What Single Factor Correlates Directly with Student Academic Performance?
In a two-year study of 5th and 7th graders in Wood County Schools in West Virginia, what factor most directly correlated with academic achievement?
- Eating a healthy breakfast on a daily basis
- Living with parents in a stable family situation
- Living with siblings who were solid academic achievers
- Maintaining a high level of physical fitness
- Regularly attending classes and faithfully performing homework
If you guessed number 4, you are correct. Centuries later, educators who follow Juvenal’s late first-century advice to focus on creating “a sound mind in a sound body” are right on target. Wood County Schools Healthy Lifestyles Program Manager Karen Northrup said that the studies confirm that aerobic capacity drives academic achievement.
"The students who were in the healthy fitness zone both years were showing the highest academic achievement in those West Test test scores," Northrup said. "The students in the needs-improvement zone were doing the worst."
Researchers also concluded that even a little physical activity could make a difference. Fellow researcher Dick Wittberg says the research also demonstrated that “a little bit of fitness will go a long way with academics.” Researchers hope the information will encourage other schools to introduce and maintain physical fitness activities.
Photo courtesy of Paolo Ferla
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