Effects Of Recess On Academic Achievement

Quantitative article critique
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There has been growing interest in understanding the impact of the recess of student achievement, where the school is going children in a break in a school day mostly to play and participate in physical activities. In the article by Howie & Pate (2012), there was a focus on the impact of physical activities on academic achievement and cognitive performance in childhood. Development in early childhood is one of the factors, which influence lifelong achievement including in schools. Physical activities of moderate intensity during recess and lunch breaks not only improve the physical well-being of the school children.
The researchers analyzed the effects of fitness, and physical activities have been linked to better academic performance. Similar studies have reviewed the different effects of physical activities and sought to investigate the effects of physical activity on the physical and psychological health of school children. These studies have shown that to some extent the intervention helps to reduce the risk of school failure. As such, the study results in the Howie & Pate (2012) research are consistent with past studies, but some studies only show modest effects of recess on academic achievement. In the review of previous studies, the researchers included those where there was randomization, which improves the strength of the study results. Nonetheless, as there were differences in the type of samples collected and measurement instruments, it was not possible to determine whether the significant differences affected the study results.
In the study by Donnelly & Lambourne (2011), the researchers sought to determine the effect of classroom activities when physical activities and movement were integrated into the academic lessons and reported that there were an improved academic achievement and cognitive function. The design of the study was a longitudinal and cluster randomized trial where there was a Physical Activity Across the Curriculum (PAAC) project implemented. There was minimal weight loss when there were low-intensity activities. The study results imply that a decline in school physical activities among school children is associated with worsening physiological and psychosocial outcomes.
Studies on whether physical activities enhance academic performance or cognitive skill look at different outcomes based on changes in the classroom including behavior, perception, reading, aptitude, and behavior. The evidence on the positive association and likely causal relationship between the recess and academic achievement is relevant to improve education outcomes. Having regularly scheduled recess was singled out as potentially beneficial to encourage physical activities in schoo...