Problem Statement Revision

The information we found while conducting our literature review prompted us to revisit and revise our problem statement, in order to incorporate the ideas and themes present in the existing literature. 

Problem Statement:
We want our students to have the ability to be optimally focused on learning tasks, and to consistently demonstrate on task behavior, in order to maximize the benefit of instructional time and increase student learning and success.

A frequent problem that teachers encounter is having a few students who regularly lose focus and engage in off task behavior. If we do not work to find a way to help these students stay focused, they will not get the full benefit of instruction and won’t achieve the level of learning and success they are capable of reaching.  Not only will this result in students not adequately learning expected content standards, it will have the more devastating effect of not providing them with the base knowledge and skills they need to succeed in future learning.

We will investigate this problem in an action research project that incorporates short physical “brain breaks” into classroom lessons.  Existing research has demonstrated that physical activity is correlated with improved cognitive functions, including increases in focus and attention.  Incorporating active elements  into classroom routines provides students with needed physical activity to prime their brains for optimal concentration and mental performance.  The current literature tested the results of classroom physical activity sessions that lasted anywhere from five to twenty minutes.  Because of the of the growing pressure on teachers and administrators to maximize time spent on academic instruction, we will examine whether similar positive effects on behavior and attention can be achieved from physical breaks lasting five minutes or less.

Writing Our Problem Statement

This week our team discussed the problem statement on which we would like to base our projects. We have decided to study the effects of "brain breaks" on students' ability to stay focused.

Problem Statement:

We want our students to have the ability to be optimally focused on learning tasks, and to consistently demonstrate on task behavior, in order to maximize the benefit of instructional time and increase student learning and success.

Currently, there are a significant number of students in specific classes who frequently lose focus and engage in off task behavior. If we do not solve this problem, these students will not get the full benefit of instruction and won’t achieve the level of learning and success they are capable of. Not only will this result in them not adequately learning the current material, it will have the more devastating effect of not providing them with the base knowledge they need in order to succeed in future learning.

We will tackle this problem by incorporating short physical “brain breaks” into our lessons, providing the students with needed physical activity in order to prime their brains for optimal concentration and mental performance.

Questions:

1.       Will short physical brain breaks during a lesson decrease the occurrence of off task behavior with target students during the class period immediately following the brain break?

2.      Will routinely incorporating physical brain breaks into lessons, and thus providing students with the knowledge that such breaks are coming in each class period, decrease the occurrence of off task behavior with target students overall?