Date of Award

Spring 5-2016

Degree Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Department

Educational Leadership and School Counseling

Committee Chair

David Lee

Committee Chair Department

Educational Leadership and School Counseling

Committee Member 2

James Fox

Committee Member 2 Department

Educational Leadership and School Counseling

Committee Member 3

Stanley Benigno

Committee Member 3 Department

Educational Leadership and School Counseling

Committee Member 4

Kyna Shelley

Committee Member 4 Department

Educational Studies and Research

Committee Member 5

Richard Mohn

Committee Member 5 Department

Educational Studies and Research

Abstract

The study utilized a quantitative approach to identify the relationship between students’ levels of fitness to students’ academic achievement as well as addressing the attitudes of elementary administrators, fifth grade regular education teachers, and elementary physical education teachers towards physical fitness and academic achievement. Instruments used in the study were the Mississippi Curriculum Test, 2nd Edition (MCT2) and the FITNESSGRAM. The data from the FITNESSGRAM and MCT2 were archival, coming from the 2013-2014 academic school year. The MCT2 provided scores from the areas of language arts, mathematics, and science, and the FITNESSGRAM provided the fitness scores of those students. From these two instruments, the students’ fitness scores were compared to their performance scores in language arts, mathematics, and science. As well as using the MCT2 and the FITNESSGRAM, data were collected through the use of survey methodology with a questionnaire compiled of attitudes from elementary administrators, fifth grade regular education teachers, and elementary physical education teachers.

The results from this study revealed a statistically significant difference in the attitudes in regards to physical fitness and student academic achievement from elementary administrators, fifth grade regular education teachers, and elementary physical education teachers. More specifically, there was a statistically significant difference in the attitudes pertaining to physical fitness and academic achievement between elementary administrators and fifth grade regular education teachers and fifth grade regular education teachers and elementary physical education teachers. Furthermore, there was no statistically significant difference between elementary administrators and elementary physical education teachers. There was a statistically significant difference from the questionnaire on Items 1, 3, 8, 9, 10, and 11; however, there was no statistically significant difference on Items 4, 5, 6, and 7 in the attitudes towards physical fitness and student achievement from elementary administrators, fifth grade regular education teachers, and elementary physical education teachers.

In addition to these results, the study revealed there was no statistically significant relationship between scores from the mathematics, language arts, and science sections of the MCT2 and the FITNESSGRAM fitness level scores from muscular strength, muscular endurance, body composition, flexibility, and aerobic capacity.

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