Physical education and its role in schools

Резюме:

Physical education (PE) plays a crucial role in supporting children’s physical, cognitive, and socio-emotional development. This empirical study investigates the effects of a structured 12-week physical education intervention on physical fitness, working memory, attention, and social skills among middle-school students. A quasi-experimental design with 120 participants aged 11–14 compared an intervention group receiving four weekly PE sessions with a control group following the standard curriculum. Physical fitness tests, cognitive assessments, and teacher observation checklists were used for data collection. Results indicated significant improvements in cardiovascular endurance (+18%), muscular strength (+12%), flexibility (+10%), working memory (+9%), and attention (+7%) in the intervention group. Qualitative findings demonstrated notable increase in cooperation, leadership, and conflict resolution. These results align with established evidence that structured physical activity enhances children’s health and learning capacities. The study recommends greater curricular time for PE, targeted teacher training, and enhanced resource allocation to maximize developmental outcomes.

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