Longer CPS school day and Physical Education

Commencing in the 2012-13 school year CPS elementary schools will have a longer school day. That's long overdo and welcome! Now the question becomes, what to do with the added minutes.

As reported by the Chicago Sun Times a good deal of the discussion, between the interested parties, on lengthening the school day, involves adding Physical Education to the curriculum. Right now 'few, if any, CPS elementary schools have daily PE, even though CPS has no official waiver from the state.'

Beyond the absence of PE from the elementary school curriculum, high school students, at the most, get one year of physical education. Currently the CPS system has a state granted waiver for roughly 36,000 of the 42,000 11th and 12th graders.

In my mind, this is a health nightmare. Why, because too many CPS children have very real problems with 'obesity, diabetes and early-onset hypertension' according to Chicago Teachers Union President Karen Lewis.'

Sadly, these health issues are very real. Also, when the cost of getting rid of the waivers and putting Physical Education in the longer school day comes up then people tend to get nervous. Some educators estimate the cost of bringing PE to all students to be $20,000,000. Given the shortfall in the current budget, adding on this cost is likely to cool off the desire to add the benefits of PE to a longer school day.

Sad indeed, sad for the kids who really need the exercise.

Dick