Effects of Traditional Game in School Going Children

Effects of Traditional Game on Agility and Reaction Time in School Going Children

This randomized controlled trial examines whether regular participation in the traditional game **Kho-Kho** improves agility and reaction time in school-aged children. Due to limited physical education in schools, many children fail to achieve recommended daily physical activity, leading to physical and mental health issues. The study will involve **48 children (8-12 years)** from selected schools in Sialkot, divided into an experimental group (Kho-Kho) and a control group (free play). The intervention will be conducted **3 times per week for 6 weeks**, and outcomes will be measured using the **T-Test, Ruler Drop Test, and TOES**. Data will be analyzed using **SPSS v21**, with ethical approval from **Riphah International University, Lahore**.

Study Overview

• Status: Recruiting
• Conditions: Child, Only
• Intervention / Treatment: Other: KH0-KHO game; Other: free play activity

Detailed Description

Physical activity and movement are essential for the brain's healthy development. Due to a lack of time to finish the curriculum, physical education is frequently overlooked in schools. As a result, school-aged kids don't get the prescribed 60 minutes moderate-to-vigorous physical activity each day. Their sedentary classroom schedule causes physical changes like obesity and a lack of fitness. Additionally, it has been shown that children's mental and physical health improves when they regularly engaged in physical activities. This experimental study investigated the effects of traditional game Kho-Kho which is low-cost, time efficient making it ideal for resource-constrained educational settings. The traditional South Asian tag game Kho-Kho has drawn increased interest due to its possible advantages for children and teenagers' physical, mental, and social development. In contrast to many contemporary sports, Kho-Kho requires quick reflexes, strategic thinking, agility, Cognition and collaborative behavior, which makes it a fun and culturally relevant substitute for physical education classes. The aim of this study is to assess whether consistent participation in Kho-Kho leads to measurable improvements in agility and Reaction time.

The study design will be a Randomized controlled trial. The data will be collected from Gov. Girls Higher Secondary School Karewali, Kids Montessori School, Ugoki, Sialkot. The study will be completed in 10 months after the approval of synopsis. 48 school going kids age ranged 8-12 years will be randomly assigned either into an experimental group (n= 24) or control group (n=24). The intervention, Kho-Kho game, consist of 2 Innings performed 3 times per week for 6 weeks. Control group includes Free play physical activity. All the referred participants will be assessed for the eligibility criteria. Guardians of participants fulfilling the eligibility criteria will be asked to sign the consent forms before entering them to the study. Agility will be measured by "T-Test". Reaction time will be measured by "Ruller Drop Test" and participation will be measured by TEST OF ENVIRONMENTAL SUPPORTIVENESS (TOES). The synopsis will be presented to the Research Ethical Committee of Riphah International University, Lahore, for ethical approval to conduct this study. Data will be analyzed through SPSS version 21.0

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Estimated): 48
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

• Study Contact: Name: IMRAN AMJAD; Phone Number: 9233224390125; Email: imran.amjad@riphah.edu.pk
• Study Contact Backup: Name: Muhammad Asif Javed, Javed, MS-PT; Phone Number: 923224209422; Email: a.javed@riphah.edu.pk

Study Locations

• Pakistan
  • Punjab Province
    • Lahore, Punjab Province, Pakistan, 5400
      • Recruiting
      • Imran Amjad
      • Contact: Muhammad Asif, Javed, MS-PT; Phone Number: 923224209422; Email: a.javed@riphah.edu.pk
      • Contact: sadida nisar, Ms-ppt; Phone Number: 03374982655; Email: sadidanisar@gmail.com

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Child
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• 8-12 years of school-going children
• Give informed consent
• physically healthy and medically fit to participate in physical activity
• BMI within normal-for-age range to control for physical performance variability.

Exclusion Criteria:

• presence of at least one of the following conditions: circulatory, respiratory and musculoskeletal diseases, neuropsychiatric disease, exercise induced anaphylaxis, morbid obesity
• History of injury or surgery in the past 4 months
• Currently participating in other structured sports training or agility-specific coaching program, or research procedures
• Inconsistent attendance in the intervention sessions.

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Other
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
• Masking: Single

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Experimental group: Kho-kh0 game group; **Intervention Arm (Kho-Kho Group):** The experimental group will participate in a structured Kho-Kho program following standard rules. Sessions will be conducted **three times per week for six weeks**, with each session consisting of **two 9-minute innings** on a standard Kho-Kho court. Teams will include 12 players, with 9 chasers and 3 runners active at a time. Chasers aim to tag runners through quick movements and direction changes, with new runners entering once tagged. This intervention is designed to improve **agility and reaction time** through repetitive, high-intensity gameplay.	Other: KH0-KHO game; A Kho Kho team has 12 players and is played on a rectangular court with two poles at each end and a central lane running through it. -free play activity The court is 27 by 16 m (89 × 52 ft), the distance between the two poles is 24 m (79 ft), and the width of the center lane is 30 cm (12 in). A match consists of two innings with each consisting of 9 min each .; Other Names: free play activity
Other: Controlled group: free play activity group; The CG participated in their typical, PA in the classroom or playground according to their regular schedule of the school's physical education.	Other: free play activity; The CG participated in their typical, PA in the classroom or playground according to their regular schedule of the school's physical education

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
T-test agility run	Outcome Measure Title: Agility (T-Test Agility Run) Measure Description: Time taken to complete the T-Test Agility Run Unit of Measure: Seconds Interpretation: Lower scores indicate better agility	6 week
Ruller drop test	Outcome Measure Title: Reaction time in children Time Frame: (baseline to 6 weeks) Description: Reaction time assessed using the Ruler Drop Test Unit of Measure: Milliseconds (ms) or centimeters (cm)	6 week

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
The Children's Memory Scale	Outcome Measure Title: Verbal and visual memory in children Measure Description: Children's Memory Scale (CMS), including subtests for immediate and delayed verbal and visual memory Scale Range: Index scores range from 40 to 160 Interpretation: Higher scores indicate better cognitive performance and memory ability.	6 weeks
Test of environmental supportiveness :	Outcome Measure Title: Environmental supportiveness Measure Description: Environmental Supportiveness Scale assessing perceived environmental support for participation Scale Range: 0-34 Interpretation: Higher scores indicate better environmental supportiveness	6 weeks

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Riphah International University
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Sadida Nisar, Ms-ppt, Riphah International University

Publications and helpful links

General Publications

• ITIONAL GAME KHO-KHO IN WEST BENGAL. 5. Nascimento TAd, Ribas JCdO, Ramos IA, Damasceno VdO, Costa AdS. INFLUENCE OF ACTIVE GAMES AND PLAY ON CHILDREN'S COGNITION: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW. Journal of Physical Education. 2024;34:e3446.
• Bandyopadhyay N. THE STATUS AND FUTURE PROSPECT OF INDIAN TRADITIONAL GAME KHO-KHO IN WEST BENGAL.

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): February 4, 2026
• Primary Completion (Estimated): June 30, 2026
• Study Completion (Estimated): July 15, 2026

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: February 23, 2026
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: February 23, 2026
• First Posted (Actual): February 27, 2026

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): May 11, 2026
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: May 5, 2026
• Last Verified: May 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Reaction Time; agility; school-aged children; Kho-Kho; traditional game.
• Other Study ID Numbers: REC/RCR & AHS/25/sadida nisar

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: NO

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No