The obstacle course and casualty evacuation as elements of military-historical reenactment in physical education classes

Abstract

Abstract. In the third year of the Russian-Ukrainian war, the issue of preparing youth for the defense of Ukraine requires special attention and development. Today, there are several methods and organizations that use obstacle course exercises and casualty evacuation. Additionally, schools teach a specialized subject, "Defense of Ukraine," which includes similar exercises in its curriculum.

Objective The aim of the study was to experimentally verify the effectiveness of the physical education program using elements of military-historical reenactment based on the results of test exercises involving the completion of an obstacle course and casualty evacuation.

Methods. A pedagogical experiment was conducted. Senior students (n=30) were divided into a control group (CG) and an experimental group (EG), with 15 individuals in each group. Two tests were administered—one at the beginning and one at the end of the program. Methods of mathematical statistics were used to process the data.

Results. Under the influence of the author's program, positive changes were observed in the indicators of overcoming the obstacle course among senior students, with particular attention paid to the novelty of the exercise for physical education.

         In the test exercise involving the carrying of a wounded person and passing them through a "window," the results in the experimental group (EG) significantly improved (p<0.01-0.001), while the control group (CG) showed only a tendency towards improvement. In the exercise of receiving the wounded through a "window" and carrying them, both the boys and girls in the EG significantly differed (p<0.05) or approached the threshold of significance compared to the CG participants. This demonstrates that our physical education program, using elements of historical reenactment, is more effective than the traditional program.

         The proposed exercises involving the carrying of a wounded person introduced novelty, especially in passing the wounded through an obstacle, which required coordination among participants and physical strength. The newly introduced obstacle course element, an improvised "window," demanded complex coordination among students during the transfer of the wounded, adding a unique challenge to the exercise that had not been used before.

Conclusions. The experimental physical education program incorporating elements of military-historical reenactment has a more positive impact on the results of overcoming obstacle courses and carrying wounded individuals compared to the traditional program.