Exercising attention within the classroom

Abstract

AIM To investigate whether increased physical exercise during the school day influenced subsequent cognitive performance in the classroom.METHOD A randomized, crossover-design trial (two weeks in duration) was conducted in six mainstream primary schools (1224 children aged 8-11y). No data on sex was available. Children received a teacher-directed, classroom-based programme of physical exercise, delivered approximately 30 minutes after lunch for 15 minutes during one week and no exercise programme during the other (order counterbalanced across participants). At the end of each school day, they completed one of five psychometric tests (paced serial addition, size ordering, listening span, digit-span backwards, and digit-symbol encoding), so that each test was delivered once after exercise and once after no exercise.RESULTS General linear modelling analysis demonstrated a significant interaction between intervention and counterbalance group (p<0.001), showing that exercise benefitted cognitive performance. Post-hoc analysis revealed that benefits occurred in participants who received the exercise intervention in the second but not the first week of the experiment and were also moderated by type of test and age group.INTERPRETATION Physical exercise benefits cognitive performance within the classroom. The degree of benefit depends on the context of testing and participants' characteristics. This has implications for the role that is attributed to physical exercise within the school curriculum.There have long been anecdotal reports of neuropsychological benefits arising from regular physical exercise, and these now receive support from a substantial body of empirical evidence. Recent reviews suggest that physical exercise can be useful in the treatment of depression, 1 can be used to maintain cognitive vitality in old age, 2 and can even reduce stereotypic and disruptive behaviours in children with autism, learning disorders, or behavioural disorders. 3 In children, associations between greater aerobic fitness and higher cognitive functioning have been reported. 4 Also, there is evidence of aerobic fitness level moderating aspects of academic performance 5 and children exhibiting increased 'ontask' classroom behaviour after brief exercise interventions. 6 Increases in the amount of curriculum time devoted to physical activity have also been reported to result in either no change or an improvement in students' academic achievement, 7 suggesting that increased exercise capably counteracts the negative impact of reduced academic instruction time, perhaps through improving cognition.Given these findings, recent initiatives to encourage increased childhood physical activity 8 may have important implications for mental as well as physical health. In adults executive functions such as working memory, goal-oriented processing, and inhibition are particularly improved by exercise interventions. 9,10 If this also applies in children, one might expect that the largest effects of exercise would be seen in individuals who have po...

Learning From the Experts: Exploring Playground Experience and Activities Using a Write and Draw Technique

“…6. During school time play occurs during recess or, as known in the UK, playtime.. Recess provides a break from classroom time and promotes learning behaviours, problem-solving skills, and learning readiness 5,11,12 Recess also offers children the opportunity to engage in physical activity on a daily basis. 13 In the United Kingdom, recess is mandatory and can account for up to 25% of the school day.…”

The importance of motor skill in general development

“…The intervention study by Hill et al 1 provides an important basis on which to consider further the idea not only of the beneficial effects of exercise on cognitive achievement, but also of how best to provide exercise opportunities to those children who need them most. While in the past we might have assumed that this applied to those who do not access physical exercise out of school, it is becoming increasingly clear that physical exercise, as well as motor development more generally, is closely related to physical and mental health, as well as to cognitive achievement.…”

“…4 Motor development, and its impact on other areas of physical and mental health as well as cognitive achievement, is also a central area of focus for those working with children with neurodevelopmental disorders. Hill et al 1 mention attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder, and other pertinent disorders include developmental coordination disorder (sometimes referred to as dyspraxia) and autism spectrum disorder. Such children experience significant motor and ⁄ or attention difficulties with suggestions of varying cognitive profiles.…”

“…To manipulate stable or unstable objects successfully we rely on the friction inherent within the digit-object interface while simultaneously increasing the grip force in our opposing fingers and thumb to prevent slips or drops. 1,2 Manipulation of static tools such as pencils with erasers can be successfully achieved by most children, whereas manipulation of self-care items such as fingernail clippers or tweezers is often more difficult to master. Until a child learns to control the direction and strength of opposing…”

Focusing elementary students with active classrooms: exploring teachers perceptions of self-initiated practices

“…Researchers documented that physical activity has positive effects on students academic test scores (Donnelly & Lambourne, 2011;Erwin, Fedewa, & Ahn, 2013;Hill et al, 2010;Hill, Williams, Aucott, Thomson, & Mon-Williams, 2011;Kibbe et al, 2011;Maeda & Randall, 2003;Reed et al, 2010) and on task behaviors (Bartholomew & Jowers, 2011;Carlson et al, 2015;Kibbe et al, 2011;Mahar et al, 2006;Miramontez & Schwartz, 2016). In a meta-analysis of 44 studies, Sibley and Etnier (2003) found a significantly positive relationship (effect size 0.32, p<.05) between physical activity and cognitive abilities of children.…”