Effects of Physical Education, Exercise, and Sports Interventions on Children and Adolescent Cognition and Academic Achievement

A special issue of Sports (ISSN 2075-4663).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 25 June 2025 | Viewed by 98

Special Issue Editors

1. Research Centre in Physical Activity, Health and Leisure, Faculty of Sport, University of Porto, Rua Dr Plácido Costa, 91, 420-450 Porto, Portugal
2. Laboratory for Integrative and Translational Research in Population Health (ITR), 4050-600 Porto, Portugal
Interests: motor competence; physical activity; physical fitness; sedentary behavior; school health promotion
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Guest Editor
Faculty of Sport, University of Porto, Rua Dr Plácido Costa, 91, 420-450 Porto, Portugal
Interests: physical activity; cognition; positive development; intervention studies; children and adolescents

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Guest Editor
Institute of Education, University of Minho, Campus de Gualtar, 4710-057 Braga, Portugal
Interests: physical activity; cognition; public health; intervention studies; children and adolescents

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Guest Editor
1. Early Start and School of Health & Society, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, NSW 2522, Australia
2. Research Centre in Physical Activity, Health and Leisure, Faculty of Sport, University of Porto, 4200-450 Porto, Portugal
3. CIDEFES—Centro de Investigação em Desporto, Educação Física e Exercício e Saúde, Universidade Lusófona, 1749-024 Lisbon, Portugal
4. Laboratory for Integrative and Translational Research in Population Health, 4050-091 Porto, Portugal
Interests: physical activity; sedentary behaviour; screen time; sleep; adiposity; blood pressure; cognitive development; intervention studies; children and adolescents
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The growing body of research linking physical activity to cognitive development and academic achievement has underscored its importance in children's and adolescents' educational and developmental trajectories.

Physical activity, particularly in structured physical education and sports programs, has shown promising results in improving concentration, memory, and executive function, essential for academic performance. These interventions promote holistic development, benefiting both the body and the mind. However, designing and implementing effective, sustainable, and multidisciplinary programs that address cognitive and academic outcomes remains challenging.

This Special Issue aims to provide a collaborative platform for sharing the latest research and evidence from different disciplines to advance our understanding of the relationship between physical activity and cognitive development in youth. We invite authors to submit original research and/or reviews on how well-designed physical education, physical activity, and sports programs can positively impact cognition and academic achievement. Topics may include but are not limited to physical activity's role in improving cognitive functions such as memory, attention, and problem-solving and how educators, parents, and policymakers can support environments that foster physical and cognitive development leading to academic achievement.

By providing valuable insights into best practices, this collection of articles aims to contribute to the growing evidence base and offer new strategies for promoting children and adolescents' cognitive and academic success through physical activity interventions.

Dr. Luis Lopes
Dr. Gabriela Ferreira
Dr. Rute Santos
Dr. Eduarda Sousa-Sá
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sports is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • school performance
  • cognitive development
  • physical activity
  • intervention studies

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Published Papers

This special issue is now open for submission.
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