Comparison of physical fitness and overall school performance in children at basic school

Introduction: Physical fitness and academic achievement may constitute two interrelated variables. Students with higher physical fitness can achieve better learning outcomes in school. Objective: To determine whether students with better learning outcomes have also better outcomes in physical performance tests compared to students with low school achievement. Methods: 167 elementary and primary school students age 11.06 ± 2.4 years old (92 girls and 75 boys) participated in the comparative cross-sectional study. A special seven-item test battery was used to determine their level of physical fitness. Pupils were divided into two groups according to their learning outcomes statements. Results: Students with better learning outcomes had higher physical fitness in the individual tests in the most cases. Statistical analysis of standardized Z-score revealed a statistically significant better physical fitness (p ˂ 0.05) for all students with better learning outcomes in all age groups except the boys from the 2nd stage (p = 0.268). Conclusion: The results showed that students with better learning outcomes also had greater physical fitness. Keywords: academic achievement, physical fitness, elementary and primary schoo