The latest research reveals a connection between physical fitness and success in school. In fact, children who are physically fit were found to perform better at absorbing and retaining new information compared to children who were out of shape. A study was conducted involving more than 12,000 Nebraska schoolchildren. Researchers found that children who were physically fit did better at exams and classroom environments compared to children who were unfit and overweight. This read provides information on how physical fitness promotes school success.
The American College of Sports Medicine conducted a study in may last year. A group of fourth and fifth-grade students was made to run and exercise vigorously for 10 minutes just before a math exam. These kids scored higher than the students who were quietly sitting before the exam. But there has been no comprehensive study conducted to date on how physical fitness affects the way children study. In fact, a group of researchers at the University of Illinois decided to conduct a study to find how physical fitness affects school success.
During their study, they recruited a group of local boys and girls around the ages of 9 and 10 years. The aerobic fitness of these children was tested on a treadmill. Then, the children were separated into two groups as the fittest and least fit groups. Both the groups were taken into the exercise physiology laboratory to work on some difficult memorization tasks. The fittest group did much better in the test compared to the least fit group.
Learning is a complex process that involves taking in and storing new information as memories and also recalling this information later on. In fact, information which cannot be recalled has not really been learned. Children who were physically fitter were able to memorize the learning material much better than the ones who were not that fit.
Charles Hillman, a professor of kinesiology at the University of Illinois reiterates that students should engage in physical fitness activities at least an hour a day to improve their learning abilities over time. This is why it is important to continue physical education in schools. Eliminating physical education happens during tight financial situations. But it is not the best method of ensuring educational success among the young students in the country. This read offers information on how physical fitness can promote school success among the young population.