ReviewChildren (Basel, Switzerland)2023
The Effects of Physical Activity on Academic Performance in School-Aged Children: A Systematic Review.
Review in Children (Basel, Switzerland), 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 20 papers, 1 of them a synthesis 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
20 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Challenges and facilitators to parent-child shared physical interventions during preschool and school age education: a systematic review and meta synthesis.Frontiers in public health · 2025Pooled it
- Physical Activity, Self-Administered Motor Tests, and Academic Achievement in Lower Secondary School Students: A Cross-Sectional Study.Children (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Riding toward better math: executive functions mediate the link between horseback activities and children's mathematical achievement.BMC psychology · 2026Article
- Attitudes, Norms, and Control: What Is Shaping Fijian Children's Physical Activity and Screen Time Behaviours?Child: care, health and development · 2026Article
- Associations Between Body Mass Index, Physical Activity, Perceived School Competence, and Academic Performance in Portuguese Elementary Students.Children (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Sleep, Physical Activity, and Executive Functions in Students: A Narrative Review.Clocks & sleep · 2025Review
- Geographic disparities in physical activity, sedentary behavior, sleep time, and gross motor skills in Nigerian preschoolers.Frontiers in public health · 2025Article
- From activity to obesity: understanding gender and type of school divide among Saudi adolescents.Frontiers in public health · 2025Article
- Effects of body mass index and extracurricular sports activities on physical fitness in school-aged children.Frontiers in public health · 2025Article
- School-family cognitive discrepancies in the cultivation of children's interest in sports: an exploratory study based on grounded theory.Frontiers in public health · 2025Article
- The relationship between physical exercise and academic burnout in adolescents: the chain-mediated role of internet addiction and self-control.Frontiers in psychology · 2025Article
- Active Child, Accomplished Youth: Middle Childhood Active Leisure Fuels Academic Success by Emerging Adulthood.Children (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Article
- The Effect of Physical Activity Levels on Cognitive Performance: Research in Portuguese Adolescents.Sports (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Article
- The Relationship between Physical Activity, Physical Fitness, Cognition, and Academic Outcomes in School-Aged Latino Children: A Scoping Review.Children (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Article
- The Role of Fundamental Movement Skills and Spatial Abilities in the Relationship between Physical Activity and Mathematics Achievement in Primary School Children.Journal of Intelligence · 2024Article
- Associations between academic achievement and weight status in a multi-ethnic sample of New Caledonian adolescents.PloS one · 2024Article
- Relationship among some coordinative and dynamic strength capabilities and constructive and conceptual thinking among preschool-age children.Frontiers in psychology · 2024Article
- A single session of coordinative motor training does not improve spatial ability performances in healthy children.Frontiers in sports and active living · 2024Article
- Dissecting the causal relationship between moderate to vigorous physical activity levels and cognitive performance: a bidirectional two-sample Mendelian randomization study.Frontiers in psychology · 2024Article
- Child and adolescent patterns of commuting to school.Preventive medicine reports · 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
4 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Schools offer a unique environment to influence children's physical activity (PA) levels positively. This study aims to systematically review the evidence surrounding how PA affects academic performance by analysing how the frequency, intensity, time, and type of PA mediate academic performance outcomes. This review was conducted using the PRISMA framework. Keyword searches were conducted in Science Direct, PubMed, and SPORTDiscus. Children that were obese, typically developing, typical weight, disabled, with a developmental disability, from a low socio-economic background, or an ethnic minority were included. A total of 19 studies were included, with a total of 6788 participants, a mean age of 9.3 years (50.2% boys, and 49.8% girls). Overall, 63.2% were nondisabled, while 36.8% were diagnosed with a disability. Two authors met, reviewed papers with regard to the inclusion criteria, and agreed on outputs to be included. Evidence suggests that associations between PA and academic performance were primarily positive or nonsignificant. PA levels of 90 min plus per week were associated with improved academic performance, as was PA performed at moderate to vigorous intensity. The optimal duration of PA was 30-60 min per session, whilst various sports induced positive academic effects. Importantly, findings support that PA does not have a deleterious effect on academic performance but can enhance it.
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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.