Dennis Lemmon (Dennis_lemmon)
New member
Username: Dennis_lemmon
Post Number: 1
Registered: 11-2008
| | Posted on Friday, January 23, 2009 - 11:26 am: |       |
Forgive me! It appears that this is more like a book then a thread. This is my first attempt of communicating on this forum. I teach for the Department of Defense Schools and I am very much interested in knowing which states allow grading on physical health skills? Your thoughts on this matter is greatly appreciated.
An Argument for grading physical health skills!
Today we are suffering from an obesity epidemic and all the health problems related to not moving the body and not eating nutritiously. Just the other day I heard that they have discovered increased numbers of diabetes in the kindergarten and elementary schools in our district. This is shocking news! What can we do to improve the situation? We are a data driven school system. We have data to help make our decisions in education (the Terra Nova scores). Most of us have read the studies that show fit students do indeed learn more and achieve higher standards. If we do want those Terra Nova scores to go up, then we should insure that our students are healthy and fit. Where is the data indicating how healthy and fit our students are? We need to start testing our students for their physical health and evaluating the data. We should test all children for their body composition and for the strength of their cardiovascular system. If we started this evaluation method in the elementary schools and counseled those students at risk, we may have healthier students in high school and thus better learners. There should be no fear for physical education teachers to grade/assess students on their physical health skills.
Grades symbolize the progress and cumulative achievements of individual students in a form that can be communicated to them and to their parents. Periodic assessments on standards taught during the grading period are the basis of the grade for that period. Physical fitness and physical activity is one of the three major strands in our School System’s standards. We are a performance based educational society, and thus fitness should be used for grading. Every subject area (math, science, history music) is graded on their various skills. It is just as important to develop good health skills--- in fact, even more important. Students take the various national tests, Terra Nova, the SAT, the ACT to see how well they have learned their skills. In real life today how well a student has learned their physical health skills will play a bigger and bigger role. The military constantly evaluates their troops to see if they are healthy and fit for life. They do this by testing the five health components of fitness: cardiovascular strength, muscular strength, muscular endurance, flexibility and body composition. Today companies and their insurance agencies are checking on the physical health of their potential working force. The obesity epidemic and the rising cost of the health related illnesses are the cause for these checks on one’s physical health and their skills to maintain good health.
I do not think that physical activity and fitness (physical health skills) should be the sole basis for a student’s grade, but a portion of it. One must consider the other strands and standards, such as Personal and Social Development Skills, Motor Skills and Movement Patterns to assess our students.
I have found that grading on physical health skills is a major motivator for my students throughout the year. Our students and their parents are motivated by grades. Just recently I retested the mile run and I had a 90% improvement rate of students from their previous record---some even by five minutes. When I test the cardiovascular strength, the students are evaluated in two areas: 1. Fitness! How efficient the cardiovascular system is. 2. Effort! How hard the student works. Using the heart monitors is a great method to assess the work ethic.
A student may have a low fitness standard which gives them a C- grade. If they work hard and have a high heart rate average they could receive an A grade for their effort. So we have a student that is not very fit but is working very hard to have a more efficient cardiovascular system and they will receive a B grade for the assignment.
At our school the physical education department probably has the highest success rate for their students in comparison to any other subject area. We have high standards but we have a student friendly system that gives all students a chance to have great success.
One of the most important things that can be taught in any physical education class is how to be healthy for life. In order for one to be healthy for life they must know how to use the health skills that will make them healthy for life.
“Physical fitness is not only one of the most important keys to a healthy body; it is the basis of dynamic and creative intellectual activity.” John F Kennedy
Why not then evaluate it and assess it with great vigor!
Sincerely
Denny Lemmon
Bitburg High School
Physical Education
denny.lemmon@eu.dodea.edu
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