Effects of physical active breaks on vigilance performance in schoolchildren of 10–11 years

Abstract

Purpose. The main aim of this research analyses acute PE based on AB and how it might have an exponential affect during the school day. Methods. A total of 46 healthy schoolchildren (age = 10.75 ± 0.65 years) participated in this study, receiving a traditional lesson of 25 min during the assigned class followed by 10 min of a free-reading task (Control Condition) or 10 min of physical activity based on motor games (Active-Break Condition). Immediately following the assigned 10-min. intervention, the participants performed the Psychomotor Vigilance Task (PVT) then finally returned to perform the traditional lesson for the remaining 15 min. Significant differences were found in the PVT. Results. Our results show the main effect of the Active-Break Condition group responding faster (365 ms) than the students in the Control Condition group (379 ms), F(1.45) = 24.18, p = 0.001, η2 = 0.34. The present study demonstrated that a student’s vigilance performance changes after of AB of 10 min (compared to the Control Condition) and that AB improves the efficiency of vigilance in schoolchildren of 10–11 years. Conclusions. Although limited, our results could help researchers and teachers more accurately apply AB to more properly improve their students’ vigilance. More studies with EEG analysis and neuroimaging are necessary to understand the effects of AB in young students.