Students’ aerobic fitness, self-regulation, and mathematical performance in primary school

Purpose This study examined the relationships between aerobic fitness, behavioral self-regulation, and mathematics performance in primary school students, and evaluated the effect of a 10-month school-based Physical activity intervention on self-regulation. Methods The Active School study was a ten-month cluster-randomized controlled trial. The sample consisted of 435 students (9–10–years old) in five intervention schools and four control schools. Teachers assessed students’ self-regulation using the Child Behavior Rating Scale (CBRS), at pre- and post-intervention. Aerobic fitness was assessed with a 10-minute interval running test, and mathematical achievement was determined using Norwegian national standardized tests in mathematics. Results Partial correlations indicated that aerobic fitness was significantly correlated with self-regulation ( r = 0.22, p < .001) and with mathematics scores ( r = 0.17, p < 0.01). Linear mixed models showed that self-regulation was consistently positively associated with mathematics performance (B = 0.54, (95%) CI [0.44, 0.64], p < 0.001). Aerobic fitness was positively associated with mathematics performance in partially adjusted models (B = 0.15, (95%) CI [0.006, 0.23], p < 0.001) but this association was no longer significant after adjusting for gender (B = −3.69, (95%) CI [−5.47, −1.19], p < 0.001). No significant improvements in students’ behavioral self-regulation compared to the control group were observed. Conclusion The findings suggest that while cognitive-behavioral processes strongly drive academic performance, standard school-based physical activity programs may lack the necessary cognitive complexity to enhance independent self-regulatory capacities in fifth-grade students.