High School Students' Experiences of Physical Motion During Exams

Standardized exams required for students to get their high school diplomas usually require them to remain still and write continuously for lengthy periods of time. As a high school teacher my experience has found that many students struggle with the sedentary nature of these exams and that they benefit from kinaesthetic activities performed throughout instructional or formative assessment periods. This mixed methods study has explored the practice of sedentary exams by seeking to understand students'' perspectives on their experiences during tests and exams. Forty-eight grade eleven students participated in two simulated exams - one in which they were required to sit continuously and one in which they were required to perform physical activities every fifteen minutes. The results demonstrate that students did benefit from the inclusion of physical motion in exam situations.