Via Capitol Fax
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. Just a year ago, Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich (bluh-GOY’-uh-vitch) said he wanted to end exceptions to daily physical education classes in public schools.
Now his State Board of Education is suggesting ways to make it easier for schools to eliminate P-E. A report to the Legislature says state law could be changed to allow automatic exemptions in certain cases like for kids who play sports.
Spokeswoman Rebecca Rausch (ROWSH’) says Blagojevich is not reversing his position. She says Blagojevich believes schools should require physical activity but he is willing to help them eliminate bureaucracy to cut PE classes.
How about this–enforce the current law. P.E. has long been poorly done, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t a good and necessary idea. As a young kid I was always one of the last kids picked, but I was kept active and became a relatively inshape guy by 15 and kept up with that until I had twins. P.E. could have been structured better, but the idea of daily exercise in an increasingly lethargic society is a habit that needs to be taught-and it improves the mind.
And Blagojevich caved.
PE should be eliminated, at least past middle school. There is no reason to even allow the possibility of ruining a scholar’s GPA with a non-acedemic class. Most PE classes end up teaching dancing and ping pong at some point anyway, not real useful or athletic. PE should either be eliminated or a set standard of grading, not dependant on athletic abilities, should be enforced. Grade students on attendance rather than talent. Facts can be memorized but the ability to excell at dozens of sports during the year is unrealistic and only serves to rob students of scholarships or honor roll status. Every other class is offered in a “slow class” for students who just don’t learn it. PE is the only class that pits the superior against the inherantly disadvantaged. Having the quarterback play against the unathletic asthma patient is setting one up to fail, which should not be what our schools do to kids.