Academic Performance in Adolescents: Behavioral Correlates

Galileo Bust in Galileo Museum, Florence (wryates photo)

There is a significant level of interest in the best behavioral activity balance in adolescents.

Adolescents currently live in an environment of expanding opportunities for spending time watching TV, surfing the internet and playing video games.

Understanding the best balance of study, exercise and time in front of a screen is an important topic.

Kristen Corder and colleagues recently examined adolescent behavioral activity patterns and performance on the General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) exam in British adolescents.

They examined the amount of time adolescents spent in physical activity, screen-time (TV, internet, computer gaming) and non-screen time (reading/homework). These behavioral activity measures were then linked to the performance on the GCSE. The GCSE is taken by all British students at the end of Year 11 schooling, corresponding with an average age of 16 years.

The key finding from the study included the following:

• Physical activity levels did not correlate with academic performance
• Increasing amounts of screen time correlated with poorer academic performance with one extra hour linked to a 9.3 lower score
• Increased amounts of non-screen time (reading/homework) correlated with higher performance (one extra hour per day was associated with an increase of 23 points on the GCSE)

The study found that the benefit of hours spent doing homework peaked at 4 hours per day. Those spending less or more than 4 hours per day in study had lower GCSE exam scores.

Some studies of exercise in adolescents demonstrated increased academic performance with greater levels of exercise. This effect was not seen in the current study that used date from an activity monitor to measure physical activity. The authors note that physical activity should be promoted primarily for health benefits in adolescent age groups.

The implications of this study for parents is that a balanced activity schedule is important for adolescents. Providing support for at least 4 hours of study/reading per day appears optimal. Physical activity and screen time after completing optimal homework hours does not appear to have significant academic performance effects.

Individuals with more interest in this study can access the free full-text manuscript by clicking on the PMID link on the citation below.

Photo of Galileo bust from the Galileo Museum is from the author's files. 

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Corder K, Atkin AJ, Bamber DJ, Brage S, Dunn VJ, Ekelund U, Owens M, van Sluijs EM, & Goodyer IM (2015). Revising on the run or studying on the sofa: prospective associations between physical activity, sedentary behaviour, and exam results in British adolescents. The international journal of behavioral nutrition and physical activity, 12 (1) PMID: 26337325