. Academic departments/units should provide periodic interventions (e.g., positive self-talk, mental rehearsal, cognitive restructuring) and counseling services for students amidst the ongoing pandemic to help moderate situational-specific anxiety. In addition, key to the management of students' anxiety is the provision of a safe and supportive school environment, including the provision of adequate personal protective equipment for practical lessons by school authorities.