Educational anxiety and its neglected influence on Physical and Sports Education in China’s middle-class families

Introduction and objective. This paper addresses the effects of educational anxiety in the middle-class families in China that are not well known on the involvement of children in physical education (PE) and sports. The data was synthesized using a systematic review of ten empirical studies (2019-2024) that followed adapted PRISMA procedures. Methodology. The results indicate that academic pressure decreases weekly physical activity by an average of 3.1 hours as compared to 6.7 hours of tutoring, which is 17 percent of the total weekly time. Results. More than 86 percent of parents always placed priority on academics with only 8 percent of discretionary time of students being allocated to PE. The psychological effects were that 42 percent report fatigue, 36 percent sleeping difficulties and 49 percent low interest in PE. The anxiety scores decreased a bit to 3.6 (scale 1-5), yet it was not low, which indicates continuous academic pressure. Discussion. The review establishes the argument that even with changes in law like the Double Reduction Policy, the focus of parents on academics to the detriment of sports has a negative effect on the physical and mental health as well as social skills of children. Conclusions. There are great needs to have integrated educational models to ensure that there is a balance in academic and physical growth.