SynthesisPloS one2019
A systematic review and meta-analysis on the effects of physically active classrooms on educational and enjoyment outcomes in school age children.
Synthesis in PloS one, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 38 papers, 5 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
38 citing papers in PubMed, 5 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 85 citations in OpenAlex.
- Understanding the Benefits of Brief Classroom-Based Physical Activity Interventions on Primary School-Aged Children's Enjoyment and Subjective Wellbeing: A Systematic Review.The Journal of school health · 2022Pooled it
- Classroom Movement Breaks and Physically Active Learning Are Feasible, Reduce Sedentary Behaviour and Fatigue, and May Increase Focus in University Students: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2022Pooled it
- School-based physical activity programs for promoting physical activity and fitness in children and adolescents aged 6 to 18.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2021Pooled it
- Physical Activity and Academic Achievement: An Umbrella Review.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2020Pooled it
- A critical evaluation of systematic reviews assessing the effect of chronic physical activity on academic achievement, cognition and the brain in children and adolescents: a systematic review.The international journal of behavioral nutrition and physical activity · 2020Pooled it
- Effects of physically active lessons and active breaks on cognitive performance and health indicators in elementary school children: a cluster randomized trial.The international journal of behavioral nutrition and physical activity · 2025Trial
- 16 Weeks of Physically Active Mathematics and English Language Lessons Improves Cognitive Function and Gross Motor Skills in Children Aged 8-9 Years.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2022Trial
- The longitudinal association between objectively-measured school-day physical activity and academic achievement in US elementary school students.The international journal of behavioral nutrition and physical activity · 2022Trial
- Breaking up classroom sitting time with cognitively engaging physical activity: Behavioural and brain responses.PloS one · 2021Trial
- Voices on a multicomponent school-based physical activity intervention: a qualitative study with school leaders, teachers, and students from the MOVESCHOOL study.BMC public health · 2026Article
- Sleep Duration and Physical Activity as Predictors of Executive Function in Adolescents: A Longitudinal Study.Brain sciences · 2026Article
- Enhancing Upper Secondary Students' Situational Engagement and Cognitive Prerequisites of Learning Through the Physically Active Academic Lessons Intervention: Protocol for a Mixed Methods Cluster Randomized Individual Crossover Trial.JMIR research protocols · 2026Article
- Sit Still or Move More? The Impact of Fidgeting on Creativity.Journal of educational psychology · 2025Article
- From theory to practice: examining the influence of physically active learning on curriculum design and pedagogical planning in initial teacher education.Frontiers in sports and active living · 2025Article
- Innovative approaches in physical education: leveraging cognitive activation to boost student outcomes.Frontiers in psychology · 2025Article
- Short-Term Effects of Hospital Schooling on the Resilience of Hospitalised Children.Continuity in education · 2025Article
- Relationship of Social-Emotional Learning, Resilience, Psychological Well-Being, and Depressive Symptoms with Physical Activity in School-Aged Children.Children (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Article
- Effects of video-guided active breaks with curricular content on mental health and classroom climate in chilean schoolchildren aged 6 to 10: study protocol for a multicentre randomized controlled trial.Frontiers in physiology · 2024Article
- Centre-based early education interventions for improving school readiness: A systematic review.Campbell systematic reviews · 2023Review
- Pre-Service Teachers' Perceptions of and Experiences with Classroom Physical Activity.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectivesDespite the relationship between physical activity (PA) and learning outcomes, the school system has not been able to support the inclusion of PA throughout the day. A solution to this problem integrates PA into the academic classroom. The objective of this review is to determine the impact of active classrooms compared to traditional sedentary classrooms on educational outcomes of school-aged children.
designWe searched ERIC, PubMed, PsychINFO, and Web of Science, reference lists of included studies for randomised controlled studies. Independent reviewers screened the texts of potentially eligible studies and assessed the risk of bias. Data were pooled using random-effects models on standardized mean differences.
resultsThis review identified 25 studies examining educational outcomes, including approximately 6,181 students. Risk of bias was assessed as either some or high risk of bias for most of the studies and outcomes. Pooled data from 20 studies and 842 participants measuring academic performance shows a small positive effect of active classrooms compared with traditional, sedentary classrooms (SMD = 0.28, 95% CI: 0.09 to 0.47).
conclusionsPhysically active classrooms may slightly improve academic achievement compared to the traditional sedentary lessons. Future research is needed to ensure that studies are adequately powered, employ appropriate methods of randomization, and measure a wide range of important student outcomes across the full spectrum of the school-age.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.