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participation in physical activity among staff.
Still another way to overcome the barriers to quality physical education 
is to assist administrative decision makers and policy makers in understand-

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Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
Educating the Student Body: Taking Physical Activity and Physical Education to School
Approaches to Physical Education in Schools
 
247
FIGURE 5-3
Example of a schedule demonstrating time for 150 minutes per week of physi-
cal education.
NOTES: Sample is taken from a teacher schedule in a combination special education and 
disabilities (SPED)/Spanish-language elementary class. PE = physical education; S.S. = social 
studies.
SOURCE: Large Urban Public School District, Miami-Dade County Public Schools.
Figure 5-3.eps
Monday
Tuesda y
Wednesday
Thursday
Frida y
8:35-8:50
8:50-9:05
9:05-9:20
Reading/Language Arts
9:20-9:35
9:35-9:50
9:50-10:05
10:05-10:20
S.S./Writing
S.S./Writing
S.S./Writing
S.S./Writing
S.S./Writing
10:20-10:35
30 Min. (in Spanish)
30 Min. (in Spanish)
30 Min. (in Spanish)
30 Min. (in Spanish)
30 Min. (in Spanish)
10:35-10:50
SPANISH
ART
SPANISH
MUSIC
RECESS
10:50-11:05
11:05-11:20
11:20-11:35
11:35-11:50
Lunch
11:50-12:05
.
n
i
M
0
3
m
p
5
0
:
2
1
-
5
3
:
1
1
12:05-12:20
PE 
PE 
PE 
PE 
PE 
12:20-12:35
30 Min.
30 Min.
30 Min.
30 Min.
30 Min.
12:35-12:50
12:50-1:05
MATHEMATICS
1:05-1:20
1:20-1:35
1:35-1:50
1:50-2:05
90 Min.
2:05-2:20
)
h
s
i
n
a
p
S
(
g
n
it
ir
W
)
h
s
i
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a
p
S
(
g
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it
ir
W
)
h
s
i
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S
(
g
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it
ir
W
)
h
s
i
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a
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S
(
g
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it
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W
2:20-2:35
.
n
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0
3
.
n
i
M
0
3
.
n
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M
0
3
.
n
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3
2:35-2:50
e
c
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S
l
a
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o
S
e
c
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i
c
S
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e
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S
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a
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S
e
c
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S
l
a
i
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S
2:50-3:05
.
n
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0
3
.
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M
0
3
.
n
i
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0
3
.
n
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0
3
ANY Public Schools
Generic - Dual Language Schedule
2012-2013
Teacher Schedule
Teacher: Jan Doe
(Mixed / SPED)
SCIENCE
LANGUAGE ARTS
LANGUAGE ARTS
LANGUAGE ARTS
LANGUAGE ARTS
EARLY DISMISSAL
RECESS
RECESS
E
C
N
E
I
C
S
E
C
N
E
I
C
S
LANGUAGE ARTS
ing the correlation between physical education and academic achievement 
(see Chapter 4). The report Active Education: Physical Education, Physical 
Activity and Academic Performance by Active Living Research (Trost, 
2009) cites evidence that “children who are physically active and fit tend to 
perform better in the classroom and that daily physical education does not 
adversely affect academic performance. Schools can provide outstanding 
learning environments while improving children’s health through physical 
education.” The findings reported include the following (p. 6):
•
“In some cases, more time in physical education leads to improved 
grades and standardized test scores.”
•
“Physically active and fit children tend to have better academic 
achievement.”

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Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
Educating the Student Body: Taking Physical Activity and Physical Education to School
248
 
Educating the Student Body
•
“Evidence links higher levels of physical fitness with better school 
attendance and fewer disciplinary problems.”
•
“There are several possible mechanisms by which physical education 
and regular physical activity may improve academic achievement, 
including enhanced concentration skills and classroom behavior.”
•
“Additional research is needed to determine the impact of physical 
activity on academic performance among those children who are at 
highest risk for obesity in the United States, including black, Latino, 
American Indian and Alaska Native, and Asian-American and 
Pacific Islander children, as well as children living in lower-income 
communities.” 
SUMMARY
Physical education is a formal content area of study in schools, it is 
standards based, and it encompasses assessment according to standards and 
benchmarks. Select curriculum-based physical education programs have 
been described in this chapter to show the potential of high-quality physical 
education in developing children into active adults. Such models provide 
the only opportunity for all school-age children to access health-enhancing 
physical activities. Curriculum models for physical education programs 
include movement education, which emphasizes the importance of funda-
mental motor skills competence as a prerequisite for engagement in physi-
cal activity throughout the life span; sport education, which emphasizes 
helping students become skillful players in lifetime sports of their choosing; 
and fitness education, which imparts physical fitness concepts to students, 
including the benefits and scientific principles of exercise, with the goal of 
developing and maintaining individual fitness and positive lifestyle change. 
The emergence of a technology-focused fitness education curriculum and 
the new Presidential Youth Fitness Program offer further motivational 
opportunities for students to engage in lifelong physical activities.
Because quality physical education programs are standards based and 
assessed, they are characterized by (1) instruction by certified physical edu-
cation teachers, (2) a minimum of 150 minutes per week for elementary 
schools and 225 minutes per week for middle and high schools, and (3) 
tangible standards for student achievement and for high school graduation. 
Quality professional development programs are an essential component for 
both novice and veteran teachers to ensure the continued delivery of quality 
physical education.
An analysis of datasets from NASPE, NASBE, and Bridging the Gap 
reveals that the implementation of supportive physical education policies 
varies from state to state and from school to school. Since passage of the 
No Child Left Behind Act in 2001, several studies and reports have identi-

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Educating the Student Body: Taking Physical Activity and Physical Education to School
Approaches to Physical Education in Schools
 
249
fied a decline in physical education resulting from the shifting of time to 
academic subjects. Because physical education is not a high-stakes tested 
content area, the implementation of supportive policies often is hindered 
by other education priorities. Although the above analysis indicates that 
30 states (74.5 percent) mandate physical education, most policies do not 
require specific amounts of instructional time, and more than half allow 
for waivers or exemptions. In addition, an unintended consequence of the 
No Child Left Behind Act has been disparities in access to physical educa-
tion and physical activity opportunities during the school day for Hispanic 
students and those of lower socioeconomic status. In high school, relying 
on students to elect physical education after meeting the minimum required 
credit hours (one credit in all states but one) appears to be unfruitful.
Strengthening of school physical education has received support from 
the public, health agencies, and parents. Parents recently surveyed expressed 
favorable views of physical education. Specifically:
•
A majority of parents (54-84 percent) believe that physical education 
is at least as important as other academic subjects (CDC, 2010).
•
Ninety-one percent believe that there should be more physical edu-
cation in schools (Harvard School of Public Health, 2003).
•
Seventy-six percent think that more school physical education could 
help control or prevent childhood obesity (NASPE, 2009a).
•
Ninety-five percent believe that regular daily physical activity helps 
children do better academically and should be a part of the school 
curriculum for all students in grades K-12 (NASPE, 2003).
Additionally, many public and private organizations have proposed 
initiatives aimed at developing a comprehensive school-based strategy 
centered on curriculum physical education. As the largest institution where 
children spend more than half of their waking hours on school days, 
schools can play a pivotal role in increasing students’ physical activity levels 
by providing access for all to quality physical education, along with physi-
cal activities throughout the school environment, the subject of Chapter 7.
REFERENCES
AAHPERD (American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance). 
2011. 2011 Comprehensive School Physical Activity Program (CSPAP) survey report. 
Reston, VA: AAHPERD.
AAHPERD. 2012. Let’s move in school. www.aahperd.org/letsmoveinschool (accessed 
April 15, 2012).
Abels, K. W., and J. M. Bridges. 2010. Teaching movement education: Foundations for 
active lifestyles. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics Publishers.

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