Asian Journal of Advanced Research and Reports

Aims: The research broadly seeks to addresses the constraints of high school students’ involvement in school-based physical activities in gardening programs. It looks forward to determining the levels of self- determination, autonomy, competence and relatedness in students and their contribution towards physical activity engagement.

Study Design: Quantitative Descriptive-Predictive Design

Place and Duration of Study: Matanao National High School, Schools Division of Davao del Sur, Philippines, between June 2024 and October 2024.

Methodology: Data was collected from 307 students who completed valid questionnaires in a cross-sectional study using quantitative descriptive-predictive design.

Results: Results indicate self- determination to be very high, with competence and relatedness contributing significantly to physical activity uptake. Strategies that promote autonomy, competence and relatedness could be strengthened for better student participation. Such approaches encourage sustainable lifestyles and enhance students’ physical and emotional health. Furthermore, this study also highlights the importance of "Gulayan sa Paaralan" in Physical Education by promoting active engagement, sustainability, and healthy living among students.

Conclusion: There is a nominal divergence from the objectives of this study because it shows and highlights a strong relationship between self-determination and students’ interest in physical activities in the context of the Gulayan sa Paaralan (School Vegetable Garden) program of the Department of Education, as weel as corroborating the findings with theoretical literature on the subject. The results also reveal that competence has a positive and significant association with engagement and suggest that people who perceive a high level of competence will have a higher level of engagement in physical activities.