Kids protest new exercise requirement

[The Shadow]

I think this article definitely belongs in this section.

What the hell is wrong with kids today? :mad:

'Get moving,' Education Ministry tells high-school students
Requirement for physical activity hiked to 30 minutes a day


http://www.canada.com/theprovince/news/story.html?id=b48fb5de-252b-45b7-b892-80f05f06da7a

[ThePhoneGoddess]

I think the problem here is not that the kids dont want PE (OK, well some of them dont want it at all, but I suspect most have other objections) but that the new rules are vague, were implemented at the last minute and now their schedules are up in the air again.

Are they going to eliminate a subject to make sure these kids get an extra hour of exercise a day? Or are they going to try and make them do it on their own time? Cause I guarantee you some of those kids come from poor families, and they spend their after school hours either working to help with bills or working on the family farm or business. Kids like that are more likely to drop out of school if the school makes them choose between getting their diploma and putting food on the table. Sad but true.

[Sylvia727]

It didn't sound to me like the majority of the protesters were the "kids these days" types. Rather than protest the exercise itself, they're protesting the lack of planning and guidelines; in short, they're protesting the Ministry's incompetence. When one nearly quadruples a graduation requirement, one needs to ensure that the proposed changes are feasible. Since the students were not informed of all the requirements when they chose their classes, they are no longer on track with their education through no fault of their own. I would protest that too.

[anriana]

I had to waste one of my class slots for "PE," aka walking laps around a gym for an hour every other day when I was a volleyball player and practicing two hours a day during the season and running or lifting weights everyday in the offseason. If the school board had tried to raise that I would have protested. If they had tried to ninja raisee it after I had made my schedule, I would be doing far more protesting than making a page on Facebook.

P.E. just isn't a subject that should be taught in high school, unless it's going to be a highly structured class designed to teach people how to exercise.

[Greenday]

Whoopdeefreakingdoo. My high school mandated 3 years of gym. So 3/4 marking periods each year you took gym. The other marking period each year was health. I still got a good education. I still had history, math, english, spanish, science, band, and other electives. And my schedule didn't vary day to day. I had 8 classes a semester (includes one period where I'd take study hall), so that's 7 actual classes. Take out gym and...I still have 6 other periods for classes. Plenty of room for "real" classes. The only people I knew who complained about gym in high school were girls who didn't want to break a sweat and guys who were lazy as hell.

[protege]

I took health class in high school. Boring as hell, and the biggest waste of time ever. Why? Well, my mother is a nurse, and works for the county health department. My feeling was, why should I have to listen to boring lectures...when I have her at home to answer questions?

[Greenday]

I took health class in high school. Boring as hell, and the biggest waste of time ever. Why? Well, my mother is a nurse, and works for the county health department. My feeling was, why should I have to listen to boring lectures...when I have her at home to answer questions?

Because most kids don't so that's why it's mandated everyone has to. I mean, I wonder why, majoring in Forensic & Toxicological Chem I need to take arts classes, lit classes, or philosophy classes, but for some unknown reason I have to take them anyway.

[anriana]

Whoopdeefreakingdoo. My high school mandated 3 years of gym. So 3/4 marking periods each year you took gym. The other marking period each year was health. I still got a good education. I still had history, math, english, spanish, science, band, and other electives. And my schedule didn't vary day to day. I had 8 classes a semester (includes one period where I'd take study hall), so that's 7 actual classes. Take out gym and...I still have 6 other periods for classes. Plenty of room for "real" classes. The only people I knew who complained about gym in high school were girls who didn't want to break a sweat and guys who were lazy as hell.

And what did you do in gym? Play basketball for one class a day?

[Boozy]

I don't have a strong opinion on this either way, because I haven't thought about it much. But I'm appalled by the comments section on the news article site. It seems these people are just assuming that these kids are fat and lazy, and there could be no other reason for their dissatisfaction with the curriculum change. In fact, there are dozens of reasons why someone may not like this idea, like they'd rather be spending their time studying, prepping for university, working, or doing community service. Maybe they just think it's going to be a poorly run program.

But no, it couldn't be a matter of these students taking their education and lives into their own hands. It must be because they're all lazy. They're all worthless teenagers, right?

I would love to see some photos of the authors of these comments. Are they in top physical condition? Likely not.

[Greenday]

And what did you do in gym? Play basketball for one class a day?

Basketball, dodgeball, kickball, wiffleball, football, soccer, hackeysack, track, handball.

The list used to be a lot longer when my mom was there. Back then it also used to include archery, fencing, track AND field, gymnastics, etc.

Seriously though, if you play the game and don't half-ass it, you work up a good sweat and burn a lot of calories.

[Arcade Man D]

Not to sound like an asshole, but a lot of people *didn't* read the article.

The requirements went to 2.5 hours per week, or 30 minutes per day, not 1 hour per day.

Which is pretty much what I had between PE and seemingly intentional classes on opposite sides of the high school with a 4 minute passing period.

[protege]

I mean, I wonder why, majoring in Forensic & Toxicological Chem I need to take arts classes, lit classes, or philosophy classes, but for some unknown reason I have to take them anyway.

Yeah, but in those classes, you can actually learn something. Our health class consisted of...listening to one of the coaches whining about his losing football season :rolleyes:

[Greenday]

Yeah, but in those classes, you can actually learn something. Our health class consisted of...listening to one of the coaches whining about his losing football season :rolleyes:

I think that just comes down to whether or not the teacher teaches. I'm sure there is stuff to learn regardless in health. I learned all about STDs, safe sex, driving, and drugs/alcohol in my health classes.

[AdminAssistant]

There are so many things that kids need to be learning - oh so desperately. How to play various sports shouldn't be one of them. Hell, if it were up to me, there wouldn't be athletics in school, PERIOD. Why? Because schools waste ridiculous amounts of money on the equipment, fields/gyms/stadiums, and coaching staff that could be put to much better use - say on hiring competent teachers and maintaining classrooms.

By the time a kid is 15, the school should not be responsible for their physical health.

[Sylvia727]

Of all the classes I took in high school, the most useful one was my culinary class. We didn't just learn how to cook, we learned what was in our food and how to eat healthily. For our final project, we had to cook a meal at home and serve it to our families. We were graded on appearence, courses, and most importantly on the nutritional values of the meals we planned and served. Before that class, I had some vague ideas that potato chips and soda weren't the most optimal diet, but I didn't know what was good for my body and my taste buds. If kids were taught that in every high school, obesity might not be on the rise among that demographic.

High schoolers need PE and health classes. But they need to be learning how to do it for themselves. Getting the kids to run around the gym will keep them healthy for a day, but teaching them how to exercise will keep them healthy for a lifetime. It seems to me that too many of our high school classes simply do the planning for the kids instead of teaching them how to plan, and when the students can't do the work on their own, they are called lazy and unmotivated.

[Flyinghi]

There are so many things that kids need to be learning - oh so desperately. How to play various sports shouldn't be one of them. Hell, if it were up to me, there wouldn't be athletics in school, PERIOD. Why? Because schools waste ridiculous amounts of money on the equipment, fields/gyms/stadiums, and coaching staff that could be put to much better use - say on hiring competent teachers and maintaining classrooms.

By the time a kid is 15, the school should not be responsible for their physical health.

no offense but I couldn't possibly disagree more !! I would even argue that on some level organized sports teaches children things that are as important or in some cases more important then those thought in the class room

Now for the record I've played sports ( badly ) for most of my life and I used to coach little kids in hockey. If done right, sports teaches a child how to set goals and achieve them, social skills, critical thinking, teamwork, self-discipline, self-awareness. leadership, planning and improvisation among others

all these things are invaluable in all aspects of life not to mention the physical benefits

I do agree that sports are not a catch all answer Many people don't care for sports or simply are not interested in participating for their own reasons and that's perfectly fine but please don't dismiss Physical Education so readily For a great many kids it is exactly what they need

[DesignFox]

Maybe I'm weird, but when we had a good teacher, I actually liked gym class. My gym teacher senior year let me play with all the guys because I actually wanted to participate and work up a sweat (and the guys actually LET me play on their teams). The girls in my class were not the type to participate and I hated being forced to work with them.

I think PE IS important because it forces kids to get up off their asses and blow off steam for a little while. Everyone needs a mental break in their day whether they admit it or not. I think if the programs were better planned and TAUGHT kids different sports, it would be much more enjoyable. I know I got a choice of what sports I could take each marking period...I could choose something suitable to my interests and physical limitations.

I agree that if walking around the gym is all your teacher makes you do, you're going to resent it. That's NOT the way to run a PE class, and certainly doesn't teach you anything. I hated "walk around the gym" days, and the teachers that made us do shit like that. I wanted to PLAY.

I don't think the kids are being lazy, I think they are protesting the sudden upheaval of their schedules. When I was in school, most of my shit was carefully planned out because I had a FULL to the brim list of classes and activities. I'd be pissed if someone fucked around with it at the last minute, too.

[anriana]

High schoolers need PE and health classes. But they need to be learning how to do it for themselves. Getting the kids to run around the gym will keep them healthy for a day, but teaching them how to exercise will keep them healthy for a lifetime. It seems to me that too many of our high school classes simply do the planning for the kids instead of teaching them how to plan, and when the students can't do the work on their own, they are called lazy and unmotivated.

Exactly.

Learning how to lift weights or do cardio effectively? That's a class, and information one can use later in life.

Playing hackeysack and basketball? Not so much.

[ThePhoneGoddess]

If done right, sports teaches a child how to set goals and achieve them, social skills, critical thinking, teamwork, self-discipline, self-awareness. leadership, planning and improvisation among others

I was forced to play sports both in school and outside of it and I did not learn a single one of those things from it.

The problem is that a lot of western cultures emphasize sports so strongly that it distorts the positive values that COULD come from it. It is encoded in modern culture. Everyone knows the stereotype of the jock: the dumb meathead whose teachers let him slide without working because he's an asset to their football team, and who likes to pick on weaker kids. It is a stereotype precisely because it is so common; nearly everyone has known one. The winning football team is more important than the jock's education, more important than the geek's self-esteem, more important than teachers actually doing their jobs and trying to discipline or make the jock learn something.

In a lot of western culture the emphasis on sports is not teamwork, or self-discipline, or anything else that you listed. The emphasis is on winning NO MATTER WHAT. And if you're not good enough to help win, you're simply worthless. The reason so many people hate sports is because this is the one thing they learned from it growing up.

Kids need physical education, especially now that obesity is such a big problem among the young. But there is a reason why it is the most hated class among teenagers. Our cultural emphasis on sports is so twisted that any kid who is not interested in it, or---god forbid!---uncoordinated, is made to feel like there is something fundamentally wrong with them.

You are lucky that you learned those things from your sports experiences. There are millions of us who did not.

[AdminAssistant]

If done right, sports teaches a child how to set goals and achieve them, social skills, critical thinking, teamwork, self-discipline, self-awareness. leadership, planning and improvisation among others

I learned all of those things....doing theatre.

Look, I'm not saying that all PE is bad. I'm saying that a lot of it is pointless. I'd rather the kids be in class actually learning something - like history or math or science or literature.

[Seshat]

I think children need to learn all the following stuff SOMEWHERE. School is supposed to be life prep, so let's teach them this stuff in school.


* Basic health, nutrition, and exercise. How to maintain your body.
The fact that you can maintain your body's exercise requirements by gardening, housecleaning (vigorously), throwing frisbees or flying kites as easily as you can by going to the gym. How to know whether you're maintaining your body's exercise requirements.
How to know when to go to the doctor, when to go to a pharmacist, or when you can handle a problem at home. How to handle problems at home. How to make and maintain a fully stocked first aid kit. How to give first aid.
Nutrition, food safety, and enough cooking to make a variety of meals if provided with raw veggies, raw meat (or tofu or whatever), and raw grains and/or bread and/or pasta. They don't have to be fancy meals, but enough to keep a person fed, healthy, and not feeling deprived.

* Basic political participation, including how to write an effective letter to your local member - and how to find out who that is. How to determine which candidates you have available to vote for, how to determine what those candidates' policies are (or at least, claim to be), and how to vote. What your political rights are in your country. (Note that this class varies considerably depending on country!)

* Basic law. Enough to cope in society without actually getting into trouble out of ignorance. Also, how to find out other legal stuff given the resources of a typical public library.

* How to use your typical public library!

* Basic finance. The fact that you have to repay credit cards! How to pay bills, how to live within your means, how to extend your means, how to get help when you need it.

* Basic housekeeping. How to maintain a tidy and hygenic home. Not Home Beautiful, but home -safe-. Basic cleaning, basic mending, when to call in an expert, when to go hit your library for a DIY book. When it's not safe to DIY -ever- unless you happen to be a plumber/electrician/etc.

* Basic social skills. Sure, lots of people do this easily, but some don't.
How to make and maintain friendships.
How to deal with workplace politics without drowning.
How to effectively and politely complain when something goes wrong (at work, with a product you bought from a store, whatever).
How to get a job.
How to KEEP a job.
What the heck jobs are all about (lots of folks think of them backwards - that jobs are about them getting money, not about trading money for results).
How to think about things from the other guy's POV, and how to use that to improve your social effectiveness.

* How to actually have fun in life.
How to live your life for NOW, not for 'later, when I'm rich/ married/ thin/ pretty/ out of school/ out of uni/ retired'.
How to accept life's downs (disability, illness, poverty, sheer bad luck) and get on with living anyway.
Basics on appreciating art, music, film, walks in the park, walks in the forest, etc.

* Basic emotional management.
Most especially, dealing with the negative emotions. But also enjoying and appreciating the positive.

* Respecting other cultures and religions.
(Preferably with some comparative religion and comparative anthropology.)

[Greenday]

I learned all of those things....doing theatre.

Look, I'm not saying that all PE is bad. I'm saying that a lot of it is pointless. I'd rather the kids be in class actually learning something - like history or math or science or literature.

What exactly is pointless? It all depends on what you want to do with life. For instance, I'm going to be working in a crime lab some day. So theoretically, for what I'm going to do in life, most literature (such as novels, poems, etc.) is pointless for me. Most sociology type things are pointless for me. Any and all art is pointless for me. I only REALLY need science, math, and criminology. So just because only those few things are relevant to what I want to do with my life doesn't mean available classes should be based on that.

[the_std]

I think children need to learn all the following stuff SOMEWHERE. School is supposed to be life prep, so let's teach them this stuff in school.

(awesome list here)

That list depresses me. I doubt I learned even a quarter of that in school. Although, I did learn most of it, either on my own or through my family/friends.

[Sylvia727]

I still haven't learned some of the things on Seshat's list, but instead learned coping mechanisms on how to deal with the knowledge's absence. Why can't school curriculums be written with an eye to what their students will really need to know?