I was never a big fan of PE. I blame dodge ball in gym class. Being picked last and then being pelted by big rubber balls can ruin you for life in the pursuit of all things athletic.
Recently, a new survey found that a whopping 92 percent of parents consider physical education and health education as important as English, math and science instruction. Now, sure, I think physical activity is important and I'm all for letting kids get the occasional break from fractions and diagramming sentences (OK, they don't really do that anymore) but to put flag football in the same category as English, math and science is just silly.
However, according to the survey released by the Alliance for a Healthier Generation, that's what an overwhelming majority of parents think.
I think it's sad when recess gets taken away in elementary school, but I understand why my 6th grader doesn't have time to play in middle school. His day is so hectic and filled with learning that there's no time for it. It's unfortunate, but I get it. The way his electives worked out this year, he'll have PE once and health once. The other quarters he has computers and art. I'm good with that.
I would never, ever sacrifice a minute of math, science or English for PE or health. He can ride his bike or shoot baskets with the neighborhood kids when (and if) he has time after he finishes his homework. But the smart stuff comes first.
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I saw this study and was on the fence about it. It is hard for me to decide where I think PE lies in importance to the academic day. I sat through a very long, interesting presentation once (by a gym-type company selling gym-type products and services to a school district) and I learned lots of statistics about how the running around actually helps a student's brain function better throughout the day. Test scores are higher when the daily PE opportunity is there but you are right; would I sacrifice actual classroom time for jumping jacks? I just don't know. I was always cheating at the jumping jacks...
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