John J. Ratey’s book, SPARK: The Revolutionary New Science of Exercise and the Brain, provides a groundbreaking study which ultimately proved that “Zero Hour PE” showed an overall increase in students’ grades in academic classes.
Based on the findings of this study, LZHS should make an effort to make early morning PE available to all students, not just those eligible for Early Bird, given that the students provide their own transportation.
According to Ratey, the object of Zero Hour PE was to determine whether exercise before school gave kids a boost in reading ability and in the rest of their subjects. The idea of the program was to encourage students to find an exercise program which they enjoyed, succeed at it, and then apply those same efforts to their studies.
Todd Gregory, PE Department Head, said the reason Early Bird is not offered to underclassmen is due to logistics.
“We tried offering the Early Bird to juniors but then students assumed that they would be receiving parking spots and it caused all kinds of issues,” Gregory said. “I was thinking, ‘is there a way to put PE first period and a class a student struggles with second?’” Gregory said.
Gregory acknowledged the difficulties with scheduling PE before certain classes for students.
The study proved that working out before school sent the students to their first period class in a state of heightened awareness, according to Ratey. After having the program in place, the school students showed astronomical increases of improvement in their classes.
Michelle Levin, PE teacher, has read the book and seen the results of the study first hand.
“The study doesn’t just say that after 20 minutes of vigorous exercise, you’re smarter,” Levin said. “What happens is exercise releases certain chemicals in the brain which leads to students being in a better state to learn.”
LZHS should reconsider its policy in only allowing Early Bird PE to seniors, as all grade levels could benefit from physical activity before school.
According to the study, exercise has a powerful influence on the neurotransmitters, which serve as messengers in the brain, regulating and balancing brain function. Exercising ultimately elevates the neurotransmitters, meaning students are in a heightened state of awareness, and better prepared for learning.
Aside from the fact that early morning exercise can bring improvement into other classes, it also offers benefits, which can be essential to the health of the students.
According to Levin, there are also a lot of studies available that show exercise can be beneficial to depression, ADD, ADHD, and even Alzheimer’s disease.
“Now more and more doctors are starting to prescribe a certain amount of exercise per day as opposed to medications that treat depression,” Levin said.
Studies have shown that morning exercise prove to be beneficial for sleeping patterns, yet another reason early morning PE should be encouraged. During an age where sleep is crucial to the health of students, if LZHS offers early PE to all students, then students are able work on many different aspects of their health, not only doing better in school.
One of the main duties of a school should be to try to bring the best out of a student, in hopes of eventually getting the student to reach his or her full potential, and if physical activity can help in this process, every effort should be made to provide students with this opportunity, not just seniors.