I don't think it should be required. However without it, there would probably be a lot of unfit and overweight children. Maybe for elementary school, but for junior high and high school, no, unless you chose to. My school offers different types of physical training though. We have P.E, Weight Training (like a real Gym), JROTC Raider Team (hardcore ****). Also, please disable your signature when in the debate forum, it looks cleaner. =)
no, I've gone 2 years without a gym class. As long as you eat right you will never be overweight. Besides, it has no educational value at all.
The problem is nobody exercises anymore on their own. It's really kind of sickening. Everyday I row for about 3 hours (6-8 kilometers). I've found my "thing". It is the second most calorie burning sport next to boxing, and for every single kilometer rowed, is equal to the amount of calories burned in a basketball game. When the conditions aren't right, I workout inside, or go jogging. It's really easy if you put your mind to it, and since I want to be a doctor someday, I kind of have to be healthy. I don't think it's very fair, and is embarrassing how many people don't do the same just because they rather sit on their butt and watch tv, or not put down the fork. MORE than half of my class mates cannot do a single pull up. Something has to be done, and putting it in school is the only thing that can be done, because the government demands that children go, and is a time automatically set aside for them. It is not for all those stubborn people who don't like fat people because of their looks or habits in any way, but for the health of the future people. It is something proven good for you, so of course it should be in schools. I think you should be graded on self improvement, which is what my school does. If you run a mile in a few minutes, try to cut that time in half. As long as you improve, you get an A. I don't expect people to be able to pace themselves for hours, or do more than even 20 push ups, but come on. One pull up is something that you basically have to ask for or you are unhealthy. I only have GYM for one trimester, which I don't think is right, because health is one of those things that needs to be maintained at a consistent rate. I also think a reason why fat people do not like gym class is just because they are always beating themselves down about their body. They say to themselves "I'm ugly. I'm fat. Why should I even try. I don't even care anymore." Then the problem just gets worse and worse. Even if you feel self conscious while in gym class because there are others that are better, you still need to try.
I just swim... It works, I don't lose or gain anything, and I eat healthy. (Not 100% as I tend to eat fatty foods every once in a while) And I believe Gym should be forced, it gives students something to do. Considering that you only need to workout for about 40 minutes a day (Considering you are eating healthy) it works fine.
It also allows kids who don't play in after school sports/prep CEO sports a motivation to at least move. Personally, I run and play Lacrosse.
I do think that P.E. should be required at school, but I do not like that it is graded. At my school, you get graded in P.E. which seems to be vastly unfair to kids out there who are even the slightest bit fat. No, I'm not fat. I'm also not buff though. And I am relatively short for a 14 year old, but I think that it is just unfair. One gym teacher at my school grades a mile run like this <5:30-A <6:30-B <7:30-C <8:30-D. Anything more is pitiful and is a big fat F in yo face. That is basically how he grades as I have heard. So, I'm trying to work out more this year because I don't want a crappy P.E. grade. That would be gay.
We don't need anymore unfit teenagers in this world. It should be required. This debate seems a little ridiculous to me, because it's gym. It's there for your health. Appreciate that.
I do think gym class should be required. If it was not, americas overweight percentage would go way up and another reason is that kids would just go home, eat chips, spend hours on video games and not get in shape. Gym class is a time where you get exercise and stay fit. But with the exercise thing, it is also up to the parent to get the kid in shape. If the parents allow the kids to eat anything, spend as much time as they want on the TV, and not have them exercise, they are not doing there part. Even though a lot of people blame the kids for not getting enough exercise, the parent still has a part in it. I do come from a fit family. We eat healthy and get our exercise in. So for people thinking that gym class should not be a required, I disagree greatly.
maybe at the begining of the year students are weighed and those who are overweight would have it required and those who are fit would have it optional... since some people can eat all day and not gain a pound, and some people can eat a cookie and get 10 pounds, so its not completely there fault, just those who are overwieght need gym, the less-fat ones dont need it, srry for no long post
That would be completely demeaning for the overweight kids, because not only do you think that you might be overweight beforehand, your now pretty much getting told "Your fat" by the school administration.
yes i think it sould because for most kids the only exercise they get is in P.E. and even with P.E. those kids are fat as **** . i think there should also be a metal detector at the front door to keep those fat asses from bringing the own mess kitts! p.s. i don't hate fat people i have fat friends i just hate the ones that don't bother. edit: hate your sig sooooooooooooooo bad john mccain is a pecker.
hmm... didnt think about that well, now for argument #2 it all depends on what type of physical training you are doing, if your doing 7-mile swims and lift 20-pound weights, i no way should fatter kids be forced to do that, but if itse 2 laps around a gym, dogeball, or more of an easy0going recreational activity, then theres no excuse for not doiing it.
I think the P.E. curriculum is set so the amount of physical output is equal among students, so its just as demanding for everyone, except if a student is more unfit than another, it would be harder for them to do. If the administration created different workouts for different sized students it might be more beneficial, but as Wakko said, more demeaning. If they're playing a more easygoing sport, they could still have a hard time with the amount of exercise involved. So they shouldn't be pushed too far, just to their limits. Again, I think gym is beneficial to everyone.
Yeah it should be required it makes kids exercise who are out of shape and would otherwise not get any exercise at all, and it helps keep the healthy kids from turning into obese and unhealthy kids. Their are tons of kids who just go home after school and eat junk food and then sit in front of a TV or play video games and get no exercise, they become what most of us call "fat, Obese, and unhealthy". They do not take care of their bodies and grow up to be overweight and unhealthy with higher risks of heart problems and other medical complications in life. To be honest, gym class is a complete joke, athletes like myself have no problem doing the work in the class and can screw around because it is so easy, yet still appear to be doing well. The average kids have no problem completing the tasks and work and competing, but they might not be goofing off as much as they do have to apply them selves a bit. Then their is the out of shape and obese kids who... struggle, get picked last for teams (obviously) and have difficulty completing tasks that the rest of the class finds most easy, the mile run? kids finishing in over 10 minutes... Ridiculous if you ask me, a mile is nothing, their are people out their who run multiple miles, 5 miles and up, and we have kids who cannot complete a single mile in a reasonable amount of time. I usually eat well, but that is not to say i don't have junk food. I am in excellent physical condition from running on treadmills, lifting weights and exercising several times a week at a local gym, eating good most of the time, and exercising often enough are not very hard to do. Growing up, i was never forced by my parents to exercise or eat right, i just did it because i wanted to be in good shape and because i played (American) Football, i needed to be in good shape. I think that parents need to play a bigger part and get their kids off their rear ends and outside exercising and playing a sport. Their is no excuse for being unhealthy and overweight unless you have medical problems or other issues that may cause you to be over weight and unhealthy. [/rant]
Well I disagree with most of what is being said here. If an unhealthy or overweight kid is in a P.E. class, in my experience they'll slack off anyways. And they'll continue eating unhealthy. It doesn't matter that they're in the class. In my class we have a trail just over a mile that we have to run/jog. And the teacher even says "you only have to run half of it." And even with that, all the really fat kids run none of it since the teacher doesn't monitor them or anything. I've always been a "skinny kid" but I'm trying to get in better shape, so I actually lift weights and stuff outside of class. I mean you have to be active outside of the class anyway to stay fit. So doing stuff inside the class doesn't really do a lot for anyone. Fit kids will work outside of class, and fat kids won't, and will slack of in class anyways. But, for reasons I'll have trouble explaining, I do think it should be required. At my school you only need like 2 P.E. credits (4 semesters) so only the first two years you're in P.E. I think it works pretty well, because you can opt to continue taking P.E. or just quit it. I forgot why I brought that up, but I'm sure there's a good reason behind it. I think there is a certain amount of activity that students do while in P.E. (which varies with different classes). And that is good. If students are able to expand on that by doing a small amount of work outside (that's like an hour or so that they DIDN'T have to do since they were in P.E.) and eating well, then they should be able to stay fit and lose weight even. But it's up to the students how they use their P.E. time, and whether they'll expand on it for their benefit or just screw around and eat junk food. Also to this kid(because he had to be a douche about this): No one is impressed. You're bragging on a website. Get over yourself. That wasn't a rant. You can't do the /rant thing. That's my thing. For when I end a rant. That wasn't a rant. It was pathetic if you're going to call it a rant. It might do well if you call it an argument however.
absolutly, without it, there would be too many overweight childeren in the world, many kids get their daily exercise off of gym or swimming, hell... since school started my cardio is 2 times better because of swimming.
I completly agree with you there, you took the words right out of my mouth. And my school is kind of the same except the only running we do are 6 minute runs. The government set a new rule for our phys. ed. (which is now called active healthy lifestyles) making phys. ed. a mandatory course. I understand why they did it (For more healthy life styles and helping to overcome obesity) but i disagree becuase it doesn't work. Most of the time we're in the computer lab doing work on coaches being fair (why would i need to know that?). We are given a log and have to do 55 hours of exercise on our own time (like that works kids just fake the inputs). I also disagree with it because it just isn't fun when your not as good as the "jocks" and it can be embarassing. I guess the only thing i find useful in it is that it helps to releave some stress from a stressful day. But if they are playing a sport i don't like or the stupid "Beep Test" (i hate it so much, it beeps and you have to run to the other side before it beeps again it gets faster too) then it causes more stress. Not to mention that it screws up everyones timetables, making us have to take different courses then what we wanted (some will even have to overbook their scheduals or graduate late to get the courses they need). So simply put i am against gym being required. Maybe thats just becuase of the way the phys. ed. is set up here but i thinks its ridiculous.
At my school it really should be required.They serve fries with like 5 pounds of salt in each serving.It sounds disgusting,but it very good actually. The down side is that it make you big and buff...scratch that.The down side is that it makes you big and fat.The school board understands this so they made gym a required class. Now a days most children that go to school,either try to get good grades or go for the sake of going. Children that actually try to get good grades do it for one of 2 reasons or both.The first reason is that they try to please their parents with good grades. Fat kids cant do this if they are failing gym.But with the help of the gym coaches pushing them to there limit they wont be failing gym and they will be pleasing their parents. The second reason is that kids realize that school will build their future.Whether it be in sports or academics.In high school you have to play a sport to get into a good college.You cant really do this without playing a sport. So really gym should be required.