Annotated Bibliography

“​Is recess necessary/unnecessary for kids to succeed in school? ​” Research Project

By: Noelle King

Date: 7/7/19

Dotson, Ronald G. ​Understanding Playground Behaviors and Injury Potential to Elementary

Playgrounds can be such a fun time for children growing up but can also be one of the
biggest causes of an injury. Injuries on playgrounds have increased despite the
widespread adoption of playground equipment standards. The cost of increased
insurance premiums and moral obligations that are used to protect children on a
playground increase liability exposure. A study was performed to explore the behaviors
exhibited by elementary school children and playground monitors and the subsequent
occurrence of increased or decreased risk potential. The project utilized all of the
observations that were taken to observe critical incidents that occurred during recess.
The study concluded that a four-prong safety initiative be put into place for proper
management of playground behaviors. The behavior-based approach that was
recommended consists of pre-usage inspections for general maintenance and hazards.
Many different variables were put into place to make sure the playground was safe as
possible for each child.

Jarrett, Olga S., et al. "Impact of Recess on Classroom Behavior: Group Effects and Individual
Differences."​ The Journal of Educational Research​, vol. 92, no. 2, 1998, pp. 121​.
ProQuest,​
https://login.proxy039.nclive.org/login?url=https://search.proquest.com/docview/2041985
78?accountid=10163​.

The authors of this article believe recess is a short break in the day that gives children a
time to rest their brains and learn in new ways. It was proven that children were less
fidgety and were on task more often on a day when they had recess rather than a day
they did not. Recess allows them to get their physical activity in, talk with their peers, and
play freely. If these children did not have some type of break throughout their day their
attention span would run out a lot quicker and their performance would be much poorer.
When a child participates in so many sedentary activities a surplus of energy is
accumulated and causes a child to act out or misbehave. With recess, a child is able to
let some of that energy loose and it allows them to have a larger attention span when it
 is actually necessary for them to have one. Recess brings exercise and exercise brings
a more positive effect on a child's cognitive process.

Kozlowski, James C. "Playground Supervision Liability: Preventing Injury?"​ Parks & Recreation​,
vol. 33, no. 6, 06, 1998, pp. 44-48​. ProQuest​,
https://login.proxy039.nclive.org/login?url=https://search.proquest.com/docview/1981687
17?accountid=10163​.

This article writes about four school cases of injuries on playgrounds. They all are about
the alleged failure to provide supervision to their children while on the playground. These
cases were to see if there were a significant factor in causing a preventable injury. Each
case talks about whether or not there was something that could have been put in place
to prevent the injury that occurred. The cases all discuss the events that occurred to give
an idea of whether or not they have a right to press charges or discuss negligence
liability. Not every serious injury can be prevented but if there was something that coulda
happened to prevent it then it has to be taken to court and then further action is taken
from there. Negligence liability comes into play when something could have potentially
stopped the injury from taking place. Recess can be a dangerous place if there is not
enough supervision and the supervisors are not watching carefully.

Millner, Denene. "WHY KIDS REALLY NEED Recess."​ Parenting.School Years​, vol. 24, no. 10,
11, 2010, pp. 118-122​. ProQuest,​
https://login.proxy039.nclive.org/login?url=https://search.proquest.com/docview/7595683
41?accountid=10163​.

Milner continuously explains the major importance of having recess time as a child. She
explains all the many things that are learned from recess such as how to communicate,
how to follow rules, how to negotiate through games with friends, and how to fall down
and get back up. She finds from a study that children who have recess are able to give
their brain a short break from consuming so much knowledge at once and allows them to
achieve better grades in their school work. Most young children can only consume
knowledge for about half an hour at a time so a recess break allows them to be
refreshed. Her article believes that recess is a substantial factor in growing up. She also
believes it is one of the most crucial aspects of a school system and gives ways to make
sure your child is getting a healthy dose of downtime.

Pellegrini, Anthony D., and Catherine M. Bohn. "The Role of Recess in Children's Cognitive
Performance and School Adjustment."​ Educational Researcher​, vol. 34, no. 1, 2005, pp.
13-19​. ProQuest,​
https://login.proxy039.nclive.org/login?url=https://search.proquest.com/docview/2168996
60?accountid=10163​.
 The authors of this article explain the positive impacts that recess has on children in
elementary schools. They recognize that recess is taking a huge downfall in the world of
elementary schoolers. They also use different types of data to prove the importance of
recess. They believe that recess impacts a child's cognitive performance and adjustment
to schools. The authors' position is planted in the larger debate about school
accountability. They believe there are theory and empirical evidence that school policy
should be based upon. They also agree that recess in its own can actually have
educational benefits to it. It gives a break which helps a child's test performance and
helps them adjust to school. Recess is crucial to positive social and emotional
development for children. It gives children a way to express themselves with other
friends socially. It gives them a mental break which helps them achieve better test
scores.

Prawl, Marsha N. ​Teachers' Perceptions of the Effects of Recess on Children: A Qualitative

This article explains the perspectives of teachers and how they think taking recess away
impacts a child in school. They did a study of teachers opinions that consisted of two
different questions being “what are the meanings of elementary teacher perceptions of
recess for students? What do elementary teachers perceived are the effects of recess on
students?”. Data were collected from 10 teachers via face-to-face interviews who all had
school experience ranging from 2 to 25 years. The data was analyzed by manual coding
through the aid of specific software. They used this data to infer whether each teacher
thinks that recess is beneficial or it would not be detrimental to a child to take it away.
The results of the research supported the idea that recess is an integral part of a school
system and should not be eliminated. They also do a further study to see how recess is
impacting the educational aspect of children.

Stapp, Alicia C., and Jenny K. Karr. "Effect of Recess on Fifth Grade Students' Time on-Task in
an Elementary Classroom."​ International Electronic Journal of Elementary Education,​
vol. 10, no. 4, 2018, pp. 449-456​. ProQuest​,
https://login.proxy039.nclive.org/login?url=https://search.proquest.com/docview/2030654
841?accountid=10163, doi:​http://dx.doi.org/10.26822/iejee.2018438135​.

The authors of this article agree that having recess throughout the day comes with so
many benefits. They also agree that if implemented effectively recess can have the
potential to offer significant academic, physical, and social benefits. They state that over
the past two decades the time allocated for recess has significantly declined. The
reasoning for this drastic change in recess time is the increase in educational mandates.
This increase has led to ongoing debates as to why recess is so important in a school
system. Many people believe that recess allows elementary students to achieve better
 grades and better work ethics because it gives them time to let their brain free and uses
their imaginations. They examined fifth graders and their participation and effort prior to
and after recess. They discovered that providing these fifth-grade students significantly
increased on-task behaviors. The students who participated in recess were able to give
their brain a break and get out their extra energy.

Williams, Armelia, and Lynn Breckenfelder. "Debate: Is Recess Obsolete?: A Newspaper for
Members of the National Education Association a Newspaper for Members of the
National Education Association."​ NEA Today​, vol. 17, no. 8, 1999, pp. 43​. ProQuest​,
https://login.proxy039.nclive.org/login?url=https://search.proquest.com/docview/1988454
62?accountid=10163​.

Two educational professionals have two very different opinions on recess and the impact
it is having in the school system right now. Williams argues against recess while
Breckenfelder argues for it. William believes that recess is an outdated concept. He also
believes that recess endangers children’s physical, emotional, and even academic
health. He believes recess is dangerous because there are too many kids and not
enough staff to adequately do their job well of watching them all. This leads him to
believe that recess is the breeding ground for some overly aggressive children who
choose this time to act out on their classmates. Williams believes there are too many
disadvantages to recess for it to be a beneficial part of a child's life. Breckenfelder
argues that recess is needed for daily physical activity. He believes there are too many
advantages to a physical education class or recess to give it up.