How engaging in sport can help students with their academic performance.

How engaging in sport can help students with their academic performance.

Channa Gunawardana | Head Coach CG Cricket Coaching and Parkfield Cricket Club | Ph: 0420 577 001

Engaging in sport offers children far more than just physical fitness—it can greatly enhance their academic performance.
Having played cricket for nearly 35 years and a decade dedicated to coaching junior cricketers, I have witnessed how engaging in physical activities contribute to a child's overall well-being and how it develops critical life skills that translate into the classroom.

Engaging in a sport, like cricket, can significantly benefit students' academic performance, including:

• Improved Focus and Concentration:Physical activity allows children to have a physically fit body, which makes them more energetic and focused on their schoolwork. For example, cricket requires focus, quick decision-making and concentration. These are important skills when it comes to academic challenges like critical thinking or problem-solving in maths. Published research in the Journal of Physical Activity and Health, also found children who played team sports performed significantly better on attention and working memory tests which corresponded to higher NAPLAN scores.



• Teamwork and Leadership: Participating in team sports like cricket, footy or basketball can help children develop collaboration and leadership skills. Working together towards a goal gives them a sense of purpose and responsibility to the team and its success. With intense focus on collaboration and teamwork as essential emerging skills, and these skills are transferable to group projects, class debates, presentations and class discussions.



• Time Management: Through the regular practising of sports, children will understand the discipline of sticking to a schedule as they have training sessions and have matches, competitions or tournaments to play. These skills translate into better study habits and time management skills. When children play sport, they learn that if you want to improve at a sport you need to practice. Similarly, they understand that regular study routines lead to better academic performance.



• Resilience: Children learn to enhance their skills through sports. Everyone wants to do well and be in a winning environment. Sports will encourage drive, determination and dedication. Participating in sport also teach children how to correct their mistakes and weaknesses and teach them resilience to overcome setbacks. Students can apply the same mindset to their learning, to push through challenges, to stay motivated and to reflect on their studies in a positive way.



• Stress Relief and Mental Well-being: One of the main benefits of team sports like cricket is the development of social and mental skills in children. At times, academic pressure can be a lot for children to handle, but sports provide an outlet for children to release that pressure. Playing cricket after a long day of studying can help children reset, which improves their ability to retain information.

When children understand that overcoming sport challenges requires hard work, commitment, teamwork, and focus, they start applying the same strategies to their studies. From being focused during a match or handling the pressure of a close game, these skills carry over into the classroom and life in general. So, let’s encourage our young children to have a balanced outlook to life where they excel not only academically but also on the sporting grounds.