Rethinking PE Class

Uuu 513 Ab Headshot
(Photo by Robert Kneschke/shutterstock.com)
(Photo by Robert Kneschke/shutterstock.com)

Not every kid likes to play sports. For the athletically disinclined, a game of gym class dodgeball or basketball can be an anxiety-inducing experience. In fact, a recent study by researchers at Brigham Young University found that kids who were ridiculed in gym class (by peers and teachers) were less likely to engage in physical activity one year later — not good news for a nation facing an obesity and sedentary-lifestyle epidemic.

That's assuming kids are exposed to physical education at all, as gym classes and recess periods have frequently become the victims of dwindling budgets and heightened academic standards.

However, faced with a growing body of research linking physical activity to better academic performance, schools that had once marginalized recess and gym are doing an about-face. Across the country, school districts are not only bringing back gym class but rethinking the entire physical education experience, putting more emphasis on education. "The country depends on us to do something different than what we have been doing," Dolly Lambdin, president of Society of Health and Physical Educators (SHAPE) told the Washington Post. "We cared too much about who is the best, who can do the most pushups, and not nearly enough about what it means to be healthy and physically active for a lifetime."

Log in to view the full article
AB Show 2023 in Baltimore
AB Show is a solution-focused event for athletics, fitness, recreation and military professionals.
Nov 1-4, 2023
Learn More
AB Show 2023
Buyer's Guide
Information on more than 3,000 companies, sorted by category. Listings are updated daily.
Learn More
Buyer's Guide