Flancbaum - Effect of Pa On Writing Attitudes

Running
Head: THE EFFECT OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON WRITING ATTITUDES

The Effect of Physical Activity on Writing Attitudes

Mark Flancbaum

University of Colorado, Denver

November 22, 2014

THE EFFECT OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON WRITING ATTITUDES
Introduction and Problem Statement

I am a fifth grade teacher in an urban K-5 elementary school where I teach writing
to eighty students. My fifth grade team platoons so that I teach writing to all three
fifth grade classes. I am the only fifth grade teacher who teaches writing in our
school. Writing is taught in a writer's workshop format.

When beginning my research, I noticed that many of my students had negative
attitudes toward writing. In fact, many students who appeared to have positive
attitudes toward other subjects showed negative attitudes toward writing.

My students are expected to reach the rigorous Common Core State Writing
Standards in fifth grade. Students need to work diligently to reach these lofty
standards. It is possible that negative attitudes toward writing could affect
students' willingness to work hard, causing performance to suffer. In addition,
writing is crucial to my students' success as they move up through middle school,
high school, and possibly higher education. If negative attitudes persist, writing
performance could decline as expectations increase.
Terminology

Writer's Workshop

Writer's workshop is a term that describes the structure of the writing time in the
classroom. Our workshop was divided into three segments: mini lesson, writing
time, and sharing/reflection. The mini lesson was a 10-15 minute lesson. Students
were seated on the carpet at the front of the room. In the mini lesson I taught my
students a strategy they could use as writers. After the mini lesson, students had a
30-35 minute writing time. Students worked primarily at their desks. During the
writing time, students used strategies to write and improve their writing. Small
groups of students were often pulled to provide targeted instruction. Individual
conferences between teacher and student were also common. The final segment of
our writer's workshop was sharing and reflection. Students sat back on the carpet
in a circle. During this segment, students shared work they were proud of, asked for
feedback from their teacher and peers, set goals for future writing, or showcased
how they tried to use a strategy in the writing time.

Attitudes

For the purposes of the conducted research, attitudes were generally defined as how
much the student enjoyed or did not enjoy writing. Enjoyment was measured
through survey questions specific to enjoyment of writing and through verbal and
written responses to questions.

Physical Activity

For the purpose of this research, physical activity was defined as 60 second,
student-led exercises done to music. Examples of exercises included, but were not
limited to: jumping jacks, mountain climbers, pushups, sit-ups, etc. Physical activity
was implemented into the writer's workshop during transitions. Students
participated in physical activity between the mini lesson and writing time and
between the writing time and sharing and reflection.
Purpose and Intended Audience

The purpose of this study was to understand the role that physical activity plays in
students' attitudes toward writing. I wanted to determine whether students
enjoyed writing more after physical activity. Furthermore, I wanted to know if
physical activity improved students' attitudes toward writing in general.

The intended audience for this study was the fifth grade students in my homeroom
classroom. My students were the participants in the research. In addition, my
colleagues at work, University of Colorado, Denver peers, and other teachers outside
of my school have access to my research.
Research Questions

I formulated research questions to address the problem of student writing attitudes.
The research questions explored students' attitudes toward writing before and after
physical activity implementation. Using the research questions, I was able to
compare students' attitudes toward writing before and after the physical activity
intervention.

Two primary research questions were used, followed by secondary questions for
each primary question:

Question 1: What are the existing attitudes of students related to writing?

What are students' initial attitudes toward writing?
What factors do students attribute to their positive/negative attitudes
toward writing?

I asked this research question to explore how students perceived writing prior to
the implementation of the physical activity intervention. I aimed to not only
discover students' attitudes toward writing, but also to understand why they felt the
way they did.

Question 2: What are the attitudes of students related to writing after physical
activity?

What are students' attitudes toward writing after physical activity?
What factors do students attribute to their positive/negative attitudes
toward writing after physical activity?

I asked this research question to explore how students perceived writing after the
implementation of the physical activity intervention. I wanted to understand if
students' attitudes had changed. If they had changed, then I wanted to know why.

I changed one of my secondary questions from my initial proposal. In my initial
proposal, I asked a secondary question addressing student behaviors during the
writing time. I removed this question for two reasons. First, I decided students'
behaviors did not necessarily reflect students' attitudes. Second, I found that
collecting data on student behaviors was time consuming and was not feasible in the
amount of time I had to complete my research.
Context of Study

My research took place in a classroom with 27 fifth-grade students. Students on an
Individualized Education Plan (IEP) made up 7% of the students. An IEP is a plan
for students with specialized learning needs. English Language Learners (ELL)
comprised 11% of the students. I was not able to determine the percentage of Free
and Reduced Lunch (FRL) students in the classroom. However, 48% of the students
at the school were eligible for FRL. The demographics of the school were as follows:
45% Hispanic, 42% White, 5% Asian or Asian/Pacific Islander, 4% Two or more
races, 3% American Indian/Alaska Native, and 1% Black.

Student writing scores were pertinent to this study. During the 2013-14 school
year, students took the Transitional Colorado Assessment Program (TCAP) as fourth
graders. Historically, students have scored lower on the writing assessment than
they have on the reading and math assessments. 2013-14 school year data is
displayed in Tables 1 and 2 below.

Table 1: 2013-14 TCAP Proficiency Results
TCAP Testing
Percentage of
Subject
Proficient Students
Reading
92%
Math
83%
Writing
79%

Table 2: 2013-14 TCAP Proficiency Levels

Proficiency Level
Number of
Students
Unsatisfactory
0
Partially Proficient
5
Proficient
13
Advanced
6
*3 students did not take TCAP

The data in Table 1 shows that students performed lower in Writing than in Reading
and Math. Historically, there had been an even larger gap between Math and
Reading scores and Writing scores. Writing is clearly an area with room for growth.

As a way to improve writing performance, my research looked at students' attitudes
toward writing. Not only did I notice students performed lower in writing, but I also
noticed many students did not seem to enjoy writing as much. I knew many
students in my class loved being active, so I decided to add in something they
already enjoyed during the writing time. By implementing physical activity into the
writer's workshop, I aimed to improve students' attitudes toward writing. In turn, I
hoped to improve students' writing performance.
Literature Review

The purpose of the literature review was to explore the existing literature on this
topic and determine what other people have accomplished (Thomas, 2009, p. 30).
There was a broad range of research pertaining to physical activity. The literature
review provided a better understanding of what is already known on the link
between physical activity and student attitudes and learning. The literature review
also highlighted gaps in the literature that my research was able to fill.
Literature Review Questions

Through the literature review, I attempted to find out what researchers have
learned about the effect of physical activity in the classroom. I originally looked for
research that linked physical activity and student attitudes. I wanted to link my
research questions directly to my literature review questions. However, I was not
able to find research linking physical activity and student attitudes. Consequently, I
broadened my search and explored these questions:

How does physical activity affect the brain?
How does physical activity affect academic performance?

Literature Search Procedures

I began my search with the Auraria Library Database. I started by exploring my
original literature review question, "How does physical activity affect students'
attitudes?" This question stemmed directly from my second research question. I
searched with several combinations of keywords. I used, "physical activity" +
"writing attitudes." This yielded no relevant results. I then tried "physical activity"
+ "writing perceptions", "writing attitudes" + "elementary", and "writing
perceptions" + "elementary." None of these searches returned usable results. I
decided to remove the research question.

It was at that point I decided to change my literature review questions. I began by
exploring the question, "How does physical activity affect academic performance?"
I first searched using the keywords "physical activity" + "classroom." This search
yielded over 200,000 results. I limited my search to only peer reviewed articles and
cut the results in half. Many of the articles at the beginning of these results were
relevant to my research. I began to log articles into my literature review log. The
literature review log can be found in Appendix A.

After reviewing several articles, I decided to narrow my search even more. I
narrowed by subject terms. I used "students" and "education" to narrow my search.
With this newly revised search, I found 876 articles. I continued to review and log
relevant articles.

With the same research question in mind, I used the keywords "physical activity" +
"academic performance." This yielded more results focused on the link between
physical activity and academic performance. I used the reference list in several
articles to find other relevant research. I took the titles from the reference list and
entered them into Google Scholar.

Through my review, I was able to find seven peer-reviewed journal articles. I was
also able to find several other reviews of prior research, and two published books
on the topic.

My literature review questions did not exactly match my research questions. My
research questions explored the link between physical activity and student
attitudes. Due to a lack of research on attitudes, my literature review questions
focused on the closely related link between physical activity and the brain and
between physical activity and academic performance. Despite this difference, the
argument can be made that improved student attitudes may lead to improved
academic success. Therefore, the literature explored in this review is appropriate
for my research.
Literature Review Findings

Physical activity has been a popular area of recent research. It is agreed upon that
physical activity has a positive effect in many areas including overall physical and
mental health and lower obesity rates (Basch, 2010, p. 39). Reviewing the current
literature led to the formation of three themes: The effect of physical activity on
cognition, the effect of physical activity on academic performance, and the effect of
physical activity on classroom behavior.
Effect of Physical Activity on Cognition

There was significant research pertaining to the effect of physical activity on the
brain. Many articles point out the positive effects that physical activity has on
cognition. For example, Sibley and Etnier (2003) performed a statistical review of
the existing literature pertaining to physical activity and cognition in children. They
found there is a significant positive relationship between physical activity and
cognitive functioning in children (p. 243). Hillman, Snook, and Jerome (2003)
studied 20 undergraduate students to determine if physical activity improved their
cognitive function. They had students run on a treadmill for 30 minutes followed by
performing cognitive tasks. They found that intense cardiovascular exercise
increased allocation of resources to the brain and improved cognitive processing (p.
307).

Hillman et al. (2003) found scientific data to support the positive effect of physical
activity on cognition. Ratey (2008) explained this in a more practical way. He found
that exercise improved learning on three levels. First it optimized your mind-set to
improve alertness, attention, and motivation. Second, it prepared and encouraged
nerve cells to bind to one another, which is the cellular basis for logging new
information. Third, it spurred the development of new nerve cells in the
hippocampus. He also found that humans could not learn difficult material while
exercising at high intensities. It was necessary to wait until after finishing high-
intensity exercise (pp. 53-54). Ratey's claims showed that physical activity
improved behaviors that help us learn, such as alertness, attention, and motivation.
Beyond that, he concluded that physical activity actually changed the brain so that it
was better wired to learn.

Medina (2008) added to Ratey's claims when he concluded that exercisers
outperformed non-exercisers in tests that measured long-term memory, reasoning,
attention, problem-solving, and tasks that tested the ability to reason quickly and
think abstractly. Interestingly, some cognitive skills were unrelated to physical
activity. Short-term memory skills and certain types of reaction times seemed to be
unrelated to physical activity (p. 14). The research showed a strong link between
physical activity and cognition. With improved cognition, one would expect an
increase in academic performance.
Effect of Physical Activity on Academic Performance

Physical activity is beneficial to students' health. However, increasing demands and
pressures are being placed on schools to add academic learning time to the day.
Oftentimes physical activity is replaced with more academic learning time (Erwin,
Fedewa, & Ahn, 2012, p. 473). Due to this pressure, it is important to know if it is
beneficial or detrimental to replace academic learning time with physical activity.

Ahamed et al. (2007) found that when 9-11 year olds were given short physical
activity breaks in the classroom, they were able to maintain their academic
performance. Students were academically tested at the beginning and end of a 16-
week period of increased physical activity. There were no significant differences
between pre and posttests. In other words, physical activity did not compromise
academic performance (pp. 371-376).

Finding that physical activity did not compromise academic performance was
important. If it actually improved academic performance, that would be powerful.
Erwin et al. (2012) tested 8-year old students who were given daily 20-minute
physical activity breaks. One group was given physical activity breaks, while the
other group was not. The group who received physical activity breaks scored
significantly higher on standardized reading and math exams (pp. 473-487). This
study was done with a small sample size (n= 29). However, if its findings were
replicated it could be significant.

Further research supported a positive link between physical activity and academic
performance. Kall, Nilsson, and Linden (2014) performed a study in Sweden with
fifth grade students. An intervention program was introduced to double the amount
of scheduled physical activity from two classes per week to four classes per week.
The study found that students in the intervention schools were twice as likely to
achieve national learning goals in Swedish, mathematics, and English. They
concluded that a physical activity intervention program might improve children's
educational outcome (pp. 473-480).

Everhart et al. (2012) advanced this research by testing groups of intermediate and
primary students with intellectual disabilities. Students participated in a 10-minute
DVD that promoted physical activity each day. The physical activity was followed by
20-minute sessions of language arts and mathematical seatwork. They found
elementary intermediate students with intellectual disabilities improved academic
performance, while primary students with intellectual disabilities showed
inconsistent results (p. 298). Research is beginning to show a strong connection
between physical activity and academic performance.
Effect of Physical Activity on Classroom Behavior

The research also found correlations between physical activity and classroom
behavior. Mahar et al. (2006) studied the implementation of a classroom-based
physical activity intervention program called Energizers with third and fourth grade
students. They implemented Energizers in one group and did not implement it in a
second group. They observed on-task behavior of students before and after
implementation. They found that students' on-task behavior increased after the
implementation of the physical activity intervention. They concluded that a
systematic physical activity intervention improved on-task behavior in the
classroom (p. 2086-2094).

One component of classroom behavior, attention, was referenced in the research.
Budde et al. (2008) found that coordinative exercises improved attention in 13-16
year olds. They found that coordinative exercises were superior to normal sport
exercises in improving attention (pp. 219-223).

Focus was another area of classroom behavior that was referenced in the literature.
Everhart et al. (2012) found that students with intellectual disabilities showed more
focus after physical activity interventions were implemented (p. 298). Researchers
are beginning to find a link between physical activity and classroom behavior.

The literature review questions, "How does physical activity affect the brain?" and
"How does physical activity affect academic performance?" guided me toward the
three themes of physical activity's affect on cognition, academic achievement, and
classroom behavior. The research that I conducted about physical activity and
attitudes fit well with this existing body of literature.
Quality of Literature

The quality of literature I reviewed varied in reliability. Most of the articles I
reviewed were peer-reviewed journal articles. The two books I reviewed are well
known and written by respected authors. In fact, masters program students at the
University of Colorado, Denver use the Medina (2008) book as text for their courses.

One major consideration with the quality of this literature was that it did not
directly link to my research questions. Due to the lack of research on the link
between physical activity and writing attitudes, this literature represents a broader
range of studies. To connect this literature to my research, one would have to draw
the conclusion that an increase in student attitudes would lead to an increase in
student achievement in the classroom. Although this may not be a giant leap, it
should be considered. The following is a review of the quality of the literature used
in this review.

Sibley and Etnier's (2003) study was a meta-analysis that quantitatively combined
the results of studies pertaining to physical activity and cognition in children. The
analysis reviewed 16 different studies. The studies had to pass an inclusion test to
be included in the study. The only bias that may have been involved in this study
was the fact that they were trying to prove that physical activity should stay in the
10
school day. However, this was an analysis of previously conducted studies, so much
of the opportunity for bias was removed.

Hillman et al. (2003) studied 20 undergraduate participants. The two major
weaknesses of this study were the participant size and age. Only 20 participants
were included which may not provide as accurate of results as a larger study. Also,
the participants were college aged. I researched elementary-aged students, so the
findings may not be as applicable.

Erwin et al. (2012) studied students receiving physical activity breaks. The age of
the students was closer to the age of students I studied. The major limitation of the
study was the number of participants. Only 16 students were given the physical
activity intervention in this study.

Ahamed et al. (2007), was closely related to my study. They studied fourth and fifth
grade students. They also had a large number of participants with 20 schools. They
addressed their own limitations within their study. One was that they had a
disproportional number of schools in each of their groups. Part of the reason this
was the case was because two schools erred in test administration and scoring (pp.
375-376). They removed these two schools from their study, which shows a
propensity for being unbiased. One bias that may have played a part in this study
was that they were studying a commercial intervention program called AS! BC. It
would have been financially beneficial for the organization for the results of this
study to turn out positively. With that being said, if there were strong biases, one
might expect them to conclude that physical activity improved performance.
However, the results only concluded that it did not compromise academic
performance.

Kall et al. (2014) studied whether a physical activity intervention would improve
student achievement on national learning goals in Sweden. Strengths of this study
included a large group of participants and carefully designed methods. It also
studied fifth grade students, the same age as my study. Some limitations included
the fact that it was not done in the United States. The difference in culture makes it
less applicable to my study. It also studied a government-initiated program, which
could lead to some bias.

Everhart et al. (2012) studied the effect of physical activity on students with
disabilities. The study had strong methods and included elementary-aged students.
It also did not appear to have any strong bias. It was limited in the small number of
students it studied. It also studied students with disabilities. While this added to
the breadth of the literature review, it did not match the population of students I
studied.

Mahar et al. (2006) studied the effect of the program Energizers on on-task behavior
in the classroom. The study's methods were strong and the group of participants
11
was large. One consideration with this study was bias. A positive result from this
study could benefit the company who sold the Energizers program.

Most studies recognized that their study did not prove a causal relationship
between physical activity and academic success. Instead they acknowledged that
this body of literature suggests a link between physical activity and academic
achievement.
Gap in Literature

There was substantial research on the positive effects of physical activity. There
was also much research on the impact of physical activity on cognition and academic
performance. I noticed two gaps in the literature.

The first gap was that although there was a plethora of research on physical activity
in adults, far less has been done with children (Medina, 2008, p. 17). There have
been enough studies done on adults that books are being written about those
studies. Researchers have a more difficult time researching children than adults. It
will be some time before a similar amount of research exists on children. This
research added to the smaller body of research on physical activity in children.

Second, was the lack of research relating physical activity to academic attitudes, in
particular, writing attitudes. The research I found related to academic performance,
cognition, and behavior, but not attitudes. My research added to the existing
literature on physical activity in the classroom. In particular, it furthered the limited
research on physical activity's impact on students' writing attitudes.
Methods

I used an action inquiry design as described by Stringer (2014) to address my
research questions. I explored solutions to a problem in a complex social context (p.
1). Both qualitative and quantitative data were collected consistent with the mixed
methods approach described by Creswell (2008, p. 15). I quantified survey data to
give a snapshot of student attitudes. Qualitative data was collected to cover the
nuances of student attitudes that cannot be covered quantitatively. Using both
quantitative and qualitative data allowed me to explore the research questions as
thoroughly as possible.
Site Selection & Sampling

The research site was my classroom at school. I chose this research site because it
was where I taught my homeroom students. My homeroom students were my
participants. I spent more time with this group of students than other groups I
taught. I had more knowledge of these students than my other groups of students. I
12
also had more time with them, which assisted in completing my research in a timely
manner.

My research impacted other stakeholders besides my students. I shared my
research with my colleagues. My colleagues teach the same group of students in
different content areas. This research might be beneficial to their work with this
group of students.

Parents also had a vested interest in this research. Several families at our school are
advocates for physical activity. I did not include parents in my research. However, I
shared my research with a few families who were interested in what I was doing.

Due to the fact that this research was within the scope of my job, I did not need to
obtain permission from students or parents. Stringer (2014) stated when the
research falls into the legal framework of duty of the teacher, no formal procedures
are necessary (p.90). My research fell into this category of being part of my legal
everyday duty.

I took care to do no harm with my research. I found that observations of students
was too time consuming. It was taking away from time I needed to spend teaching
my students. I decided to drop this method of data collection in the spirit of doing
no harm.

I made my research transparent to my students, colleagues, and administration. I
protected the privacy of my students by removing all information that could identify
our school, classroom, or individual students. I also kept all of the data I collected in
a secure location. I made every effort to ensure a high level of ethical practice.
Data Collection Methods

I collected data to explore my research questions. I used student surveys, group
interviews, and informal interviews with individual students. Table 3 breaks down
which data collection methods were used to answer each question.

Table 3: Data Collection Methods
Research Question
Data Collection Method
1. What are the existing attitudes of students related to writing?
1a. What are students' initial
attitudes toward writing?
Student Survey
Group Interview
1b. What factors do students

attribute to their
positive/negative attitudes
toward writing?
Group Interview
Informal Interview with
Individual Students
13
2. What are the attitudes of students related to writing after physical activity?
2a. What are students' attitudes
toward writing after physical
activity?
Student Survey
Group Interview
2b. What factors do students

attribute to their
positive/negative attitudes
toward writing after physical
activity?
Group Interview
Informal Interview with
Individual Students
Student Surveys

Student Survey #1

Students took an initial survey, Survey #1, during the first week of school in August
to determine writing attitudes. The survey by Ambrosio, Coffman, Mckenna, and
Kear (2000) is from the article "Measuring attitude toward writing: A new tool for
teachers." It is called "Elementary Writing Attitude Survey" (pp. 11-23). It can be
found in Appendix A. The survey was designed using a four-point Likert scale. Four
Garfield pictures make up the Likert scale. The pictures range from Very Upset
Garfield to Happiest Garfield. The purpose of the survey was to determine students'
initial attitudes toward writing. The survey yielded a raw score along with a
percentile rank for each student.

The survey was conducted in test-like conditions. The room was silent until all
twenty-six students had completed the twenty-eight-question survey. One student
from my classroom was omitted from the research due to excessive absences during
this period of time. The survey took approximately thirty minutes for all students to
complete.

Student Survey #2 and Student Survey #3

I conducted a second survey prior to implementing physical activity in our writer's
workshop. Survey #2 was modeled after Ambrosio's (2000, pp. 11-23) survey that
was used for Survey #1. I borrowed six of the questions from Survey #1, and I
created four questions of my own to form a ten-question survey. The four questions
I created were the last four on the survey and were designed to more closely target
my research questions. The added four questions were as follows:

How do you feel about physical activity?
How do you feel (would you) feel about doing physical activity in writing?
In general, I feel this way about writing.
14
In general, I feel (think I would feel) this way about writing after doing
physical activity.

Survey #2, like Survey #1, was conducted in test-like conditions. The room was
silent until all twenty-six students had completed the ten-question survey. The
survey took approximately ten minutes for all students to complete.

Survey #3 was identical to Survey #2 in both design and implementation. The one
difference was that it was given after the physical activity intervention had been
implemented.

In my initial proposal, I planned to administer a fourth survey, identical to Survey
#2 and Survey #3. Due to the short time I had to complete my research, I decided
the fourth survey was unnecessary.
Group Interview

I conducted two group interviews with my entire class. The first group interview
occurred before physical activity was implemented into the writer's workshop. The
second interview occurred after physical activity was implemented.

Stringer (2014) suggested questions be carefully designed so participants can tell
their experiences without the bias of the researcher. He also suggested researchers
use prompts to elicit further participation (pp. 109-111). I designed questions that
allowed my participants to tell their own experiences. I created an environment
where participants felt safe to share their experiences. I asked follow up questions
when necessary to elicit further participation.

Group Interview #1

I conducted a group interview in my classroom the day before I implemented
physical activity into the writer's workshop. The group interview took place at our
meeting area, on the carpet in the front of the room. We sat in a circle and made
sure everyone could see my computer projected on the interactive white board.

I began the interview by being transparent with my students. I told them the reason
we had been taking surveys about writing was because I wanted to learn more
about their attitudes toward writing. I told them I was interested in learning about
whether physical activity affected their attitudes about writing. I asked them to be
as honest as possible and assured them that this was a safe environment for them to
speak their feelings, no matter what they were.

I started the interview by asking and displaying the following question on the board:

In general, how do you feel about writing? What makes you feel that way?

15
I gave students about 30 seconds to think about their response. Then I asked
students to raise their hand to share their thinking. As students shared their
feelings, I typed them in a Google Document and displayed the students' typed
responses for all to see. Before moving to a new student, I confirmed that what I
had typed represented the student's feelings. If not, I asked them how to change it.
If I was unclear about a student's answer, or wanted more elaboration, I asked a
follow up question. I allowed students to answer until no more students desired to
respond.

After the first question, I decided to take an impromptu poll of the class. I had heard
many students mention that writing was a difficult subject for them. I wondered
how many students considered writing their most difficult subject. I asked the
following question:

How many of you would consider writing your most difficult subject?

Students raised their hands. I counted thirteen students, and I recorded that result
in the Google Document.

I decided to omit two questions because I felt they were unnecessary. I continued
the interview with my next question:

How do you think you would feel about writing after physical activity?

I repeated the protocol from the first question. I heard from several students. Due
to time constraints, I was not able to hear from each student on this second
question. To obtain some quick data before our time was up, I took another poll by
asking the question:

Would you like to have physical activity during writing?

Students raised their hands. I counted twenty-four who said yes and one who said
no. One student did not vote. After clarification, I found the student did not care if
we did or did not have physical activity in writing. I concluded the interview by
thanking my participants for their honesty and participation.

Group Interview #2

I conducted a second interview after physical activity had been implemented. Again,
time was an issue. For this interview, I knew I would not have enough time to sit
down with the class and conduct an interview. I opted to have students write their
responses to interview questions on note cards. In an ideal world, I would have
then had students share their answers in the group interview format. However, for
the purposes of my research, and due to the tight schedule at school, the note cards
had to suffice.

16
I asked the following two questions for this written interview:

Does physical activity have any effect on your attitude toward writing?
Do you feel more ready, less ready, or the same readiness to write after
physical activity?

All students wrote their responses on note cards. They turned them in to me as they
exited the classroom.
Participant Observation and Observational Notes

I opted to remove participant observation and observational notes from my data
collection methods. I realized that time was limited for my research. I decided that
the observations would yield the least amount of pertinent information to writing
attitudes. I also thought that observation over a long period of time would be
necessary to obtain relevant data. I knew I did not have that time, so I dropped this
method of data collection.
Informal Interview with Individual Students

Informal interviews did not play a large role in my data collection, however I was
able to conduct two. The informal interviews were casual conversations with
students around the topic of my research. One of the informal interviews occurred
on the playground before school. The other happened in the hallway outside of my
classroom. After conversing with my students about physical activity and writing, I
wrote down the interaction as quickly as I could in a journal I keep on my computer.
Data Analysis Methods

Student Surveys

I collected all of my quantitative data from my student surveys. I organized my
quantitative data into a spreadsheet.

Student Survey #1

I scored Student Survey #1 per the instructions in the article I found it in. Students
circled one of four Garfield pictures to indicate their feelings toward each question.
Happiest Garfield was worth four points down to Very Upset Garfield being worth
one point. I had to flip my scoring of one question because circling Happiest Garfield
actually indicated a negative attitude toward writing for that particular question.

I recorded the point value for each question on the Survey Scoring Sheet provided in
the survey. I then totaled the points to obtain the full-scale raw score. I used the
chart included with the survey to determine the percentile rank for each student. I
recorded both the raw score and the percentile rank in a spreadsheet created to
17
hold my quantitative data. This helped to answer my first research question that
explored students' initial attitudes toward writing.

Student Survey #2 and Student Survey #3

Student Survey #2 and Student Survey #3 were identical to each other. They were
adapted from Student Survey #1. Because I created them, there were no
instructions on how to score the surveys. I opted to use the same four-point Likert
scale used in Student Survey #1, with the same point values assigned to each
Garfield picture. I was able to use these surveys in several different ways to glean
data from them.

I determined there were seven questions that asked about students' attitudes
toward writing. I used those seven questions to determine a raw score for students'
writing attitudes. I recorded the raw scores in side-by-side columns on my
spreadsheet. I compared the raw score from Student Survey #2, which was given
before physical activity, to the raw score from Student Survey #3, which was given
after physical activity.

I used several individual questions from each of the surveys to collect quantitative
data. I made many comparisons from the quantitative data I collected. In addition
to comparing data for individual students, I also wanted to look at the data as a
whole. One way I did this was to calculate the mean of each column of data. This
helped in comparing the data as a whole. I used my spreadsheet to organize the
data. I used graphs to support points I made in my findings section.
Group Interview/Informal Interviews with Students

My qualitative data consisted of two group interviews and two informal interviews
with students. I organized all of my qualitative data in a spreadsheet.

I created a spreadsheet with a Student ID Number for each student. For each
student I created two rows. I created one row for the group interview before
physical activity implementation and one row for the interview after physical
activity implementation. For students with whom I had an informal interview, I
created one extra row for the informal interviews.

I knew it was important to take out as much bias as possible during my analysis.
Stringer (2014) stated that when we analyze we interpret. However, as researchers,
we need to clearly communicate the experiences of our participants. Researchers
must limit the use of their own understandings and instead, represent as accurately
as possible what the participants were saying (p. 139). In order to do this, I wrote
down my students' comments verbatim into the spreadsheet. This applied
Stringer's (2014) verbatim principle, which uses terms and concepts from the world
of the participants (p. 140). By using exactly what my participants said, I limited
bias in my analysis.
18

My first step in analyzing the qualitative data was to review the data, the problem,
and my research questions (Stringer, 2014, p. 141). I read through each of the
comments my students had made to get a general idea of what was said in both
group interviews and the informal interviews. I then unitized the data by breaking
it down into single concepts (Stringer 2014, p. 141). Sometimes there was more
than one concept per sentence. Sometimes there was one concept said over more
than one sentence.

After unitizing the data, I began using Stringer's (2014) strategy of categorizing and
coding the data (p. 142). I created a theme for each new concept that I encountered
in the unitized data. The original themes that I coded were:

Opinion of Writing
Physical Activity (PA) Affect on Attitude
PA Affect on Readiness
Opinion of PA
PA Affect on Writing
PA Affect on Energy
Opinion of PA in Writing

I used a different color to code concepts into the original themes.

Once I had coded all of the qualitative data, I looked at the original themes and
created more focused themes (Stringer, 2014, p. 142). I recorded the focused
themes in the next column of my spreadsheet titled "Focused Codes". I simplified
from several colors down to only three. My focused codes were: Initial Writing
Attitudes, Attitude toward Physical Activity, and Effects of Physical Activity. These
focused codes aligned more closely to my research questions.

To organize my data, I set up a framework to report out my data consistent with
Stringer's (2014) framework (pp. 143-144). I used the focused themes as section
headings. I broke up some of the themes into subthemes. These themes and
subthemes created the framework for my findings section.
Schedule

I used the following schedule to conduct this action research:

Table 4: Schedule for Research
Step in the Research Process
Administer Student Survey #1
Action Research Proposal Due
Approval Date
Piloting Instruments Due
Date
August 26, 2014
September 20, 2014
September 27, 2014
September 28, 2014
19
Conduct Group Interview #1

October 8, 2014
Administer Survey #2
October 10, 2014
Literature Review Due
October 11, 2014
Implement physical activity in writer's workshop
October 14, 2014
Conduct Group Interview #2
October 29, 2014
Administer Survey #3
October 31, 2014
Research Findings Draft Due
November 6, 2014
Research Findings Due
November 8, 2014
Final Action Research Report Due
November 22, 2014
Taking Action Presentation Due
December 4, 2014

Minor changes were made to the schedule during the research process. I moved
several dates back due to time constraints. I also removed data collection methods
as described in the methods section.
Checks for Rigor

I used several measures to ensure my research was trustworthy. Stringer (2014)
reported that checks for rigor are key to trustworthy research. He listed credibility,
transferability, dependability, and conformability as keys to trustworthiness. (pp.
91-94).

To gain credibility I used Stringer's (2014) concepts of triangulation, member
checking, diverse case analysis, and referential adequacy (p. 93). I triangulated the
data by using both qualitative and quantitative data. Multiple sources of data
complimented each other in the research. I used member checking by giving
participants the chance to see the raw data and make changes if necessary. I did this
during the group interview by typing responses that were visible to the participants.
I had a diverse case analysis because I included the perspectives of all participants.
The only participant I removed from my research was a student who was absent for
the majority of the research time. Finally, I ensured referential adequacy by writing
verbatim what participants said. I did this to remove my own perspectives and to
capture the perspectives of the participants. These checks for rigor give my
research credibility.

To aid transferability, I thought carefully about why my research was unique to my
situation. For example, my research took place in a fifth-grade classroom with a
unique group of students. Although, my research applied only to my students, parts
of it may apply to other research sites. Stringer (2014) suggested that action
research outcomes apply only to the particular setting of the research. However, it
does not mean that nothing in the study is applicable to others (pp. 93-94). I
considered which parts of the research might be transferable to other situations,
and included my thinking in my findings section.

20
My research was dependable because I clearly laid out the steps of a systematic
research process. Stringer (2014) described the dependability of action research as
the extent to which people can trust that this systematic research process has been
carried out (p. 94). I was transparent in the steps that I took and communicated
those steps clearly.

My research was confirmable because I can show all of the data collected during my
research. Stringer (2014) described confirmability as being able to confirm that the
procedures described actually took place (p. 94). Identifying information of my
participants was protected, but any data collected could be accessed and analyzed
by interested parties. These checks for rigor helped to ensure my research was
trustworthy.
Findings

After carefully collecting and analyzing the data, I was able to determine three
themes from my research. I organized the data into Initial Writing Attitudes,
Attitudes toward Physical Activity, and Effects of Physical Activity.
Initial Writing Attitudes

It was important to my research to determine students' existing attitudes toward
writing. With my initial research question I addressed this question. Through
analysis of the data, I found diversity in writing attitudes in the classroom. Student
Survey #1 determined students' initial attitude toward writing. Graph A shows the
number of students whose writing attitudes fell in each percentile range.

Graph A: Student writing attitudes by percentile

21
Graph A shows that ten students scored at the 50th percentile or lower for their
writing attitude. Seven of those students were between the 1st and 25th percentile.
On the other side of the scale, sixteen students scored above the 50th percentile. Of
those sixteen students, seven scored above the 75th percentile. These data show
that writing attitudes ranged widely in my classroom. They also show a need for
improvement in writing attitudes.

To further the claim that students have a wide range of writing attitudes, I looked at
Student Survey #2. Student Survey #2 asked students in general, how they feel
about writing. This was before any physical activity was implemented into writing.
I organized the results from this question into Graph B.

Graph B: Students' initial general feeling about writing

Graph B does not show as many students falling in the lower ranges of writing
attitudes as Graph A. It does show nine students who indicated a negative attitude
toward writing.

The qualitative data from the group interview continued to support the diversity of
writing attitudes in my classroom. It provided more insight on the quantitative data
above. It also helped to answer my research question of the factors that affected
students' initial attitudes toward writing.

Students shared mixed feelings toward writing. Most students liked writing
conditionally. They liked writing if it was the type of writing that they liked. Table 5
22
summarizes the factors students mentioned that were necessary for them to like
writing.

Table 5: Factors necessary for positive attitude toward writing
Factors Necessary for Positive Attitude Toward Writing
When I can use my imagination
When it is an exciting topic
When I write fiction
When I free write
When I get to choose the topic
When it is not a writing prompt
When it is a shorter story
When it is about a topic I like

Many students admitted to liking writing under certain circumstances. The
circumstances varied for each student. The most common circumstances were free
writing and student choice. For example, one student said, "I like writing, but
sometimes it gets boring if it is not an exciting topic." A second student when
talking about writing said, "Not really my favorite. I like fictional free writing, but
not other types." In today's high-stakes testing environment, students are subjected
to a great deal of prompt writing. Students oftentimes view prompt writing as
boring or unimaginative. These students expressed the desire to choose their topics
and write about what interested them.

Another factor that influenced students' attitudes toward writing was the difficulty
of writing. During the group interview, many students mentioned that writing was a
difficult subject for them. One student described it by saying, "I do enjoy writing
sometimes, but it is the most difficult subject." Another student said, "I like writing,
but I would choose math over writing. When Im stuck Im stumped." These
responses led me to wonder if more students believed writing was their most
challenging subject. I thought students' perceived level of difficulty might impact
their attitude toward writing.

I surveyed the students and asked how many of them felt writing was their most
difficult subject. Table 6 shows the results.

Table 6: Perceived difficulty of writing
Is Writing Your Most Difficult Subject?
Yes: 13
No: 13

Table 6 shows that half of the students in my classroom considered writing their
most difficult subject. It would make sense that the difficulty of writing may play
into students' attitudes toward it. One reason that students may find writing to be
23
the most difficult subject is that it is not as concrete as math or reading. In math,
students typically know when they are correct or not. In reading, students can
usually gauge whether they comprehended a text or not. In writing, students are
less skilled at determining whether they are successful or not because there is more
ambiguity in the definition of strong writing. This ambiguity may have played a role
in students' perceiving writing as their most difficult subject.

It is clear from the data that there were a variety of student attitudes toward
writing, along with a wide range of reasons for students' writing attitudes.
Attitudes Toward Physical Activity

It was important to note how students felt about physical activity. If students had
negative attitudes toward physical activity, its effect on writing might be different
than if they had positive attitudes toward physical activity.

The data on students' attitudes toward physical activity is displayed in Graph C.

Graph C: Students' feelings about physical activity

It is clear that most students in my classroom enjoyed physical activity. The most
interesting part of Graph C is the one student who had a strong negative feeling
toward physical activity. Stringer (2014) stated for research to be credible it needs
to consider the perspectives of all stakeholders (p. 93). Although the one student
with a negative attitude toward physical activity was in the minority, the
perspective of this student was still crucial. The perspective of this student was
looked at more closely in the next section.
24
Effects of Physical Activity on Attitude

The main research question I explored was the effects of physical activity on writing
attitudes. Through analysis of the data, it seemed that physical activity did have
some effects on students' attitude toward writing. Most of the data suggested that in
general, students felt better about writing after doing physical activity. It is
important to note a small, but significant distinction here. Although students felt
better about writing after physical activity, their attitude about writing in general
typically did not change. So, if physical activity were removed, writing attitudes
would more than likely return to where they started. This told me that physical
activity was a short-term solution, not a long-term one.

The quantitative data supported these findings. First, I compared the mean
students' survey scores from before physical activity implementation and after
physical activity implementation. The mean score before was 19.19. The mean
score after was 19.5. On a twenty-eight-point survey, this increase was minimal. I
did not believe this data suggested an increase in writing attitude.

Additionally, I analyzed the change in students' general feeling toward writing from
Survey #2 to Survey #3. The data is displayed in Graph D.

Graph D: Change in students' general feeling toward writing after physical activity

The data showed that only five students indicated an improved attitude toward
writing. This suggested that physical activity did not necessarily change how
25
students felt about writing in general. Thus, when physical activity was removed,
writing attitudes would return to where they started.

These data also show two students whose attitudes decreased after physical activity
implementation. Keeping in mind all stakeholders, it was interesting to note that
the student who had negative feelings toward physical activity did not indicate a
decrease in attitude toward writing. It was also noteworthy, that four of the five
students responding with an increased score for attitude in Survey #3 originally
indicated a negative attitude toward writing. That is, they went from disliking
writing to liking writing. These data were more convincing than the student survey
comparisons above. However, five students out of 26 showing an increase in
attitude was still minor.

Perhaps the most intriguing piece of quantitative data could be found on Survey #3.
This was the survey given after physical activity implementation. On the survey,
students were asked these two questions in succession:

In general, I feel this way about writing
In general, I feel this way about writing after doing physical activity

Because the questions were in succession, they provided a good comparison of the
perception students had about how physical activity affected their feelings in
writing. If students marked a higher score for how they felt about writing after
physical activity than how they generally feel about writing, they were essentially
saying physical activity made them feel better about writing.

Graph E summarizes how students' feelings about writing changed after the
physical activity implementation.

Graph E: Students' general feeling toward writing after physical activity

26
For this analysis I removed the six students whose general attitude toward writing
started at a four, and stayed at a four after physical activity. It was impossible to tell
if these students' attitudes had actually stayed the same, since there was no higher
score than a four for them to choose. However, these students' attitudes toward
writing did remain high. If these six students were added to the fourteen students
whose attitudes increased, then twenty of twenty-six students showed an increase
in attitude after physical activity implementation. Furthermore, twenty-four of
twenty-six students either stayed the same or increased after physical activity. This
was important to note, as only two students indicated a decreased attitude toward
writing after physical activity.

I considered the one student with a negative attitude toward physical activity. This
student indicated a drop from a four to a two after physical activity. When asked
about physical activity's affect on writing attitudes this student said, "I feel less
ready to write. I have less ideas, so I kind of get mad. It's hard to keep ideas in your
head when you are doing something else." It seemed that this student did not want
to be doing anything other than writing. Other activities seemed unnecessary and
took away focus from writing. Other interventions could be considered for this
student, but it is possible that no intervention would be best course of action.

It was also interesting to see the students' responses to their feeling toward writing
after the physical activity implementation. Graph F shows these results.

Graph F: Students' general feeling toward writing after physical activity
implementation

27
It is clear that most students felt positively about writing after physical activity. It is
important again to consider the one student who disliked writing after physical
activity.

Interventions are typically implemented to help struggling students. Because of
this, I decided to look closely at the seven students who initially scored in the 1st-
25th percentile for writing attitudes. I wanted to see how physical activity affected
this group in particular. The results are shown in Graph G.

Graph G: Change in student attitude for students in 1st-25th percentile

Of the seven students in this category, six indicated a more positive attitude toward
writing after physical activity. Looking at these same students, Student 4 said in the
group interview, "I feel happier to write. I enjoy writing after physical activity. I feel
more ready to write." Student 10 said, "Physical activity affects my attitude toward
writing by making me look forward to something in writing." This is important
because a main goal of any intervention is to target students who are struggling.
Students with negative attitudes toward writing struggle to enjoy writing. These
data show physical activity had a positive affect on students with particularly
negative attitudes toward writing.

I also explored the qualitative data related to the effect of physical activity on
writing attitudes. The qualitative data helped me better answer my research
question about the factors that students attributed to their attitudes toward writing
28
after physical activity. Actual student responses to survey questions can be found in
Appendix B.

The majority of students communicated that physical activity improved the way
they felt when they wrote. To reiterate an important point above, students felt
better about writing immediately after physical activity. Their overall attitude
toward writing typically did not change.

Students attributed several factors to their improved attitude toward writing
following physical activity. One of the most common reoccurring factors had to do
with energy. Many students said that physical activity did one of two things to their
energy. First, it got rid of extra energy so they could concentrate. One student
described it by saying, "Physical activity gets rid of loose energy. I feel ready
because I don't have any energy in me." Other students felt that physical activity
gave them more energy. The increase in energy motivated them to write with more
energy. For example, one student said, "I feel great about physical activity because I
can have more energy when I write. I feel more ready because I can write fast to
finish my work." Another student said, "I feel more ready because I am pumped up
and ready to write." The fact that students communicated an improved energy level
was significant. Effective writing takes stamina. Effective writers are able to write
for long periods at a time. The research suggested physical activity improved
students' energy.

Another factor mentioned in the data was students' readiness to write. Graph H
shows how physical activity affected readiness to write in students.

Graph H: Student readiness to write after physical activity

Student Readiness to Write After

Physical Activity
19
20
15
10
6
5
1
0
Less Ready
Same Readiness
More Ready
29
The majority of students felt more ready to write after physical activity was done in
the classroom. One student said, "I feel more ready than before we started doing the
physical activity because we are getting up and moving." Another student said, "I
feel more ready to write after physical activity because it makes my body ready."
Students' perception of their readiness to write was important. When students feel
ready to write, they are more likely to approach the writing task with confidence.
This could have a positive effect on their attitude.

Overall, the findings showed that the majority of students felt better about writing
after performing physical activity. Although students felt better about writing in
that moment, there was no evidence from these data that physical activity had any
effect on improving writing attitudes in the long term.
Comparison of Research to the Literature Review

The literature review conducted for this action research illuminated three major
themes: Effect of Physical Activity on Cognition, Effect of Physical Activity on
Academic Performance, and Effect of Physical Activity on Classroom Behavior. This
research on the effect of physical activity on writing attitudes fit nicely as a new
piece of the puzzle.

The existing literature on physical activity in classrooms showed a positive
correlation between physical activity and cognition, academic performance, and
classroom behavior. Sibley and Etnier (2003) found there to be a significant
positive relationship between physical activity and cognitive function in children (p.
243). Several studies showed that students who take physical activity breaks
perform better in school. For example, Erwin et al. (2012) found that when 8-year
old students were given 20-minute physical activity breaks, they scored significantly
higher on standardized reading and math exams (pp. 473-487).

This action research furthered the existing body of research. It suggested that
students typically felt better about writing after physical activity. Although it did
not change students' attitudes toward writing, it did have a positive impact on how
students felt about writing immediately following physical activity. The improved
feelings may lead to improved motivation and performance.

This research was unique because it addressed student attitudes rather than
performance. It also was specific to the writing classroom. It would be interesting
to see this research repeated for different subjects. This research provided more
evidence supporting the positive impact of physical activity on academics.
Limitations

There were limitations to this action research. Because this was an action research
project, it was specific to my students in my classroom setting. This makes it less
transferable to other research sites. However, as Stringer (2014) stated, it does not
30
mean that nothing in this study is applicable to others (pp. 93-94). It is important
for future researchers to closely examine these methods to determine if it is
applicable to their research.

Another limitation of this study was time. Ideally, the physical activity intervention
would have lasted for a longer period of time. During this time more prolonged
observations could have been performed. Due to lack of time, the data collection
method of observational notes on participants had to be dropped. This gave one
less source of data to use in triangulation. Despite the short time frame, effects of
physical activity were still evident. It would be interesting to see this research
repeated over a longer time frame.

The last limitation of the study was also related to time. Due to the brevity of the
research, and the busyness of the school schedule, the last group interview changed
its format. Initially it was designed to allow students to discuss their responses and
go into more depth. Instead, students wrote their responses on note cards and
turned them in. Although this certainly was a limitation, the written responses did
allow students to communicate their thoughts in an unbiased way. Students were
unbiased by other students' responses. It also ensured that each student had the
chance to respond in as much detail as they wanted to. Despite the limitations, this
research was a valuable addition to the existing body of research.
Implications for Practice

The findings of my research provided several next steps. First, physical activity can
be implemented into writing classrooms with positive results. That being said, I
would recommend that teachers implement physical activity thoughtfully. I would
caution teachers about the potential negative effects of physical activity in the
classroom. If a negative effect is seen, further investigation needs to be done.
Perhaps a different type of physical activity might work better for certain students.
Other possibilities besides cardiovascular exercise are yoga, stretching, or
resistance exercises. If no alternative physical activity can be found, the student
could be given the option to focus in a way that does not involve physical activity.
Meditation is one possible alternative. For students with existing positive attitudes,
providing no intervention is another option.

Another next step would be a more prolonged study of physical activitys effect on
writing attitudes. A longer study would allow observation of students over time and
would provide more reliable data on the link between physical activity and writing
attitudes. Although this would be an appropriate next step, my findings left me
wanting to explore a slightly larger focus.

As these students' teacher, the end of this research cycle left me with a different
question. What can be done about the negative attitudes about writing in my
classroom? My research shed light on the fact that many students in my classroom
31
disliked writing more than I knew. It also scratched the surface of why students feel
that way and what can be done about it. Whether I continue this research
informally or formally, I plan to look more closely at what can be done to improve
negative attitudes toward writing. Physical activity was one possible intervention,
but there are many ways writing attitudes could be improved. I believe this
continuing research would have the greatest impact on my students and give me
further insight into this overarching issue.
Conclusion

I was able to determine some effects of physical activity on writing attitudes. Survey
data showed that most students' attitudes toward writing improved immediately
following physical activity. For example, fourteen of twenty students indicated a
higher attitude toward writing after participating in physical activity. Most students
found physical activity made them more ready to write. Common factors students
attributed to physical activity's positive effect were an increase in energy and focus
and a decrease in distractions.

This research is important to my classroom because a large number of students
indicated they had negative attitudes toward writing. The data also showed writing
scores were lower than both reading and math scores. By implementing physical
activity into my classroom, many students improved their attitude toward writing.
Improved attitudes in my classroom may lead to improved effort and ultimately
improved performance. Other teachers could try using physical activity in their
classrooms to improve the attitudes of students toward upcoming work.

Although the majority of students found physical activity to have a positive effect on
their attitude, not all students felt this way. One student in this study responded
negatively to the physical activity intervention. Qualitative and quantitative data
from this student indicated that physical activity impacted writing attitudes
negatively. Other interventions were considered for this student including other
forms of physical activity and non-physical activity interventions.

This research added to the growing body of existing research on physical activity in
the classroom. A review of the literature showed a strong body of research on the
effect of physical activity on cognition, academic performance, and classroom
behavior. This research contributed information on the correlation between
physical activity and writing attitudes. It also focused on children where existing
research was less substantial. Research continues to show that physical activity has
positive effects on many learners and warrants further research.

References
32

Ahamed, Y., Macdonald, H., Reed, K., Naylor, P.-J., Liu-Ambrose, T., & McKay, H.

(2007). School-based physical activity does not compromise children's

academic performance. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 39(2),

371-376.

Ambrosio, A. L., Coffman, G. A., Kear, D. J., & McKenna, M. C. (2000). Measuring

attitude toward writing: A new tool for teachers. The Reading Teacher, 54(1),

10-23. Retrieved from http://bridgestolearning2009. pbworks.com/f/

WritingAttSurvey.pdf

Basch, C. E. (2011), Healthier Students Are Better Learners: A Missing Link in School

Reforms to Close the Achievement Gap. Journal of School Health, 81: 593

598. doi: 10.1111/j.1746-1561.2011.00632.x

Budde, H., Voelcker-Rehage, C., Pietra, S., Ribeiro, P., & Tidow, G. (2008). Acute

coordinative exercise improves attentional performance in adolescents.

Neuroscience Letters, 441(2), 219-223.

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.neulet.2008.06.02

Erwin, H., Fedewa, A., Beighle, A., & Ahn, S. (2012). A Quantitative Review of

Physical Activity, Health, and Learning Outcomes Associated with

Classroom-Based Physical Activity Interventions. Journal Of Applied School

Psychology, 28(1), 14-36.

Everhart, B., Dimon, C., Stone, D., Desmond, D., & Casilio, M. (2012). The influence of

daily structured physical activity on academic progress of elementary

students with intellectual disabilities. Education, 133(2), 298+.

Hillman, C. H., Snook, E. M., & Jerome, G. J. (2003). Acute cardiovascular exercise and

executive control function. International Journal of Psychophysiology, 48(3),

307-314. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S0167-8760(03)00080-1

Kll, L. B., Nilsson, M. and Lindn, T. (2014). The impact of a physical activity

intervention program on academic achievement in a swedish elementary '

school setting. Journal of School Health, 84, 473480.

doi: 10.1111/josh.12179

Mahar, M. T., Murphy, S. K., Rowe, D. A., Golden, J., Shields, T. A., & Raedeke, T. D.

(2006). Effects of a classroom-based program on physical activity and on-t

ask behavior. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, 38(12), 2086-2094.

33
Medina, J. (2008). Brain rules: 12 principles for surviving and thriving at work, home,

and school. Seattle, WA: Pear Press.

Ratey, J. J., & Hagerman, E. (2008). Spark: The revolutionary new science

of exercise and the brain. New York: Little, Brown.

Sibley, B. A., & Etnier, J. L. (2003). The relationship between physical activity and

cognition in children: A meta-analysis. Pediatric Exercise Science, 15, 243-

256.

Stringer, E.T. (2014). Action research. (4th ed.). Los Angeles: SAGE Publications.

Thomas, G. (2013). How to do your research project: A guide for students in education

and applied social sciences. Los Angeles, CA: Sage.

34
Appendices
Appendix A: Data Collection Protocols
Student Survey #1

35
36
37
38
39
40
41
Student Survey #2 and #3
Please answer each question as honestly as you can.

The teacher will explain to you what each picture means. #
_________

42
How do you feel about physical activity?
43

How do you (would you) feel about doing physical activity in
writing?
In general, I feel this way about writing.
In general, I feel (think I would feel) this way about writing after
doing physical activity.
44

Group Interview #1 and #2

With my group interview, I am trying to leave the questions open ended. My goal is
dig deeper to understand factors related to student attitudes about writing. I tried
to use questions similar to my surveys so that I would be able to compare data more
easily.

Group Interview Questions - Whole Class

Group Interview #1

1. In general, how do you feel about writing? What makes you feel that way?
2. How do (you think) you (would) feel about writing after physical activity?
*Ask follow up questions to dig deeper when necessary (Stringer, 2014, p.108):
Could you tell me more about that?
Go on.
What else?
Give me an example.

Group Interview #2
1. Does physical activity have any effect on your attitude toward writing?
How?
2. Do you feel more ready, less ready, or the same readiness to write after
physical activity? Why?
45
Appendix B: Student Data

Coded Qualitative Data from Group Interviews and Informal Interviews

Student When
ID
Comments
Theme
Focused Code
Before
1. I do enjoy writing sometimes,

Opinion of Writing
but it is the most difficult subject.
Initial Writing
Attitudes
After
Physical activity affects my

attitude. It turns me joyful. I feel
more ready to write with physical
activity.
PA Affect on
Attitude
PA Affect on
Readiness
Effects of PA
Informal
Interview
S: Are we going to do our physical

activity today? T: We will, why
do you ask? S: I just like it.
Opinion of PA
Attitude toward
PA
Before
1. I honestly love writing. It

Opinion of Writing
would be the only thing I would
Opinion of PA in
want to do. I would write over
Writing
reading. 2. It might be distracting.
Initial Writing
Attitudes
Attitude toward
PA
After
Physical activity makes me feel

better about writing. I feel more
ready to write with physical
activity.
PA Affect on
Attitude
PA Affect on
Readiness
Effects of PA
Informal
Interview
I think for those of us who have to

stay in for our extra recess a, the
physical activity is really helpful
to get us moving.
Opinion of PA
Attitude toward
PA
Before
1. I like writing because I can use

my imagination
Opinion of Writing
Initial Writing
Attitudes
After
Physical activity gets rid of loose

energy. I feel ready because I
don't have any energy in me.
PA Affect on
Energy
PA Affect on
Readiness
Effects of PA
Before
1. Sometimes I enjoy it, but

sometimes not my favorite
Opinion of Writing
Initial Writing
Attitudes
After
I feel happier to write. I enjoy

writing after physical activity. I
feel more ready to write. My
pencil flies down the paper
PA Affect on
Attitude
PA Affect on
Readiness
PA Affect on
Writing
Effects of PA
Before
46
After
Physical activity changes my

PA Affect on
attitude. It makes me more ready. Attitude
PA Affect on
Readiness
Effects of PA
Before
1. I like writing, but sometimes it

gets boring if its not an exciting
topic.
Opinion of Writing
Initial Writing
Attitudes
After
I like that we had some fun, and

then go back to work. I feel the
same toward writing because we
still have to write, after and
before we do the activity.
Opinion of PA in
Writing
PA Affect on
Attitude
Attitude toward
PA
Effects of PA
Before
1. Not really my favorite. I like

fictional free writing, but not
other types.
Opinion of Writing
Initial Writing
Attitudes
After
I feel more focused. It makes me

feel more ready to write
PA Affect on
Readiness
Effects of PA
Before
1. My favorite subject is writing

and my best. I like to write fiction
and free writing.
Opinion of Writing
Initial Writing
Attitudes
After
It makes me get my energy out so

I won't be distracted. I feel more
ready because when I have no
energy I can focus.
PA Affect on
Energy
PA Affect on
Readiness
Effects of PA
Before
1. I love to write, especially free

writing. Second favorite subject.
Opinion of Writing
Initial Writing
Attitudes
After
I feel less ready to write. I have

PA Affect on
less ideas so I kind of get mad. It's Readiness
hard to keep ideas in your head
when you are doing something
else.
Effects of PA
10
Before
1. I like writing if I get to choose

the topic. Dont like writing to the
prompt.
Opinion of Writing
Initial Writing
Attitudes
After

attitude toward writing by
making me look forward to
something in writing. I feel more
ready to write after physical
activity because it makes my body
ready.
PA Affect on
Attitude
PA Affect on
Readiness
Effects of PA
11
Before
47
After
After the physical activity I feel

ready to write because I do not
have distractions. I feel more
ready than before we started
doing the physical activity
because we are getting up and
moving.
PA Affect on
Readiness
Effects of PA
12

Before
After

I think it pumps me up to write
better and more. I feel more
ready and better when we do
physical activity.

PA Affect on
Energy
PA Affect on
Readiness

Effects of PA
13
Before
2. Id feel ready to write. My

brain will be ready to make ideas.
PA Affect on
Readiness
Effects of PA
After

attitude toward writing because I
write more when I do physical
activity. I feel more ready when I
do physical activity.
PA Affect on
AttitudePA Affect
on WritingPA
Affect on
Readiness
Effects of PA
14
Before
Opinion of Writing
After
1. I would do it if I had to. First

choice is to go outside
I think it does affect my attitude
because it makes me more ready.
It makes me all wound up but I
can focus better
Initial Writing
Attitudes
Effects of PA
15
Before
2. Id feel the same. It would be

like coming back from our recess.
PA Affect on
Readiness
Effects of PA
After
Physical activity makes me write

faster and helps me concentrate
more. I feel the same readiness to
write after physical activity.
PA Affect on
Writing
PA Affect on
Readiness
Effects of PA
16
Before
1. Its not my preferred choice. I

would rather do math.
Opinion of Writing
Initial Writing
Attitudes
After
I think I feel better to write after

physical activity. I feel more
ready to write.
PA Affect on
Energy
PA Affect on
Readiness
Effects of PA
17
Before
1. Writing is my least favorite

subject. I like when we get to free
write. Long stories I get bored
with.
Opinion of Writing
Initial Writing
Attitudes
PA Affect on
Readiness
PA Affect on
Energy
48
After
After we do physical activity I feel

more ready to write. Physical
activity makes me like writing a
little more
PA Affect on
Readiness
PA Affect on
Attitude
Effects of PA
19
Before
1. I would normally like free

writing, responding to prompts is
an overflow of work. Not enough
time. 2. I might be a little tired.
Equally ready to write.
Opinion of Writing
PA Affect on
Energy
PA Affect on
Readiness
Initial Writing
Attitudes
Effects of PA
After
I feel more ready to write because

physical activity makes me feel
more awake.
PA Affect on
Readiness
PA Affect on
Energy
Effects of PA
20
Before
1. I like making up stories. I dont

like physically writing.
Opinion of Writing
Initial Writing
Attitudes
After
Physical activity doesn't really

change the way I feel toward
writing. I still feel the same after
physical activity and I stay the
same readiness.
PA Affect on
Attitude
PA Affect on
Readiness
Effects of PA
21
Before
1. I like writing, but it depends

what were writing about 2. I
wouldnt be distracted. I think Id
feel the same
Opinion of Writing
PA Affect on
Readiness
Initial Writing
Attitudes
Effects of PA
After
Physical activity doesn't affect me

at all. After physical activity I
have the same readiness in
writing
PA Affect on
Readiness
Effects of PA
22

Before
After

I feel great about physical activity
because I can have more energy
when I write. I feel more ready
because I can write fast to finish
my work.

Opinion of PA
PA Affect on
Energy
PA Affect on
Readiness
PA Affect on
Writing

Attitude toward
PA
Effects of PA
23
Before
1.Writings my favorite subject,

but sometimes it is not if Im not
writing about something I like. 2.
I think it would be good. It would
help me write better. It would
help me relax and not be hyper.
Waste all my energy so I could
write.
Opinion of
WritingOpinion of
PA in WritingPA
Affect on
WritingPA Affect
on Energy
Initial Writing
AttitudesEffects
of PA

After
It does affect my feelings for

writing because knowing that I
get to do physical activity makes
me feel ready to write. I feel more
ready because I am pumped up
and ready to write.
24
Before
1. My favorite subject because you Opinion of Writing

can express how you feel
Initial Writing
Attitudes
After
Physical activity does not affect

my attitude toward writing. I feel
the same readiness to write after
physical activity
PA Affect on
Attitude
PA Affect on
Readiness
Effects of PA
25
Before
1. I like writing, but it wouldnt be

my first choice if I could do any
subject.
Opinion of Writing
Initial Writing
Attitudes
After
I think physical activity has

affected my attitude toward
writing. I think this because I end
up looking forward to writing. I
feel more ready because the
activity gets all of my energy out.
PA Affect on
Attitude
PA Affect on
Energy
Effects of PA
26
Before
1. I like writing, but I would

choose math over writing. When
Im stuck Im stumped.
Opinion of Writing
Initial Writing
Attitudes
After
Physical activity does not affect

my attitude toward writing. It
does not get me ready to write.
PA Affect on
Attitude
PA Affect on
Readiness
Effects of PA
27

Before
After

I like to write and physical
activity makes me more excited to
write. I feel more ready to write
when we do physical activity

Initial Writing
Attitudes
Effects of PA

Opinion of Writing
PA Affect on
Attitude
PA Affect on
Readiness

Before: Group Interview Before Physical Activity Was

Implemented. Not all students provided responses during
this interview. Questions were asked in a group setting
and answers were given orally. Guiding questions were:1.
In general, how do you feel about writing? What makes
you feel that way?
2. How do you think you would feel about writing after
physical activity?

PA Affect on
Attitude
PA Affect on
Readiness
PA Affect on
Energy
49
Effects of PA
50
I took a spontaneous poll after question #1 in the group

interview before physical activity was implemented. I
asked who would and would not like physical activity
during the writing time? 24 students responded yes, 1
student responded no, and 1 student said they did not
care.
I also took a survey to ask how many students found
writing to be their most difficult subject. 13 out of 26
students said it was.
Opinion of PA in
Writing
Attitude toward
PA
Opinion of Writing
Initial Writing
Attitudes
After: Group Interview after physical activity

implementation. All students provided responses during
this interview. Responses were written on note cards.
Guiding questions were: 1. How does physical activity
affect your attitude toward writing? Explain. 2. Do you
feel more ready, less ready, or the same readiness to write
after physical activity? Why?
a Extra recess is a 15 minute outdoor recess we do in the
morning in fifth grade. Students are only able to go out if
they have all of their work and homework completed.
Student 18 was removed due to excessive absences
51
Quantitative Data from Surveys #1, #2, and #3

52
Appendix C: Literature Review Log

Date of
Search
10/5/14
Database
ERIC
10/5/14
ERIC
10/5/14
ERIC
Keyword
Search
physical activity
+ classroom
Journal + Article
Name
Early Childhood
Education Journal -
"Break for Physical
Activity:
Incorporating
Classroom-Based
Physical Activity
Breaks into
Preschools
physical activity Journal of Applied
+ classroom
School Psychology -
"A Quantitative
Review of Physical
Activity, Health and
Learning Outcomes
Associated with
Classroom-Based
Physical Activity
Interventions'

Erwin
physical activity Education - "The
+ classroom
Influence of Daily
Structured Physical
Activity on
Academic Progress
of Elementary
Students with
Intellectual
Disabilities.

Everhart
Summary
This article is set
in a preschool
classroom.
Although
relevant, I think I
can find more
relevant articles.
This article is a
quantitative
review of how
physical activity
effects academic
performance. It
is a review of
existing
literature.
This research
studied students
with intellectual
disabilities. In
intermediate
students, after
physical activity,
academic results
improved.
Teachers also
reported more
focused work
after physical
activity. Results
were more
inconsistent in
primary grades.

10/5/14
Book
N/A
SPARK
53
Exercise
improves
learning on three
levels. First it
optimizes your
mind-set to
improve
alertness,
attention, and
motivation;
second it
prepares and
encourages
nerve cells to
bind to one
another, which is
the cellular basis
for logging in
new
information; and
third, it spurs the
development of
new nerve cells
from stem cells
in the
hippocampus.

Can't learn
difficult material
while exercising
at high
intensities.

10/5/14
Book
N/A
Brain Rules
54
Elderly
Exercisers
outperform
sedentary peers
on many
cognitive tasks
such as long-
term memory,
reasoning,
attention,
problem-solving,
quick reasoning,
abstract
thinking.

Short-term
memory skills
and reaction
time seems to be
unrelated to
physical activity.

The degree of
benefit varies
significantly
among
individuals.

Few studies on
children. One
study by Yancey
said physically fit
children identify
visual stimuli
faster,
concentrate
better, pay
attention better
to subjects,
disrupt less, and
feel better about
themselves.


10/5/14
IEJEE
physical activity IEJEE - "Student

+ classroom
Academic
Performance
Outcomes
of a Classroom
Physical Activity
Intervention:
A Pilot Study"

Erwin
55
This research
was conducted
in a third grade
classroom.
Students were
provided a 20+
minute physical
activity (PA)
break each day.
Their reading
fluency scores,
math scores, and
standardized
math and
reading scores
were compared
to a group who
did not receive
the intervention.
The group who
did not receive
the intervention
continued with
academic studies
instead of the PA.
Scores in all
areas were
higher for
students who
received the
physical activity
intervention.

10/5/14
Google
Scholar
physical activity Psychobiology and

+ classroom
Behavioral
Strategies - "School-
Based Physical
Activity Does
Not Compromise
Childrens
Academic
Performance"

Ahamed
56
This study
looked at 4th
and 5th grade
students and the
effect of physical
activity on
academic
performance.
The study found
that there was
no significant
difference at the
end of the study
between the
groups with
physical activity
and without
physical activity.
They concluded
that teacher can
implement
physical activity
into their school
day without
compromising
academic
performance.
A secondary
question studied
through the
research was the
comparison
between how
boys and girls
responded to
physical activity
intervention.
Their findings
were there was
not significant
difference
between the
responses of
boys and girls.

10/5/14
physical activity Medicine and

+ classroom
Science in Sports
and Exercise -
"Effects of a
Classroom-Based
Program on
Physical Activity
and On-Task
Behavior"

Mahar
10/5/14
Donnelly - physical activity Pediatric Exercise

Science
+ academic
Science - The
Direct
attitudes
Relationship
between physical
activity and
cognition in
children

Sibley
57
This study
looked at
physical activity
and its effect on
on-task behavior
in the classroom.
Third and fourth
grade students
were studied.
One group was
given an PA
intervention
called
Energizers. The
group that
received this
intervention had
an 8% increase
in on-task
behaviors post
intervention.
The least on-task
students
improved on-
task behavior by
20%. Both
statistics were
significant
statistically and
the researchers
concluded that
physical activity
increases on-
task behavior.
This is a meta-
analysis of
several studies.
It found a
significant
overall effect of
physical activity
on cognition.

10/5/14
Science
Direct
10/5/14
ELSEVIER
10/7/14
Google
Scholar
physical activity Preventative

+ academic
Medicine
attitudes
"Classroom-based
physical activity,
cognition, and
academic
achievement"
58
Another
longitudinal
study of other
studies. Overall
the research
supported a link
between
physical activity
and cognition,
and academic
achievement.
Found by
Neuroscience
Short bouts of
fishing
Letters - Acute
coordinative
reference lists
coordinative
exercises were
exercise improves
shown to
attentional
improve
performance in
concentration
adolescents.
and attention

tasks in 13-16
Budde
year olds.
Found by
Journal of School
This is a review
fishing
Health
of a body of
reference lists
Healthier Students existing studies
are Better Learners: and literature.
A Missing Link in
The writer
School Reforms to
concludes that
Close the
physical activity
Achievement Gap. benefits overall

health. He also
Charles E. Basch
says that
because physical
activity affects
the brain and
cognition, there
are likely to be
favorable effects
on ability to
learn.
Physical activity No relevant results No relevant
writing
results
attitudes
Physical activity No relevant results No relevant
writing
results
perceptions

10/7/14
Linked in
Henning
article
10/8/14
Auraria
Library
Writing
attitudes
elementary
Writing
perceptions
elementary
Physical activity
attitudes
Fished
Reference list
59
No relevant results
No relevant
results
No relevant results
No relevant
results
No relevant results
No relevant
results
The study
showed acute
bouts of
cardiovascular
activity may be
beneficial to
cognitive
functioning.
International
Journal of
Psychophysiology -
"Acute
cardiovascular
exercise and
executive control
function"

Hillman
physical activity Journal of School
+ academic
Health - "The
performance
Impact of a Physical
Activity
Intervention
Program on
Academic
Achievement in a
Swedish
Elementary School
Setting"

Kall
The study
concluded that
promoting
physical activity
in school
through a
curriculum-
based
intervention
program may
improve
children's
educational
outcome.

Again they make
the point that the
link needs to be
further explored.

Flancbaum - Effect of Pa On Writing Attitudes

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Description:

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Flancbaum - Effect of Pa On Writing Attitudes

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Running

Head: THE EFFECT OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON WRITING ATTITUDES

THE EFFECT OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON WRITING ATTITUDES

Introduction and Problem Statement

THE EFFECT OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON WRITING ATTITUDES

Purpose and Intended Audience

THE EFFECT OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON WRITING ATTITUDES

THE EFFECT OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON WRITING ATTITUDES

Table 2: 2013-14 TCAP Proficiency Levels

Literature Review Questions

THE EFFECT OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON WRITING ATTITUDES

THE EFFECT OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON WRITING ATTITUDES

Literature Review Findings

THE EFFECT OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON WRITING ATTITUDES

Effect of Physical Activity on Academic Performance

THE EFFECT OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON WRITING ATTITUDES

THE EFFECT OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON WRITING ATTITUDES

THE EFFECT OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON WRITING ATTITUDES

Site Selection & Sampling

THE EFFECT OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON WRITING ATTITUDES

Data Collection Methods

1b. What factors do students

THE EFFECT OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON WRITING ATTITUDES

2b. What factors do students

THE EFFECT OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON WRITING ATTITUDES

THE EFFECT OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON WRITING ATTITUDES

THE EFFECT OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON WRITING ATTITUDES

I asked the following two questions for this written interview:

Data Analysis Methods

THE EFFECT OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON WRITING ATTITUDES

THE EFFECT OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON WRITING ATTITUDES

THE EFFECT OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON WRITING ATTITUDES

Conduct Group Interview #1

Checks for Rigor

THE EFFECT OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON WRITING ATTITUDES

Initial Writing Attitudes

THE EFFECT OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON WRITING ATTITUDES

THE EFFECT OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON WRITING ATTITUDES

THE EFFECT OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON WRITING ATTITUDES

Attitudes Toward Physical Activity

THE EFFECT OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON WRITING ATTITUDES

Effects of Physical Activity on Attitude

THE EFFECT OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON WRITING ATTITUDES

THE EFFECT OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON WRITING ATTITUDES

THE EFFECT OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON WRITING ATTITUDES

THE EFFECT OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON WRITING ATTITUDES

Student Readiness to Write After

THE EFFECT OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON WRITING ATTITUDES

Comparison of Research to the Literature Review

THE EFFECT OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON WRITING ATTITUDES

Implications for Practice

THE EFFECT OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON WRITING ATTITUDES

THE EFFECT OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON WRITING ATTITUDES

THE EFFECT OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON WRITING ATTITUDES

THE EFFECT OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON WRITING ATTITUDES

THE EFFECT OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON WRITING ATTITUDES

THE EFFECT OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON WRITING ATTITUDES

THE EFFECT OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON WRITING ATTITUDES

THE EFFECT OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON WRITING ATTITUDES

THE EFFECT OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON WRITING ATTITUDES

THE EFFECT OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON WRITING ATTITUDES

THE EFFECT OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON WRITING ATTITUDES