Physical education

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Image:Gymnasium Instruction NGM-v31-p349.jpg In most educational systems, physical education (PE), also called physical training (PT) or gym in less progressive settings, is a course in the curriculum which utilizes learning in the cognitive, affective and psycho motor domains in a play or movement exploration setting. In the United States, it is almost always mandatory for students in elementary schools, and often for students in middle schools and high schools.

The primary aim of physical education is to equip students with the knowledge, skills, capacities, and values along with the enthusiasm to maintain a healthy lifestyle into adulthood. Some schools also require physical education as a way to promote weight loss in students. Activities included in the program are designed to promote physical fitness, to develop motor skills, to instill knowledge and understanding of rules, concepts, and strategies, and to teach students to work as part of a team, or as individuals, in a wide variety of competitive activities.

The first collegiate institution in the world to offer an academic programme in physical education was the Michigan State Normal College (now, Eastern Michigan University) in 1890. About the year 2000, however, the name of the discipline at EMU was changed from "Physical Education" to "Human Performance Studies."

1 Curriculum
2 Clothing
3 Criticism
4 See also
5 References
6 External links

[edit] Curriculum

In the United States, the physical education curriculum is designed to allow students to experience at least a minimum exposure to the following categories of activities: aquatics, conditioning activities, gymnastics, individual/dual sports, team sports, and rhythms and dance. Students are encouraged to continue to explore those activities in which they have a primary interest by effectively managing their community resources. In these areas, a planned sequence of learning experiences is designed to support a progression of student development.

American physical education activities include:

American football, flag or touch
Aerobics
Aquatics
Aqua-fitness
Archery
Badminton
Basketball
Bocce Ball
Canoeing
Cardiovascular Stations
Conditioning activities, e.g., Exercise, Weight training
Coneball
Croquet
Cultural Games & Activities
Dance and rhythmics, e.g., Square dancing
Field Hockey
Floor Hockey
Golf
Gymnastics
Jump Rope
Kickboxing
Kayaking
Lacrosse, usually in the form of Sofcrosse.
Low organized games, e.g., Capture the flag
Net Games
Paddling
Pickleball
Roller hockey
Rollerblading
Running (Track and Cross Country)
Sailing
Skateboarding
Soccer
Softball
Surfing
Swimming
Takraw
table tennis
Tennis
Track and field
Volleyball
Voyaging
Water Polo
Wrestling

In all states in the United States, physical education is offered to students from grades K to 12. However, Illinois is the only state that requires physical education in all schools (even private schools) for all grade levels. Mandatory physical education is up to each individual State and school district. Most States do require physical education 6th-9th grade and offer "elective" physical education classes 10th-12th grades. Many school districts, especially those with limited budgets, cut back or eliminate on physical education from the curriculum. About two dozen states required physical education in secondary schools in 2001, that number has since gone down.

In Canada, physical education is required up to grade 10, although some provinces are considering extending this to grade 12. In the United States, individual states determine the requirement for physical education in their schools; requirements in middle schools and high schools vary widely from state to state.

In France, physical education is required from age 6 to age 16 (mandatory schooling period). It is actually taught by specialized state teachers to all secondary school students, mostly in coeducational classes : 4 hours/week at age 11, 3 hours/week from age 12 to 15 and 2 hours/week from age 16 to 18. National programs and contents refer to the contemporary physical culture: sports, dance and circus.

In the United Kingdom, sports like netball, cricket and rugby are also played.

In Romania and Moldova, oina (which is similar to baseball), rugby, basketball and soccer are popular sports played in PE classes.

In New Zealand and Australia, softball, cricket, Australian rules football and sometimes rugby are played.

In Japan, physical education is more like what are known as health classes in the United States, although some Japanese high schools, especially in Hokkaido, have the more common version.

In Sweden, sports like floorball and brännboll are played, along with internationally known sports such as soccer, basketball and volleyball.

In Spain, sports like soccer, basketball, handball and volleyball are played from primary education to bachillerato.

[edit] Clothing

The majority of schools require pupils to changes into a different set of clothing for physical education, so as to improve hygiene and to increase the ability to move freely during activities. The physical education uniform typically comprises shorts or sweat pants, a t-shirt and a pair of trainers. A common uniform consists of a white t-shirt and shorts in the school colour, but this is not a universal rule.

Occasionally, certain activities will require a special uniform. For example, some schools require swimming as part of the physical education curriculum. In this case, students typically have to wear a bathing suit in either the school colour or black with a swimming cap of the same colour. Also, in games with two or more teams, students usually have to wear coloured jerseys or cape-like garments over the usual uniform as a way of identifying team members.

In some countries, children wear plimsolls on their feet, and even in some schools the children are required to participate in bare feet. This is common in the UK, especially in gymnastics and dance lessons. A pupil who forgets to bring his or her "kit" may be asked to remove their school shoes and socks and participate in their school uniform and bare feet, although this is very uncommon. Some schools give the children the option of what to wear on their feet, whether it is trainers or nothing at all, although this is usually not the case in the United States. However, it should be noted that while rare, some American schools allow children to go Barefoot in PE lessons.

Image:Gym.jpg

PE uniform (notice the students are all barefoot)

[edit] Criticism

There is some disagreement about required PE classes, especially in the upper grades and at the college level. Physical Education is promoted as a way to teach students about teamwork and sports, but also is a means to develop and maintain physical fitness. The latter goal requires regular activity. PE grading scales should be based on more than just athletic ability so that students who do not excel in sports have an opportunity to receive respectable grades, as these grades may be included in their GPA (which colleges look at when considering students for admission).

[edit] See also

[edit] References

Pangrazi, R. P. (2002). Dynamic Physical Education for Secondary School Students (4th ed.). San Francisco, CA: Benjamin Cummings.
Pangrazi, R. P. (2004). Dynamic Physical Education for Elementary School Children (14th ed.). Menlo Park, CA: Addison-Wesley.
Siedentop, D., Hastie, P. A., & van der Mars, H. (2004). Complete Guide to Sport Education. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.
Pérez García, Á., Molina Jiménez, J.A., Millán Galindo, J.D. "Spanish Education". 2005.
C. Jensen & S. Overman. Administration and Management of physical education and Athletic Programs. 4th edition. Waveland Press, 2003.
J. Stillwell & C. Willgoose. The Physical Education Curriculum. 5th edition. Waveland Press, 2002.
D. Siedentop. Introduction to Physical Education, Fitness, and Sport. McGraw Hill, 2003
D. Van Dalen. A World History of Physical Education: Cultural, Philosophical, Comparative. 2nd edition. Prentice-Hall, 1971.
Kelly E. Duell, M.A. "Standard-Based Physical Education: Complete Lesson Plans for Children." 1st edition. Human Kinetics, 2006-2007.