Enhancing female adolescents' engagement in Physical Education classes through video-based peer feedback

Background: Although studies on adolescent girls' disengagement in Physical Education (PE) abound in the literature, most of all investigated root causes only, while few took the initiative to address the inherent issue. Objective: This study primarily aimed at investigating the impact of peer-to-peer feedback interactions on female adolescents' engagement in PE classes, in addition to assessing the potential of video technology in the enhancement of this experience. Methods: A total of 47 Tunisian female students, aged 17 to 18 years, took part in a six-week experiment, during which they went through different long jump learning conditions. A comparative methodology was implemented, involving two experimental conditions including a vision-based feedback group (VsFG; n = 15) and a video-based feedback group (VdFG; n = 12), as well as a control group (CG; n = 20). Data was collected using motor performance tests, a custom-designed theoretical knowledge test, feedback provision rates, motivation and feeling scales, questionnaires, and interviews. Results: Data analysis revealed that the video-based peer feedback approach was more efficient in terms of its ability in enhancing the studied population's engagement in the learning process during PE classes. Indeed, the positive effects of vision-based peer feedback interactions were observed only on female students' emotional engagement (CG < VsFG, p <.001), whereas the video-based peer feedback interactions were potent enough to enhance female students' motor (CG < VdFG, p =.019), cognitive (CG < VdFG, p =.002), emotional (CG < VdFG, p <.001) and socio-interactional (VsFG < VdFG, p <.001) engagement in PE classes. Conclusions: The findings of this study concluded that peer-to-peer feedback interactions during PE classes were inefficient without the mediation role of the video technology.