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Why
Children Need Physical Education
Physical education is an integral part of the total education of every child
in Kindergarten through Grade 12. Quality physical education programs are
needed to increase the physical competence, health-related fitness,
self-responsibility and enjoyment of physical activity for all students so
that they can be physically active for a lifetime. Physical education
programs can only provide these benefits if they are well-planned and
well-implemented.
Improved Physical Fitness
Improves children's muscular strength, flexibility, muscular endurance, body
composition and cardiovascular endurance.
Skill Development
Develops motor skills, which allow for safe, successful and satisfying
participation in physical activities.
Regular, healthful physical activity
Provides a wide-range of developmentally appropriate activities for all
children.
Support of other Subject Areas
Reinforces knowledge learned across the curriculum.
Serves as a lab for application of content in science, math and social
studies.
Self Discipline
Facilitates development of student responsibility for health and fitness.
Improved judgment
Quality physical education can influence moral development. Students have
the opportunity to assume leadership, cooperate with others; question
actions and regulations and accept responsibility for their own behavior.
Stress reduction
Physical activity becomes an outlet for releasing tension and anxiety, and
facilitates emotional stability and resilience.
Strengthened peer relationships
Physical education can be a major force in helping children socialize with
others successfully and provides opportunities to learn positive people
skills. Especially during late childhood and adolescence, being able to
participate in dances, games and sports is an important part of peer
culture.
Improved self-confidence and self-esteem
Physical education instills a stronger sense of self-worth in children based
on their mastery of skills and concepts in physical activity. They can
become more confident, assertive, independent and self-controlled.
Experience Setting Goals
Gives children the opportunity to set and strive for personal, achievable
goals.
SURGEON
GENERAL'S REPORT
KEY MESSAGES
- Adolescents and young
adults, both male and female, benefit from physical activity.
- Physical activity need
not be strenuous to be beneficial.
- Moderate amounts of
daily physical activity are recommended for people of all ages. This
amount can be obtained in longer sessions of moderately intense
activities, such as brisk walking for 30 minutes, or in shorter sessions
of more intense activities, such as jogging or playing basketball for
15-20 minutes.
- Greater amounts of
physical activity are even more beneficial, up to a point. Excessive
amounts of physical activity can lead to injuries, menstrual
abnormalities, and bone weakening.
FACTS
- Nearly half of
American youths aged 12-21 years are not vigorously active on a regular
basis.
- About 14 percent of
young people report no recent physical activity. Inactivity is more common
among females (14%) than males (7%) and among black females (21%) than
white females (12%).
- Participation in all
types of physical activity declines strikingly as age or grade in school
increases.
- Only 19 percent of all
high school students are physically active for 20 minutes or more, five
days a week, in physical education classes.
- Daily enrollment in
physical education classes dropped from 42 percent to 25 percent among
high school students between 1991 and 1995.
- Well designed
school-based interventions directed at increasing physical activity in
physical education classes have been shown to be effective.
- Social support from
family and friends has been consistently and positively related to regular
physical activity.
A NEW VIEW OF PHYSICAL
ACTIVITY:
This report brings together,
for the first time, what has been learned about physical activity and health
from decades of research. Among its major findings:
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People who are usually
inactive can improve their health and well-being by becoming even
moderately active on a regular basis.
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Physical activity need not
be strenuous to achieve health benefits.
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Greater health benefits
can be achieved by increasing the amount (duration, frequency, or
intensity) of physical activity.
THE BENEFITS OF REGULAR
PHYSICAL ACTIVITY:
Regular physical activity
that is performed on most days of the week reduces the risk of developing or
dying from some of the leading causes of illness and death in the United
States. Regular physical activity improves health in the following ways:
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Reduces the risk of dying
prematurely.
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Reduces the risk of dying
from heart disease.
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Reduces the risk of
developing diabetes.
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Reduces the risk of
developing high blood pressure.
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Helps reduce blood
pressure in people who already have high blood pressure.
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Reduces the risk of
developing colon cancer.
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Reduces feelings of
depression and anxiety.
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Helps control weight.
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Helps build and maintain
healthy bones, muscles, and joints.
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Helps older adults become
stronger and better able to move about without falling.
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Promotes psychological
well-being.
WHAT COMMUNITIES CAN
DO
- Provide quality,
preferably daily, K-12 physical education classes and hire physical
education specialists to teach them.
- Create opportunities
for physical activities that are enjoyable, that promote adolescents' and
young adults' confidence in their ability to be physically active, and
that involve friends, peers, and parents.
- Provide appropriate
physically active role models for youths.
- Provide access to
school buildings and community facilities that enable safe participation
in physical activity.
- Provide a range of
extracurricular programs in schools and community recreation centers to
meet the needs and interests of specific adolescent and young adult
populations, such as racial and ethnic minority groups, females, persons
with disabilities, and low-income groups.
- Encourage health care
providers to talk routinely to adolescents and young adults about the
importance of incorporating physical activity into their lives.
FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:
- Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention
National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion
Division of Nutrition and Physical Activity, MS K-46
4770 Buford Highway, NE
Atlanta, Georgia 30341-3724
1-888-CDC-4NRG or 1-888-232-4674 (Toll Free)
http://www.cdc.gov
The President's
Council on Physical Fitness and Sports
Box SG
Suite 250
701 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20004
A view of Physical
Activity
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