Below are links to the information about a Gallup survey of principals about school recess, commissioned by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the National Association of Elementary School Principals, and Playworks. With the push for academic rigor and higher performance on one-size-fits-all state-mandated group tests, young children have had fewer opportunities to play while at school, despite the observation that children return from recess more focused and ready to learn.
From what I can tell, the survey results are based on the perceptions of the principals.
I think we knew this!
Here are a few quotes from the RWJF website:"Recess doesn’t come without challenges. Because it is often disorganized and difficult to manage, recess is the time when principals encounter the vast majority of their school’s disciplinary problems."
“Recess offers an extraordinary opportunity to improve a school’s climate,” said Jill Vialet, founder and president of Playworks, a national nonprofit and grantee of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation that helps schools improve their recess. “Just a little bit of training for staff can go a long way in helping schools dramatically reduce disciplinary problems at recess and direct more attention to teaching and learning.”
"The poll echoes findings from a growing body of clinical research, including a study by Dr. Romina Barros, a professor of pediatrics at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine. Her groundbreaking study, published in the February 2009 issue of the journal Pediatrics, found that children who have more recess time behave better in the classroom and are more likely to learn."
RELATED
Daily School Recess Improves Classroom Behavior
Einstein News, 1/6/2009
"The study, published in Pediatrics, suggests that a daily break of 15 minutes or more in the school day may play a role in improving learning, social development, and health in elementary school children. The study's principal investigator is Romina M. Barros, M.D., assistant clinical professor of pediatrics at Einstein."
Why Play Matters
4 Reasons More Recess Helps Kids Do Better in School
Nancy Shute, US News & World Report, Health 2/4/2010
Playscapes: A Blog About Playground Design
How children lost the right to roam in four generations
David Derbyshire, Daily Mail, 6/15/07
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) says free and unstructured play is healthy and essential Kenneth R. Ginsburg, MD, MS Ed, the Committee on Communications and Committee on Psychosocial Aspects of Child and Family Health 1/1/2007
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