Associations of Sleep Duration and Physical Activity with Academic and Physical Education Performance Among Moroccan Adolescents

Abstract

Background/Objectives: Sleep duration and physical activity are important lifestyle behaviors that may influence adolescents’ academic and Physical Education (PE) performance. However, evidence regarding their associations with Physical Education (PE) performance remains limited, particularly in North African populations. This study aimed to examine the relationships between sleep duration, physical activity, and academic and PE performance among Moroccan adolescents. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 439 Moroccan adolescents aged 14–20 years. Data were collected using the Arab Teens Lifestyle Study (ATLS) questionnaire. Sleep duration, physical-activity level (metabolic equivalent minutes per week [MET-min/week]), overall academic average, average grade in science subjects, and final PE grade were assessed. Pearson correlation analyses and multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) with follow-up univariate analyses were performed, with Games–Howell post hoc comparisons used for PE performance. Results: Sleep duration was positively associated with overall academic average (r = 0.147, p = 0.002) and final PE grade (r = 0.167, p = 0.001), but not with average grade in science subjects (r = 0.080, p = 0.099). Physical activity was positively associated with overall academic average (r = 0.169, p < 0.001) and final PE grade (r = 0.166, p = 0.001), but not with average grade in science subjects (r = −0.009, p = 0.851). Overall academic average was strongly correlated with science average (r = 0.809, p < 0.001) and moderately correlated with final PE grade (r = 0.474, p < 0.001). multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA)revealed a significant but small overall difference in combined academic and PE performance across the four sleep-duration and physical-activity groups (Pillai’s Trace = 0.034, F(6, 870) = 2.522, p = 0.020, partial η2 = 0.017). Follow-up analyses showed no significant group differences in overall academic average (F(3, 435) = 1.460, p = 0.225, partial η2 = 0.010), whereas PE performance differed significantly across groups (F(3, 435) = 4.040, p = 0.007, partial η2 = 0.027). Conclusions: Sleep duration and physical activity showed weak but significant positive associations with overall academic average and PE performance among Moroccan adolescents, whereas neither was significantly associated with average grades in science subjects. Combined sleep-duration and physical-activity groups differed significantly in PE performance, but not in overall academic average, with small effect sizes. These findings suggest that sleep duration and physical activity are associated with adolescent performance, although the magnitude of these associations is modest and should not be interpreted as causal. Further longitudinal research using objective measures of sleep and physical activity is warranted to clarify these relationships.