Sweat So You Don't Forget: Exercise Breaks During a University Lecture Increase On-Task Attention and Learning

• Published in: Journal of applied research in memory and cognition 2018-06, Vol.7 (2), p.261-269
• Main Authors: Fenesi, Barbara, Lucibello, Kristen, Kim, Joseph A., Heisz, Jennifer J.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Academic performance; Attention; Cognition; College Environment; College Students; Exercise; Female; Human; Learning; Male; Memory; Mind Wandering; Physical Activity; Psychology Education
• ISSN: 2211-3681; 2211-369X
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jarmac.2018.01.012

We examined the impact of taking exercise breaks, non-exercise breaks, or no breaks on learning among first year Introductory Psychology students. Three 5-minute breaks were equally distributed throughout a 50-minute computer-based video lecture. The exercise breaks group performed a series of callisthenic exercises; the non-exercise breaks group played a computer game; the no breaks group watched the lecture without breaks. Mind-wandering questions measured attention during the lecture. Exercise breaks promoted attention throughout the lecture compared to no breaks and non-exercise breaks, and resulted in superior learning when assessed on immediate and delayed tests. The exercise breaks group also endorsed higher ratings for narrator clarity and perceived understanding than the other two groups. This is the first study to show that exercise breaks promote attention during lecture and improve learning in university students. General Audience Summary We tested the use of exercise breaks as a tool to focus student attention and promote learning. In children, exercise breaks reduce off-task physical behaviors like fidgeting and shifting, while also improving academic performance. However, it is unclear whether the benefits of exercise breaks extend to older students who may manifest off-task behaviors in less overt ways, such as through mind wandering away from the primary task. Incorporating exercise breaks into a university lecture improved on-task attention and memory for lecture material compared to non-exercise breaks or no breaks. Learners who received exercise breaks found the lecturer and lecture material easier to understand than did learners who received no breaks. Engaging minds through classroom learning and practice is a direct route to promoting academic performance, and physical exercise breaks may augment these processes.