An effective innovative pedagogy for sexual health education is required to meet the demands of technology savvy digital natives. This study investigates the extent to which game-based learning (GBL) and gamification could improve the sexual health education of adolescent students. We conducted a randomized control trial of GBL and gamification experimental conditions. We made a comparison with traditional teaching as a control condition in order to establish differences between the three teaching conditions. The sexual health education topics were delivered in a masked fashion, 40-min a week for five weeks. A mixed-method research approach was uses to assess and analyze the results for 120 students from a secondary school in Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania. Students were divided into groups of 40 for each of the three teaching methods: GBL, gamification, and the control group (the traditional teaching method). The average post-test scores for GBL (Mean = 79.94, SD = 11.169) and gamification (Mean = 79.23, SD = 9.186) were significantly higher than the control group Mean = 51.93, SD = 18.705 (F (2, 117) = 54.75, p = 0.001). Overall, statistically significant differences (p ≤ 0.05) were found for the constructs of Motivation, Attitude, Knowledge, and Engagement (MAKE). This study suggests that the two innovative teaching approaches can be used to improve the sexual health education of adolescent students. The methods can potentially contribute socially, particularly in improving sexual health behaviour and adolescents’ knowledge in regions plagued by years of sexual health problems, including HIV/AIDS.

Adolescent travel mode choices to/from school vary in their physical activity (PA) component and environmental sustainability. Research has typically focussed on correlates of active travel, the most healthy and sustainable mode, in comparison to other modes combined. Under the premise that a small shift from less to more healthy/sustainable modes may be a more feasible than a shift to ‘pure’ active travel (e.g., walking), we examined potential correlates of the odds of undertaking more vs. less healthy/sustainable modes. Hong Kong adolescents attending secondary school and a parent/caregiver (n = 1299 dyads) participated in this cross-sectional study. Latent profile analyses identified groups of adolescents with different transport mode profiles to/from school. Profiles were ranked based on relative PA/sustainability outcomes. Multilevel logistic regression identified environmental, social and psychological factors associated with more vs. less PA/sustainable transport mode profiles to/from school. Most frequent transport modes were walking and public transport. Latent profile analysis resulted in a 7-profile model (walk (n = 430); walk & public transport (n = 93); public transport (n = 486); bicycle, car & taxi (n = 60); school bus to & public transport from school (n = 54); school bus (n = 106); car to & car/public transport from school (n = 70)). All profile comparisons were associated with at least one environmental variable. School proximity, access to services and parent transport-related PA were generally associated with higher odds of healthier-more sustainable transport modes. Adolescent-perceived distance and effort barriers to walking and cycling were generally associated with lower odds of more healthy/sustainable modes. Most adolescents engaged in relatively healthy/sustainable travel modes to/from school. Public transport to walking and school bus to public transport mode shifts are likely to have the biggest impact towards more healthy/sustainable modes. Encouraging parent-related transport PA may positively influence adolescent mode choice. Relatively dense, destination-rich neighbourhoods may encourage more healthy/sustainable transport modes to/from school by providing easy access to schools and services. Government policy encouraging enrolment in the closest local school and private school encouragement of public transport rather than school buses may have the greatest impact on shifts to more healthy/sustainable transport modes to/from school in Hong Kong adolescents.

Parents’ perceived informal social control, defined as the informal ways residents intervene to create a safe and orderly neighbourhood environment, may influence young children’s physical activity (PA) in the neighbourhood. This study aimed to develop and test the reliability of a scale of PA-related informal social control relevant to Chinese parents/caregivers of pre-schoolers (children aged 3 to 5 years) living in Hong Kong.

Childhood physical activity (PA) is important for health across the lifespan. Time pre-schoolers spend outdoors, which has been associated with more PA, is likely influenced by parents' perception of neighbourhood informal social control relevant to pre-schoolers' PA, defined as the willingness of neighbours to intervene to ensure social order and a safe community environment for young children's active play. To advance measurement of this construct, we assessed factorial and construct validities of the PA-related neighbourhood informal social control scale for parents of pre-schoolers (PANISC-PP). In 2013-2014, Hong Kong primary caregivers (n=394) of 3-5 year-old children completed a socio-demographic questionnaire, the preliminary version of the PANISC-PP, and self-report measures of theoretical neighbourhood correlates of PA-related neighbourhood informal social control (perceived signs of physical and social disorder, community cohesion, perceived stranger danger, risk of unintentional injury and traffic safety). The fit of the data to an a priori measurement model of the PANISC-PP was examined using confirmatory factor analyses. As the a priori model showed inadequate fit to the data, the factor structure was re-specified based on theoretical considerations. The final measurement models of the PANISC-PP showed acceptable fit to the data and consisted of three correlated latent factors: "General informal supervision", "Civic engagement for the creation of a better neighbourhood environment" and "Educating and assisting neighbourhood children". The internal reliability of the subscales was good (Cronbach's α values 0.82-0.89). Generalised additive mixed models indicated that all subscales were positively associated with community cohesion and scores on the subscale "Educating and assisting neighbourhood children" were related in the expected direction to all indicators of traffic and personal safety, supporting construct validity of the PANISC-PP. This study suggests that the PANISC-PP is a reliable and valid instrument for assessing parents' perceived neighbourhood informal social control related to pre-schoolers' PA.