The Worlds Leading Programme for Childrens Health & Exercise
Do our children need to be having physical tests within the school curriculum?
Sports medicine specialists say governments across the UK have squandered the chance to create an Olympic legacy of fitness. Their conference in London is calling for mandatory “physical literacy” tests in schools, alongside reading and maths*. The argument put forward was that with rising obesity in the UK, the Olympic legacy opportunity and general sedentary lifestyles; Physical Education should be up on the podium with English and Maths.
Being a former PE teacher and currently work in the world of young children and fitness it would be correct to assume where my allegiance is on this topic (in favour)! It is a known fact that if a child is not exposed to fundamental motor skills by the age of five they will not reach their true potential. There are direct links between physical capabilities and learning. We have written the Stretch-n-Grow curriculum with this in mind and encourage activities that help brain development and this early intervention also helps with earlier identification of children who might have learning difficulties when they develop the skills of reading and writing. All our franchisees and coaches are trained so that delivery of the themed lessons offer opportunities for the individual child to develop the necessary physical skills that will carry on into their adulthood.
The recent coverage was in the typical media shock approach of have a catchy by-line and knows that this will create a divide in opinion. The divide in this case is the ‘jocks’ against the academics. Unfortunately, there wasn’t any reference to the link between physical activity and learning and the impression given of the ‘tests’ recreates the dread of those who disliked PE at school. However, the dinosaur that was the wet miserable cross country run has evolved to a complex beast that actually involves planning, delivery and review of content. There is now a clear division between PE and Games. PE is aimed at the development of skills, fitness and general well being whilst games is more specific and is usually team related and or competition driven.
Government funding is rarely focused on PE because of the belief in the academic, social and health benefits but rather by the gauge of current public opinion or the drive for votes. Call me cynical but we have had so many rewrites of school curricula over the last twenty years not because of the need to improve in most instances but rather to justify a new government’s position in power. I don’t want this to turn in to a political rant but we must not be naive about statistics and theories when it comes to education.
Last year Stretch-n-Grow assigned some research to several Chester University students to assess the fundamental motor skills of preschool children. We measured children who participated in the programme and their peers who had not done the programme. Stretch-n-Grow participants scored better in a whole battery of tests. We did this last year…..before this article hit the news. We are addressing much younger children than the headlines suggest. Many researchers find preschoolers too ‘difficult’ to assess. We are proud that we are cutting edge and that we can communicate well with this young age and hopefully contribute to a lifetime of physical activity and learning.
*http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-15774788
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