School To Offer Online Physical Education

An Ohio high tech high school will offer online physical education this fall. The question? "Is it cutting edge or cutting class?"

"The program offers a personalized fitness plan for all levels of student capabilities with added accountability," said Shannon Duff, physical education instructor for Butler Technology and Career Development Schools.

Each week students in the class will be required to participate in 220 minutes of physical activity. During the activity, they wear heart rate monitors that records how long an activity occurred. This data is automatically transferred to a wrist watch device — also worn while exercising — that stores the information to the instructor's computer.

A personalized exercise program for the student is designed by the physical education instructor. Each program is a blend of cardiovascular and muscular fitness activities. The exercise can include any activities that interest the student such as swimming, skateboarding, rock climbing, baseball or running.

In most states the physical fitness course of study described above would be viewed as only one aspect of a well rounded physical education curriculum. However, as in the case of Ohio which does not require a state assessment for physical education nor have they developed State Physical Education Content Standards the "course of study is vague" allowing for a physical education online course that requires only physical fitness components. While being physically fit is an admirable goal, it is but one component in a course of study that students require to acquire the knowledge to be both lifelong learners and skilled in leisure sports and activities.

Peaceful Playgrounds has Physical Education Documents for Writing Curriculum and Improving Your Program they include: 1. Physical Education - How’s Your School Doing?, 2. Physical Education Program Checklist, 3. Physical Education Curriculum Analysis (CDC's PECAT), and 4. Strategies for Teaching Large Class Sizes.
Documents can be downloaded from the bottom of the page.