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Do Peppermints Help Students Answer Math Problems Faster?

Darren Fleischer 1st Period 12/4/13

Abstract
The purpose of this science fair project was to test whether or not peppermints help students do math problems faster. Everyday, middle schools students are accustomed to doing math problems on tests, quizzes, and classwork. We wanted to see if peppermints could give students a boost when doing times math tests. First, we selected three math classes, one from each grade level. We handed out parent forms and volunteer consent forms, as well as explained the purpose of the experiment to the participants. The following day we gave everyone in the class a math test involving one hundred simple math problems (i.e.- 4 + 6, 3 + 2) to solve in one minute. Half the students were part of the experimental group and received peppermints; the control group received no peppermints. The next day, we switched the groups and gave them a similar test. We took the average score from each grade level based on the day and group taking the test. After analyzing the data, we found that in this study peppermints tended slow down students. On the second day of testing, students in the control group did slightly better than the students that ate the peppermint.

Table of Contents
a. b. c. d. e. f. g. h. i. j. k. l. m. Statement of Purpose......1 Research..2 Hypothesis..5 Experiment.6 Materials..7 Procedures..8 Data and observation..9 Analysis..10 Conclusion.....11 Application12 Recommendations..13 Bibliography.14 Acknowledgements....15

Statement of Purpose
The researcher completed this project to find out if peppermints help middle school students do math problems faster and answer more problems correctly.

Reasearch

[Insert 3 pages of research here]

Hypothesis
If students eat a peppermint before taking a math test, then they will be able to do math problems faster than students who do not eat a peppermint.

Experiment

Materials
Peppermints (60 total) Parent consent form Two versions of a simple math test with 100 questions (60 total) Timer Buzzer

Procedure
1. Choose three middle school math classes at each grade level, and get permission from each teacher. 2. Present to participants the purpose and procedures of the experiment. Hand out parent and volunteer consent forms. 3. Break class of students into two groups on the first day. 4. Pass out math test faced down, telling students not to flip them over until we start the time. 5. Give a peppermint to the experimental group, telling them to eat it for thirty seconds. 6. Prepare students by telling them they are about to take a simple math test for one minute, and they are to stop when the buzzer rings. 7. Start the clock for one minute. 8. Stop the clock, and collect papers from both groups. 9. Grade the papers for that day. 10.Repeat the experiment the following day, switching the groups so that the previous control group is now the experimental group and vise versa. 11.Grade the papers, and average the scores for both days and all class. 12.Create a bar graph to interpret the results. 13.Publish the results for the participants to see.

Data and Observations

During the experiment, we noticed that many of the participants were talkative and excited about the experiment. Some might have been distracted. Below are the results from the experiment: Figure 1: The scores from all three grade levels on both days. The score is bases on number correct out of one hundred problems. Group A is the experimental group; Group B is the control group.

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Analysis
The results showed that the peppermints did not have a significant affect on improving students speed in taking math problems. Looking at Day 2, every grade level showed slightly lower scores after taking the peppermint compared to the control group. For example, on average 6th Grade students got eight more problems correct compared to the experimental group on Day 2. In 8th Grade, the control group got five more problems correct on Day 2 compared to the experimental group. On Day 1, students in the experimental group received about seven more problems correct compared to the control group, but overall the control group seemed to do better on the math test. Therefore, my hypothesis was incorrect due to the higher number of answers completed by students without peppermints.

Conclusion
Our original hypothesis stated that peppermints would help students do math problems faster. After analyzing the data, it is clear that this was not the case, and out hypothesis was incorrect. Our data showed that the opposite was true- that most students who did not receive a peppermint actually got more problems correct than those who received peppermints. This is plainly seen on Day 2 of the experiment, where across every grade level there was a significant difference between both groups. I learned that although much of the research shows that peppermints have helped students in the past, in this experiment this is not the case. Students might be better off not eating a peppermint before taking a math test. We feel that more research is needed before we can be sure the peppermints have this effect. Perhaps a larger group of students who are focused and not joking could give different results.

Application
This experiment is important to everyone in school. If peppermints truly do slow students down, then teachers should not give their students a peppermint before a test. Students can also benefit from this study by thinking twice when eating peppermint candies before taking a timed math test or doing math work. Other scientists could also benefit from this study. Perhaps they can replicate our experiment to see if they get the same results. Maybe they can even figure out why the peppermints have this effect on students.

Bibliography
Aratani, L. (2007, March 20). The Power of Peppermint is Put to the Test. The Washington Post Company. Retrieved December 5, 2013, from http://www.washingtonpost.com/wpdyn/content/article/2007/03/19/AR2007031901624.html Kosinski, R.J. (2006, September). A Literature Review on Reaction Time. Retrieved December 5, 2013, from http://biology.clemson.edu/bpc/bp/Lab/110/reaction.htm#Fatig ue McDonald, J.H. "Paired t-test." Handbook of Biological Statistics, Baltimore: Sparky House Publishing, 2008. 176-180. Retrieved December 5, 2013, from http://udel.edu/~mcdonald/statpaired.html Allen, J. (2002). The Online Reaction Time Test. Retrieved December 5, 2013, from http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/java/redgreen.html Science Buddies (2013). Fast Food: Can Peppermints Improve Reaction Times? Science Buddies. Retrieved December 5, 2013, from http://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fairprojects/project_ideas/HumBio_p027.shtml#background

TPT. (2006). Breakfast by Cameron and Ashley. DragonflyTV, Twin Cities Public Television. Retrieved December 5, 2013, from http://pbskids.org/dragonflytv/show/breakfastscience.html

Acknowledgements
I would like to thank all of my 6th Grade students for helping to motivate the participants and grading their tests. Thank you to Curnyka Plummer for drafting the math test and parent consent form. Lastly, thank you to all of the participants for allowing us to test their math skills.