Date of Award
Spring 4-1-2020
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctorate of Education, Ed.D.
College
College of Education
Department
Education
First Advisor
Mark Jimenez, Ed.D.
Second Advisor
Catherine Beck, Ed.D.
Third Advisor
Aaron Cooley, Ed.D.
Abstract
The researcher sought to determine how teachers in a middle school academic setting perceived the incorporation of movement with regards to student engagement. Three seventh grade English Language Arts instructors from the same middle school, one of whom was the researcher, incorporated three different physical activities into the academic class period and observed academic engagement indicators. The three movements used were 4-minute walking breaks, 2-minute stretching breaks, and a discussion technique that involved throwing, standing, and walking. Results showed that teachers perceived changes in academic engagement with all three activities, though the results for stretching indicated mixed positive and negative changes in academic engagement behaviors. Based on the teacher reports, all three activities can be useful in improving academic engagement, but the activities must be directly linked to an academic task for best results. Results also indicate a need for further research with regard to more varied activities and possible implications of whether academic engagement changed by movement has any impact on academic achievement.