There is a vast gap between expectation and reality with physical education.
When parents think of physical education, they expect that their kids will have a chance to run around and get some form of physical exertion after having been confined in class all day. In reality, however, schools understand that they are not going to be judged by the strength of the physical education classes they offer. Ultimately, schools care about getting as many of their kids as possible to graduate and go off to college, not having their kids run around for an hour a day.
In Wayland, this paradox is stark: the town is reluctant to invest in physical education, but is bound by law to provide some sort of health program to kids. What we are left with is an antiquated class that is long enough to be a major nuisance to students, yet too short to actually have any meaningful impact on us.
We doubt this view comes as a shock to any student at Wayland High. We have gym class, on average, a little over once a week. These classes are further undermined by splitting time into health classes and exercise. Moreover, these classes happen only for one half of the year for some grades. We can speak from experience, but it should also be evident with common sense: nothing can be accomplished in this short a time period.
Principal Patrick Tutwiler thinks that the lack of attention paid to physical education sends an implicit negative message to students. “From a structural stand point, it’s a pass/fail class, so people don’t take it seriously,” he said. “I think the message that is abundantly clear to students is that the school doesn’t necessarily value this department and what it provides, and so why should they take it seriously?”
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The primary reason he gave for the inadequacy of physical education was the lack of staff and the resulting brevity of the class. “I’d like to see four or five full time wellness teachers. If you have more faculty, the class can meet more times in the cycle and it does need to meet more times,” Tutwiler said.
Wayland’s physical education curriculum hasn’t always been so limited. According to Ms. Martha Jamieson, P.E. used to be a daily requirement. However, the quality has degenerated over time because it is relatively easy to cut compared to core academics.
It is a good idea to have mandatory physical activity in schools. There is a growing obesity epidemic, and an inactive lifestyle is unhealthy. Lack of exercise is linked to heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, osteoporosis and asthma. The government should try to instill healthy habits of exercise on the youth as much as possible.
However, if gym is limited to a few hour-long blocks a month, what can really be accomplished? According to the Department of Agriculture, most people need about an hour of exercise a day to stay healthy. What is the point of physical education if it is just a drop in the bucket?
yea • Mar 27, 2017 at 9:50 PM
I think physical education is necessary in the growth and development of a child. It keeps the balance between academic work and physical activities. Many students would not think to exercise if it weren’t mandatory, therefore we would have more unhealthy children. This may even inspire them to continue on a healthy lifestyle afterwards. Physical Education also carves a door open for opportunities in life. This may include: careers in gymnastics, track and field, football, volleyball and other sports. Without sports in schools less and less people would think of playing sports for a living and eventually it would be extinct.
~Later Days
Bailey • Jan 2, 2013 at 7:56 PM
I am a high school student from Northern Virginia and I must say that our Physical Education system is completely and utterly worthless. My school offers numerous sports and Advanced PE for those who want to take it, so regular PE is just a mass of about 80 utterly unenthusiastic students forced (at risk of seeing their grade drop) to run laps and occasionally do P90x's Ab Ripper program, all while being "supervised" by only two teachers without any qualifications who are more interested in chatting with each other than making sure people are exercising properly and not causing injury to themselves.
I believe fundamentally that it is the parent's responsibility, not the schools responsibility, to encourage healthy lifestyles for their children. Forcing kids to take the class, knowing full well that they don't want to be there and won't give it any effort as a consequence, is completely fruitless and serves only to waste my time.
Last year, before I started mandatory PE, I exercised regularly and took it very seriously, but now that I'm in high school I've become very active in the Drama Department and have made the choice to sacrifice my exercise time for memorizing-lines time. This is 100% my personal choice, but my school is telling me that my choices regarding my own physical health are not mine to make, that they have some higher understanding of what is right for me and that it is their duty to instill in me good exercise habits because I'm incapable of making that decision on my own. I not only reject this premise, I find it highly offensive to me, my parents, and every other student at my school. I couldn't more strongly support the school offering Advanced PE and a plethora of sports, but giving people the option of going down that path is very different from telling them they have to.
Guest • Nov 28, 2010 at 4:27 PM
People who do sports with the school really don't need gym class. It's not just that we don't have gym enough days a week, it's that it's tends to be boring, and many people would rather sleep or study for other classes. Also, the activites that we do really don't require much effort. We are not going to get fit by standing and hitting a golf ball against a wall eighty times in a row.
student athlete • May 3, 2010 at 2:39 PM
I think that the biggest problem with gym in the high school is that for the many many students that play sports or do some sort of physical activity after school, it seems like a waste of time. If we had a longer gym block with time to shower and to get ready to go back to school, people would be more motivated to fully participate in gym. But who wants to get all gross in the middle of the day? And, like I said before, there are many students that play sports after school and perfectly active and healthy, so why should they have to spend time during the day doing what they will be doing for two hours after school? It would be more beneficial to the student athletes to be able to get their work done during a free so that after sports they have less to do (more sleep…). The necessity of gym class is different for someone who doesn't do any physical activty from someone who plays a sport five or six days a week.
2011 • Apr 26, 2010 at 12:02 AM
great article
Anonymous • Apr 20, 2010 at 2:41 PM
Sadly, a culture exists that is valuing academic achievement over emotional & physical well being. Don’t we want to generate healthy solid individuals? Given recent events, this should strike even more of a chord. Kids are totally pressured. There is a stigma that comes from not taking honors or advanced classes. Have to be earning those points! We are pressured, anxious and stressed over our grades. What is the most prescribed remedy for stress, anxiety, & depression? EXERCISE!!! And one of the easiest places to turn can be substance abuse. Maybe the current physical education system is lacking, but having none is even scarier. Mr. Tutwiler's dream physical education program would be a sound investment & could be a serious part of the curriculum. BUT HEY, that would mean money & a less fancy new campus. Priorities people. This town's attitudes & priorities are going to come back and bite it in the face. Keeping up appearances or molding healthy, happy students. What a dilemma! What messages are being sent? If physical education here is a joke, who is ultimately responsible for allowing it to be so? Our ever critical & complacent student body or the town? What would happen if the student body said enough already?
less not more • Apr 16, 2010 at 4:06 PM
i'd rather spend more time in classes ill use and do my physical activity outside of school.. phys ed is a waste of time that could be used for more important things like class or study time. less p.e. would be better
Allen Acierto • Jan 21, 2014 at 5:06 PM
I like cheese