Why Kids Learn Less When Schools Get Rid of Recess

Most adults remember recess as an essential part, if not the highlight, of each school day. But recess has become an increasingly endangered element of a child’s time at school. As federal standards force kids to stuff more studying into each day, school administrators say there just isn’t time to “play around.” What they aren't saying is that eliminating recess may be the worst thing schools can do for a child’s education.

In 2006, The National Parent Teacher Association (PTA) reported that nearly 40 percent of American elementary schools have eliminated or are considering eliminating recess. Reasons range from budgetary and staffing problems to the crushing requirements of the No Child Left Behind Act, which set unprecedented standards for student achievement and requires drilling for test prep that cuts into the time previously spent doing art and science, as well as breaking for recess.

One Pennsylvania school eliminated recess for no better reason than that it had become a logistical challenge after the school grew to 1,100 fourth- through sixth-graders. District administrators cited questions such as how long the recess would be, where it would fall during the school day, who would supervise it and where it would be held in bad weather as issues standing in the way of reinstating recess. Isn't the logistics of student supervision a school administrator's job?

But while school administrators make excuses for why they just can’t handle recess anymore, education and child development researchers are making the case for why it needs to stay. As it turns out, forcing a child to sit inside for hours on end, with no physical or social outlet, causes a host of behavioral and learning problems, not to mention an inactive lifestyle that could contribute to childhood obesity.

A growing body of research supports the idea that physical exercise is essential for learning. For one thing, recess provides the opportunity for peer interaction, which can increase social skills and creative problem-solving. Recess also provides a much-needed break from focused academic activity, which can improve attention and retention of information, especially for kids pegged with attention problems for fidgeting and disruptive behavior in class (can you really blame them?).

A study published in January by the journal Pediatrics indicated that, among 8- to 9-year-old children, having one or more daily recess periods of at least 15 minutes in length was associated with better teacher rating of class behavior scores, and concluded that recess should be part of the school day. “We should understand that kids need that break because the brain needs that break,” said the study’s lead researcher, Dr. Romina M. Barros.

Childhood obesity and attention-deficit problems are being declared “epidemics” of the school-age generation. But one possible solution is also the simplest: what kids really need is the space to be kids, at least for 15 minutes out of the day.

Photo credit: wsilver