The Effects of Daily Yoga Practice on the Academic Engagement and Achievement of Middle School Students in a Special Education Classroom

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of daily yoga on the academic engagement and achievement of middle school students in a small group special education classroom. A single subject design with four phases was used. Students participated in daily yoga practice followed by a social studies class period. Engagement data was tracked through tallies across all phases. Academic achievement was assessed through vocabulary matching, multiple choice, and map quizzes given weekly. Additionally, students participated in a Likert scale based survey to assess their satisfaction with the daily participation in yoga. Results from this study suggest that daily participation in yoga increased both student engagement and academic achievement. Results also yielded strong student satisfaction with the daily yoga participation.