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A large body of Catherine Ennis’s work is focused on physical education curriculum development. Her approach to curriculum development is unique in that it is completely based on research evidence. The curricula she developed have been field-tested and the completed curriculum is supported with solid research evidence to demonstrate its efficacy in student learning and teacher ease of use. The purpose of this article is to provide an overview and explore opportunities to continue large-scale physical education curriculum intervention studies. The authors first provide a brief review of previous intervention studies by summarizing the findings and discussing implications. They then discuss potential future intervention studies by presenting several topics that are being explored by researchers in current interventions. Finally, they focus on methodology issues involved in designing effective curriculum intervention studies with the idea of adaptive designs as variations of the randomized clinical trial design.

The relationship between physical fitness and academic achievement has received much attention owing to the increasing prevalence of children who are overweight and unfit, as well as the inescapable pressure on schools to produce students who meet academic standards. This study examined 259 public school students in third and fifth grades and found that field tests of physical fitness were positively related to academic achievement. Specifically, aerobic capacity was positively associated with achievement, whereas BMI was inversely related. Associations were demonstrated in total academic achievement, mathematics achievement, and reading achievement, thus suggesting that aspects of physical fitness may be globally related to academic performance in preadolescents. The findings are discussed with regards to maximizing school performance and the implications for educational policies.