The theoretical background related to how physical activity positively influences children and adolescents’ brain function for social and emotional competency has been stably structured. However, according to our review of the literature, no study has synthetically analyzed physical education interventions that produce positive outcomes related to learners’ emotional status. Therefore, the aim of the study was to systematically analyze the effectiveness of physical education interventions designed to improve students’ emotional ability. In October 2017, we searched electronic research databases for intervention studies that analyzed the impact of school physical education on students’ emotional changes. We assessed the risk of bias, extracted data, and conducted metaanalysis to determine the effectiveness of physical education intervention. From an initial pool of 1200 non-duplicate records, 12 studies fulfilled the inclusion criteria. The effectiveness of school-based physical education was analyzed by calculating standard mean difference. Based on the results of the meta-analysis, students in intervention conditions changed their psychological conditions compared with students in usual practice conditions (standardized mean difference=0.30, 95 % confidence interval = − 0.05 − 0.66). Physical and sport education for children and adolescents has positively influenced changes in their emotional conditions.