Date of Award
1-1-2012
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Ph.D.
Organizational Unit
Morgridge College of Education
First Advisor
Karen Riley, Ph.D.
Second Advisor
Kathy Green
Third Advisor
Nicholas Cutforth
Fourth Advisor
Kathy Ohman
Keywords
Academic achievement, Obesity, Physical activity, Student engagement
Abstract
Physical activity is important, and many adolescents are not meeting the recommendation that youth participate in at least 60 minutes of physical activity most days of the week (CDC, 2011). Physical inactivity among middle school students is on the rise and may be a contributing factor to a decline in academic performance. Prior research has focused primarily on bodily health; however, growing evidence supports the benefits of physical activity for academic achievement (Chomitz et al., 2009). This study examined the relationship between middle school students' perceptions of physical activity and student engagement they relate to academic achievement among 179 middle school students in one suburban middle school. Additionally, this study sought to investigate students' perceptions of physical activity as well as the context within which these perceptions take place, which may lead to more effective strategies to help improve academic achievement. Propositions from Bronfenbrenner's ecological theory were used to examine the different factors influencing the relationship between middle school students' perceptions of physical activity and student engagement as they relate to academic achievement.
This study is predominantly a correlational and regression design, which examines relationships and predictive ability of key variables. This research design will add depth to the study by investigating the social influences in schools regarding the relationship between physical activity, student engagement, and academic achievement
Publication Statement
Copyright is held by the author. User is responsible for all copyright compliance.
Rights Holder
Jeremy D. Moretti
Provenance
Received from ProQuest
File Format
application/pdf
Language
en
File Size
143 p.
Recommended Citation
Moretti, Jeremy D., "The Relationship Between Middle School Students' Perceptions of Physical Activity, Student Engagement, and Academic Achievement" (2012). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 449.
https://digitalcommons.du.edu/etd/449
Copyright date
2012
Discipline
Education, Health education