Recess and Reading Achievement of Early Childhood Students in Public Schools

Dagli, Ummuhan Yesil

doi:10.14507/epaa.v20n10.2012

Cited by 12 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 42 publications

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“…Three studies examined the effect of recess on academic achievement. Yesil Dagli found no relationship between recess duration or frequency with reading scores in the ECLS-K kindergarten sample [43], Dills found no effects of recess time on reading or math achievement longitudinally in the ECLS-K cohort [29], while Erwin et al found improved math achievement scores but not reading after recess increased from one recess to two 15 minute recesses [30]. Other outcomes included cognitive tasks of sustained attention and creativity [34].…”

Section: Plos Onementioning

confidence: 98%

“…Only three studies directly examined the effect of recess on academic achievement, with studies utilizing the ECLS-K cohort finding no relationship between recess and academic achievement measured as math and reading achievement on the National Assessment of Educational Progress [29,43], and one study finding an increase in math achievement on the Measure of Academic Progress (MAP) standardized test with two, 15 minute recesses per day [30]. This is important as often increasing recess time is considered to take away from classroom learning time; however, the additional time allocated to recess was not shown to reduce academic achievement.…”

Section: Plos Onementioning

confidence: 99%

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Educational outcomes of recess in elementary school children: A mixed-methods systematic review

Howie,

Perryman,

Moretta

et al. 2023

PLoS ONE

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Background Recess provides a key physical activity opportunity for students in school, yet a wide range of recess requirements exist. To design optimal recess policies, the effect of recess on students’ educational outcomes must be better understood. Therefore, the purpose of this mixed-method systematic review is to identify and systematically evaluate research on the effects of recess on student educational outcomes, including behavior, cognitive performance and academic achievement. Methods A systematic search of the literature in ERIC (EBSCO), ProQuest Central, PsycINFO, Teacher Reference Center, MEDLINE Complete (EBSCO), and CINAHL Complete was performed through September 2022. Data was extracted from quantitative studies, and reported themes with exemplar quotes were extracted from qualitative studies. The Mixed Method Appraisal Tool (MMAT) was used to assess study quality. Results The search identified 932 articles, of which 13 were included in the review, including 8 quantitative and 5 qualitative studies. Eleven studies were conducted in the United States, and reported sample size of studies ranged from 12 to 11,624. Studies found mixed effects on student behavior, discipline referrals and academic achievement. Qualitative studies reported multiple benefits of recess including increased focus, improved problem solving and academic achievement. Conclusions Overall, evidence suggests positive benefits for behavior and either positive or null benefits of recess on academic achievement. However, evidence is limited by non-controlled study designs and diversity in outcome assessments. Additional quantitative evidence is needed to convince policymakers of the specific evidence supporting recess, but also to advise on the optimal recess policies and practices to improve student learning.

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