7 page paper

Institution

Does Physical Activity Enhance Learning?

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A Research Project

Submitted in Partial Fulfillment

of the Requirements for the Course

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

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INTRODUCTION................................................................................ 1

(Reason) Purpose of This Study........................................................... 2

Definition of Terms............................................................... 2

Procedures Used In This Study............................................. 3

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE........................................... 4

SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS................................................. 7

SELECTED REFERENCES............................................................. 9

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INTRODUCTION

In this study an effort was made to show that the learning process is actually

enhanced when physical activity is associated as part of the learning process. There are

various reasons why this phenomena occurs and the connection is explained based upon

the research of those who have studied the association. Schools are under more and more

pressure to demonstrate increased academic achievement. Many educators and policy

makers believe students will perform better academically if instructional time is

increased. Does eliminating physical education and recess periods give children more

time to learn or does increased physical activity promote learning ?

It is important to remember to incorporate activity with the learning process to

increase the acquired knowledge of the student. The fields of academics and physical

education are thought by many to exist in two totally separate universes, and that there is

no connection between the two. Many educators still see them as competing factors, with

one fighting for the mind, the other fighting for the body. Research showed however, that

physical activity and fitness actually assisted children in doing better in the classroom.

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The Purpose of This Study

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between physical

activity and learning. If children spent more time engaged in physical activity during

physical education classes and recess would their academic achievement levels increase,

or would their scholastic achievement improve if more time were spent in the classroom

and engaging in less or no physical activity during the school day?

Definitions of Terms

The following terms are defined according to their use in this study.

physical activity . For the purpose of this study, the word physical activity was

considered as any bodily movement requiring energy expenditure over time. Physical

activity occurs as observable human movement occurring in a wide variety of settings.

learning . The term learning was used to identify the act, process or experience of gaining

knowledge or skill; or the knowledge or skill gained through schooling or study.

recess . In this study, the word recess was defined as a break period, typically outdoors,

for children.

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Procedures Used in This Study

The investigator used the resources of the Richardson Library at Hardin-Simmons

University to complete as comprehensive as possible review of all the literature

available on the topic of physical activity and its correlation with learning. The researcher

conducted personal interviews with Mrs. Jeannie Best, a counselor in the Clyde

Independent School District and Ms. Carla Kelley, a third grade teacher in the district.

Mrs. Best was very familiar with the literature done on studies showing that physical

activity promotes learning. She stated that Ms. Kelley was very proactive in applying

many of the research findings into her classroom. Examples of how she did this included

having students do their work sitting on exercise balls, while lying on the ground and

while sitting on bean bag chairs. Ms. Kelly also had the students always sit in different

places in the room and take frequent stretching and exercise breaks throughout the day to

absorb what they had learned and to better prepare them to absorb what they were about

to learn. These practices were very progressive as they applied findings in the research to

the classroom setting.

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

Many studies have been conducted that studied the relationship between how physical

activity can improve the learning process. According to Waite –Stupiansky and Findlay

(15), new technology allows researchers to look inside a living brain as it performs

specific tasks and functions. Calvin (4) reported that performing complex movements like

dancing, throwing a ball or playing tag engaged the same area of the brain as problem

solving, planning and sequencing. Brink (3) suggested that people of all ages benefit

mentally through motor stimulation and showed that each person’s capacity to master

new and remember old information is improved by biological and chemical changes in

the brain caused by exercise. Healey (9) conducted animal research which showed that

physical exercise and movement promoted the growth of brain cells. Pellegrini and

Bjorklund (11) asserted that learning would be enhanced if children were allowed to

engage in non-focused, non-intellectual activities, such as recess throughout the day.

An article by Jensen (10) reported that movement increased heart rate and

circulation, enhanced spatial learning, stimulated release of beneficial chemicals and

affirmed the value of implicit learning. It was also reported that, “the human body, for

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the last 400,000 years has primarily been walking, sleeping, leaning, running, doing or

squatting. It has not been sitting in chairs” (10:36). Etnier (7) found in a

meta analysis of nearly 200 studies on the effect of exercise on cognitive functioning that

physical activity did support learning.

Dennison and Dennison (5) suggested that movement is the door to learning and that

no learning can take place without movement. They stated that learning coordinated

physical and mental processes and produced permanent, not temporary, learning that is

totally internalized. Hannaford (8) expressed the belief that physical movement, from

earliest infancy and throughout our lives plays an important role in the creation and

improvement of nerve cell networks which are actually the essence of learning. Worrell,

Kovar and Oldfather (16) discussed the importance of physical activity in enhancing

learning . They also discussed the positive impact of movement activities on the

academic abilities of children.

Vail (14) emphasized the importance of physical fitness in a student’s life by showing

that there is a consistent positive relationship between overall fitness and academic

achievement. With an improvement in overall fitness scores, there was also an

improvement in mean achievement scores.

Hendry and Kerr (10) performed tests on learning disabled children involving both

motor and cognitive tests and found that a physical activity program can influence basic

cognitive and motor skills. Summerford (13) discussed the role of movement as it related

to brain function and academic learning and compared the mental performance of

students involved in regular activity with a group of inactive students and found that

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physically active students performed significantly better on mathematics tests.

Bennett (2) reported that one of the most important vehicles for learning during the

preschool years is the experience of physical activity. Carefully planned situations in

which children experimented with the processes of moving furnished them with

experiences in learning to control objects and their bodies. Rogers (12) described how

boisterous physical games were useful in promoting learning, especially in elementary

mathematics classes. The article presented the results of an experiment with 160 children

that found the case for using play activities to be quite strong.

Eastman (6) recognized the role of physical activity in helping young children to

attain desired outcomes and prompted educators to continually investigate avenues for

involving children in daily physical activity.

SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS

In this study, the researcher attempted to determine if there was a positive relationship

between engaging in regular and periodic physical activity and enhanced learning

capabilities. After studying related research and professional literature, the researcher

concluded that there was undeniable support to conclude that physical activity does in

fact enhance learning.

The available research suggested that physical activity did in fact play an important

role in the learning process for school children. Several studies emphasized that physical

exercise, including recess, actually enhanced brain function. There was also evidence that

breaks in structured learning activities helped humans learn better. Study after study

documented that students who spent more of their day engaged in physical activity

(recess and physical education class) performed better academically than those who spent

more time in instruction.

More schools have cut back on or eliminated physical education classes to

provide more time for academic instruction. These moves were in part a response to

the requirements of the No Child Left Behind Act. These schools could have actually

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deprived students of an element which they actually needed to perform better in the

classroom.

It is important to remember that research in this area is in its elemental stages and we

should conclude that physical and mental processes influence each other in ways that are

still being understood. In reviewing the research, there were many articles that espoused

the benefits that physical activity had on not only learning, but also on the social

development and health of school children.

SELECTED REFERENCES

1. American Psychological Association. Publication manual. 5th ed. Washington,

D. C.: The Association, 2000.

2. Bennett, Catherine. “Planning for activity during the important preschool years.”

Journal of physical education and recreation 51-7: 30-32, September, 1980.

3. Brink, S. “New research suggests that folks from 8 to90 can shape up their brains

with aerobic exercise.” U. S. news and world report 76-84, May, 1995.

4. Calvin, W. H. How brains think: evolving intelligence, then and now. New York:

Basic Books, 1996.

5. Dennison, P. and G. Dennison. Brain gym Ventura, CA: Edu-Kinesthetics, Inc.,

1994.

6. Eastman, Wayne. “The active living approach: a Canadian perspective for

physically active young children.” Paper presented at the European conference

on quality in early childhood education. (10th, England, United Kingdom,

August. 2000).

7. Etnier, J. L. “The influence of physical fitness and exercise on cognitive

functioning.” Journal of sport and exercise psychology 19-3: 249-277.

8. Hannaford, C. Smart moves: why learning is not all in your head. Arlington,

VA: Great Ocean Publishers, 1995.

9. Healy, J. M. Endangered minds: why our kids don’t think. New York:

Simon and Schuster,1990.

10. Jensen, Eric. “Moving with the brain in mind.” Educational leadership 58-3:

34-37.

11. Pellegrini, A. D. and D. F. Bjorklund. “The place of recess in school: issues in

the role of recess in children’s education and development.” Journal of

research in childhood education 11-1: 5-13.

12. Rogers, P. J. “Teaching mathematics through play to primary school children.”

Educational studies 15-1: 37-51, March, 1989.

13. Summerford, Cathie. “What is the impact of exercise on brain function for

academic learning.” Teaching elementary physical education 12-3: 6-8,

May, 2001.

14. Vail, Kathleen. “Is physical fitness raising grades?” Education digest 71-8:

13-19, April, 2006.

15. Waite_Stupiansky, Sandra and Marcia Findlay. “The fourth r: recess and its link

to learning.” Educational forum 66-1: 16-25, Fall, 2001.

16. Worrell, Vicki, Susan Kovar and Susan Oldfather. “Brain/body connection as

it relates to physical education.” Teaching elementary physical education 14-6:

12, November, 2003.