What is physical education?
From time to time, including a recent report and letter, sports in schools is featured in the media. Invariably, it seems, football, and sometimes other team and competitive games, are mistaken for being the physical education programme. As much as...
From time to time, including a recent report and letter, sports in schools is featured in the media. Invariably, it seems, football, and sometimes other team and competitive games, are mistaken for being the physical education programme. As much as they should form part of the physical education programme, competitive team games should only be part of it.
The physical education programme in the schools should be comprised of a number of units. First and foremost, it should be aimed at instilling in the students, from an early age, a love of physical activity. Secondly, a build-up of physical skills, completely separate from a competitive situation, which can eventually be used in games. Some children are natural athletes - give them a ball and they can throw it, catch it, kick it and do lots more with it.
The same with any other skill.
Teachers and coaches who say that children will learn on the field obviously overlook, make that discriminate against, the child who is picked last to be on a team, spends more time on the sidelines and is pushed aside by team-mates when on the field. A child experiencing success with handling a ball, in whatever way, using hands, feet, a bat will be more confident to participate and will enjoy it, as well. Plus, not everyone is keen on team games.
Experiencing success with hitting a ball with a bat might encourage taking up tennis or other similar games. It will be a physical activity that one can carry on in later life, as well. Not many of us can find another 21 friends to form two football teams and some officials to play a game on a Saturday morning when we have family responsibilities.
I can go on and sing the praises of building up of physical fitness, stamina and strength. There is a life-long value of having the exposure to and the learning of skills and love for individual sport which, in the long run, might be the only realistic and possible one for most of us. Often not as a sport but as a means of maintaining both our physical and mental health.