by Arthur L. Caplan & Lee H. Igel
The NYU Sports & Society Program
New Jersey Governor Chris Christie is in the middle of a huge scandal over the closing of approach lanes to the George Washington Bridge. While giving his State of the State address earlier today, he acknowledged the unfolding political woes of “bridgegate.” Soon after, he turned his attention—and a sizable chunk of the speech—to education. He mentioned that New Jersey boasts a 87.5 percent high school graduation rate and more than $25 billion in annual investments in public education, though shortcomings and challenges still exist. So, how to make improvements? Lengthen both the school day and the school year.
Without more time in class, Christie warned, it will be tough to produce students who can stay competitive in the global economy. What he did not say is that without more exercise and recess activity built into those longer days and years, bridge traffic will continue to be a problem for New Jersey residents. That’s because unless the governor adds in some funding for more physical activity in schools, the only way the next generation of kids will be able to approach the George Washington Bridge—or any other roadway—is in an ambulance.
It’s popular to believe that physical education and activities such as recess ought to get reduced time or cut altogether because they harm academic progress. After all, why should kids be shooting hoops when they could be learning the periodic table? Why waste time running around playing tag when they could be sitting down learning science, technology, engineering, and mathematics?
It is both reasonable and understandable to devote a deliberate, focused amount of time to skills and tasks that we want to improve. Plus, when we see that others are already at it, there is a tendency to want to do it with even greater frequency and intensity. For example, think about the fear that now runs through the minds of many American parents and policymakers when they read another report about how much time this country’s or that one’s schoolchildren spend studying. And that’s even before we get to contorted ideas about the “10,000 hour rule” or variations of being a “Tiger Mom.”
But there is a growing body of research that shows there is a positive link between school-based physical activity and academic performance. When kids have opportunities to engage in physical activity at school, they generally end up with better learning, behavior, and overall developmental outcomes. That is what researchers at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention concluded when they reviewed relevant studies and reports on the subject. It is in line with the conclusion that British researchers drew in a study published last year. And it aligns with plain old common sense: children grow and develop by figuring out their way in the world, which includes learning how to balance work and play.
To be fair, Governor Christie didn’t get into specifics about what teachers and students would be spending their time doing during their longer school days and years. The policy, if followed-thorough on, could end up including school-based physical activity programs. But not mentioning anything of the sort was a missed opportunity.
Making kids smarter is important. But it has to be accompanied by serious efforts that recognize the relationship between academic performance and physical fitness. If we want our kids to do well in school, at work, and throughout a long life, then exercise, sports, and physical activity have to get time in the longer school schedule.
Arthur L. Caplan, PhD, is the Drs. William F. and Virginia Connolly Mitty Professor and head of the Division of Bioethics at New York University Langone Medical Center. Lee H. Igel, PhD, is associate professor in the Tisch Center at New York University. Both are affiliated with NYU’s Sports and Society Program.