Is there a difference in student physical activity between a field school and a traditional classroom setting?

Objectives: We compared the physical activity of nine students participating in an anthropological field school to their activity expenditures in traditional classrooms. We predicted that the students would exhibit higher physical activity during the field school due to the substantial physical requirements associated with the program compared to traditional classroom environments which are frequently more sedentary.

Methods: Participants (n = 9) wore wrist accelerometers for ~23 h each day for 6 days during an anthropological field school and also in a traditional classroom environment.