The effects of physical activity on academic achievement in kindergarten aged children

THE EFFECTS OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT IN KINDERGARTEN AGED CHILDREN Amy Kathleen Shannonhouse, PhD University of Pittsburgh, 2012 Increasing time in physical activity could help combat childhood obesity. In addition to physical health, daily physical activity’s benefits on the brain and cognitive functioning have been extensively researched and provide support for incorporating more physical activity into physical education and the school day. This research investigated the effects of physical activity on academic achievement in kindergarten children across the 2008/09 school year. The main hypothesis examined in the study was whether children who participated in the Interactive Physical Activity Center (IPAC) would perform better academically than the control group on the Dibels Oral Reading Fluency, Retell Fluency, and Group Mathematics Assessment and Diagnostic Evaluation (G-Made) achievement tests. To ensure that children in the experimental group were physically active, participation, changes in heart rate, activity scores and perceived exertion were examined across the year. Third, school attendance was examined to determine if the experimental group had fewer school absences than the control group. A longitudinal non-equivalent control group design was used to investigate the relationship between physical activity and academic achievement. To determine if the children were active in the IPAC, a one-way ANOVA examined changes in fitness variables. For the main question of the study concerning physical activity and academic achievement a two-way (Group X Time) ANOVA was used to compare academic progress of the experimental and control group. To assess school attendance of the two groups, a one-tailed independent samples t-test was used. Results demonstrated that kindergarten children who received the IPAC program increased their physical activity and reached the academic performance level of the control group by the end of the school year. The experimental group experienced a greater rate of improvement over time in three out of four of the Dibels subtests compared to the control group, and improved the same as the controls in the Growth Scale Value of the G-Made. These results expand previous research on the relationship between physical activity and academic performance in kindergarten children. Results of this study are important for administrators and teachers because quality physical activity experiences have the potential to impact cognitive, physical and academic outcomes in our schools