Physical Education Instructional Profile
and Needs Assessment in the Chicago Public Schools
D.Q. Thomas, P.
Faire, and S. Verbel
One of the major weapons in the battle against
the obesity epidemic is increased physical
activity. The best place for the children to learn the knowledge, skills,
and abilities associated
with living a physically active lifestyle is in physical education class.
Currently, physical
education instruction in the Chicago Public Schools (CPS) is in a period
of transition from
traditional models of physical education toward the "new" physical
education, which focuses on
learning about lifetime physical activity. The degree to which this transition
is occurring is
unknown.
The purpose of this study was to develop a profile of the delivery
of physical
education instruction and perform a needs assessment in the Chicago
Public Schools.
Methods
By using stratified random sampling, ten percent of Chicago’s
high schools and elementary
schools were recruited based on geographic location. One high school
was randomly selected
from each of the 9 areas defined by the CPS and 51 elementary schools
were randomly selected
from 35 CPS areas. Each school was visited by a research assistant
who toured the school and
worked with a school physical education teacher to complete a survey
of instructional issues and
needs. Additionally a search of administrative documents was conducted
to determine district
policy on physical education instruction.
Results
To date, data from
58 of the 60 schools have
been obtained. The Chicago Public Schools are operating under a citywide
exemption to the
Illinois state law mandating daily K-12 physical education. There are
no formal, written policies
for physical education instruction in the CPS. The quality of facilities
and instruction range from
the very good to non-existent. Three schools do not have a physical
education instructor on staff
and therefore do not offer any physical education.
Discussion
If physical
education is to play a
role in preventing obesity among Chicago’s children, improvement
in physical education
instruction and facilities will be necessary.
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